By Tracy Zwick
June 12th through 14th
Early Voting: Starts Saturday, June 13th from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and continues on Sunday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and beyond; find your polling place here
The UWS is a national electoral hotspot, with open seats for both the U.S. House of Representatives and N.Y. State Assembly. Now that Jerry Nadler’s retiring after 34 years, NY’s 12th Congressional District, covering much of the UWS, is up for grabs in a momentous election cycle, as is NY State’s 69th Assembly District, which Micah Lasher is vacating to run for Congress. Incumbent U.S. Rep. Adriano Espaillat, the first Dominican elected to Congress, is in an attention-getting contest in the northern part of the UWS, and NY State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli’s in his first primary in 20 years. It’s an important election, and I’ll be taking this early opportunity to vote.
Watch the World Cup!
The group stage matches began yesterday, and Team USA opens its campaign today in L.A. Watch matches on one of many large screens at the AMNH, at your local NYPL (in English or Spanish at some locations), on the deck of the Intrepid, at the Children’s Museum of Manhattan with your little ones, or at local sports bars like Bodega 88 without them. Check out WSR’s World Cup preview for tournament-related shopping, playing and eating, in addition to watching. Add your preferred UWS World Cup venue in the comments!
”Uncle Vanya” in Riverside Park: Thursdays to Sundays through June 21st starting at 6:30 p.m., at The Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Monument in Riverside Park at West 89th Street; free (no reservations)
Hudson Classical Theater Company presents “Uncle Vanya” by Anton Chekhov, directed by Joseph Hamel, in the first of three summer productions. Arrive by 6:15 p.m. for a good seat. Cushions will be provided, and limited space is available to bring your own chair. HCT shows are “pay what you can” with donations solicited after the show. Note that visitors must take the path to the right of the monument, and walk around that path to get behind the monument for audience seating. HCT will also offer a “Shakespeare Workout” this weekend, teaching the basics of acting and stage combat to participants age 13 and up. It’s part of Riverside Park Conservancy’s “Summer on the Hudson” series of free events, and takes place Saturday, June 13th from 3 to 5 p.m. at the 89th Street Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Monument.
Metropolitan Opera Summer Recital in Jackie Robinson Park: Saturday, June 12th from 7 to 9 p.m.; 89 Bradhurst Avenue. near West 146th Street; free
The annual summer tradition of the Metropolitan Opera performing in city parks continues this weekend just north of the UWS. This concert showcases members of the Met’s Lindemann Young Artist Development Program, including Tessa McQueen, a soprano who spent the 2025-26 season as Helen in “The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay,” the First Lady in “Magic Flute,” and Annina in “La Traviata.” All ages are welcome.
Second Ending Ensemble at Alice Tully Hall: Sunday, June 14th at 3 p.m.; Alice Tully Hall at 1941 Broadway between West 65th and 66th streets; tickets start at $65
Musicians from the Metropolitan Opera and the NY Philharmonic will play Mahler’s Symphony No. 1, “Titan,” alongside Katia Lindor, the wife of Mets shortstop Fransisco Lindor, as well as other musicians including an international banker, an eyewear entrepreneur and a Crowdstrike engineer, among others this Sunday at Alice Tully Hall. The Second Ending Ensemble was founded in 2022 by Ian Carleton Schaefer, a partner at the international law firm Denton’s, after the longtime trumpet player undertook conducting studies at Juilliard at age 40. SEE brings together world-class pros and top musicians who’ve made professional pivots away from concert stages. Players from Broadway pits, Juilliard and New York Youth Symphony will also participate. A new work by Bobby Ge, which was selected through SEE’s first anonymous international competition, is also on the program.
“The Longest Table” Community Potluck: Sunday, June 14th from 5 to 7 p.m.; West 103rd Street between Broadway and West End Avenue. The free tickets went quickly, but you can sign up for the waitlist here, because hey, you never know!
This once-a-year dining experience is one of the best the UWS has to offer. “The Longest Table” returns to the neighborhood this Sunday, when West 103rd Still will be closed between Broadway and West End Avenue so picnic tables can be set up for a free (and delicious) neighborhood potluck. Last year’s event was wonderful, with friends and neighbors bringing everything from fresh flowers to flower-decorated layer cakes to beautify their tables, along with multi-course meals. I’ll miss this year’s iteration, because I’ll be at the SEE concert at Alice Tully. But I hope to return next year for this very special, very community-focused event. Organize a group or come on your own, or volunteer by emailing longesttable@w102-103blockassn.org.
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Uh…. Knicks on Saturday?