By Tracy Zwick
May 15th through 17th
“For the Win: Objects of Sports Excellence” at the American Museum of Natural History, 200 Central Park West (between West 77th and 81st streets): open daily 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.; pay-what-you-wish for NY state residents
Featuring one of Justin Tuck’s diamond-encrusted Super Bowl rings, Kevin Durant’s 2017 NBA Championship ring, Jesse Owens’s 1936 Olympic gold medal, the NY Liberty’s 2024 WNBA trophy, John McEnroe’s 1983 Wimbledon cup, the 2025 NFL Vince Lombardi trophy, and much more, the AMNH is showcasing ice this summer in its “For the Win” exhibition of glitzy sports trophies and memorabilia. Timed to open just as the NY-NJ area prepares to host the 2026 World Cup, the museum will soon offer live World Cup viewing parties, and open an interactive area where visitors can use soccer simulators, perform skills challenges, and try on jerseys. (Selfies allowed!) From baseball to boxing, soccer to swimming, running and rowing – this show will please sports fans and bling enthusiasts alike. Forget Brat summer. It’s GOAT season at AMNH.
Take a Free Tour of Seneca Village in Central Park: Saturday, May 16th at 1 and 3 p.m. and Sunday, May 17th at 1 p.m.; tours begin at the Seneca Village kiosk between West 85th Street and the West Drive (enter Central Park at West 85th Street); free
Central Park Conservancy guides will lead free tours of the site where a predominantly black community once existed along what is now Central Park’s perimeter from West 82nd to 89th streets. The tour’s part of the New York Landmarks Conservancy’s Sacred Sites Open House weekend. If a guided tour is full, visitors are welcome to take self-guided walks at the site this weekend, using the in-park interpretive signs as stopping points. Seneca Village includes three churches, which will be discussed, along with the events that led to the displacement of Seneca Village’s residents for the construction of Central Park.
Central City Chorus “The Spirit of 1776: A 250th Anniversary Celebration in Song”: Saturday, May 16th at 7 p.m.; St. Paul & St. Andrew United Methodist Church, at 263 West 86th St.; tickets start at $30
Unless you’ve had noise-cancelling headphones and a blindfold on, you probably know we’re coming up on America’s 250th birthday. The UWS’s own Central City Chorus, which celebrates its own 45th birthday this year, is honoring the occasion with a choral program featuring music by Bernstein, Billings, Copland, Florence Price, and others. Singing tunes from Revolutionary to modern scores, the chorus hopes to “honor the enduring American ideals of liberty, hope, and unity in song.”
Sun Gaze Sunday at Pier I: Sunday, May 17th from 1 to 4 p.m.; at Pier I at West 70th Street on the Hudson; Free
Join the Amateur Astronomers Association to view the sun, safely, through solar-filtered telescopes at Pier i all the way west at the Hudson River in Riverside Park. If it’s cloudy or inclement, check the website before going. And never look directly at the sun without a proper filter! This event is part of Riverside Park Conservancy’s “Summer on the Hudson” programming. It will occur again on June 7th, July 26th, August 16th and September 20th.
Subscribe to West Side Rag’s FREE email newsletter here. And you can Support the Rag here.
Some smaller things happening in the Morningside Heights neighborhood:
1. Saturday, May 16 from 1:00-2:00 in Straus Park at 106th and Broadway/West End, a free Beatles singalong — bring your own chair.
2. Friday, May 15 through Sunday, May 17 Book Culture is having it’s annual 20% off sale. (Does this count as an “event”? If you love books, it does.
3. Saturday, May 16 from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. in Riverside Park – “Sandsational,” where kids and their parents can help refurbish the sandboxes at these playgrounds (only two are in Morningside Heights): Neufeld Playground (76th St); Tot Lot (110th St); Tot Lot (116th St); Riverbank Playground (143rd St); Discovery Playground (165th St)
Sam, for some reason Emily doesn’t believe you deserve thanks — or at least MY thanks — for your Book Culture tip, but I continue trying nonetheless. Perhaps she’s hoping to bolster my reputation as a grouch.
Thank you. This type of list is what I was looking for.
Also noting Columbus Open Streets is back on Sunday from 11am-7pm from 68th to 77th, the weather looks perfect for it, should be a great time as usual!
Yup, you can have it t yourself. The rest of the folk will be in the park like normal people.
Even on a hot day like today, there are lots of people out here enjoying themselves. I’ll be sure to inform the 10 kids playing with the open street toys and the 14 people in the street in front of Muffins that you think they are abnormal though
10 kids and 15 adults? 24 people?! Wow, definitely worth closing off a couple of blocks.
You seem to live in alternate reality. All this adoration of Open Streets seems strange, considering it is hot and there are 2 beautiful shady parks within minutes.
I went there today and even took a picture of these miserable empty Open Streets.
There was one table in the middle of the road with a few people sitting down while it was in the shade.
That’s it.
I can provide the pic to WSR.
And open streets means hassles getting the M7 and M11.
But last year I did see that the Columbus open streets had caught the attention of tourist-instagram-TikTok folks.
Apparently that is most important
Thanks for the convenient guide to normalcy. We can always count on you for such wisdom.
Join your local community on Saturdays at 5pm to practice meditation out of doors in Central Park near the West 100th Street entrance. We practice mostly in the Buddhist tradition with both experienced practitioners and those new to meditation welcome. Freely offered to the community. RSVP to nyc.kalyana.mitta@gmail.com