UWS Weekend: Great Things to Do in (and Around) the Neighborhood

By Tracy Zwick

April 3rd through 5th 

The McIntosh County Shouters: In Concert, at Miller Theater at Columbia University; Friday, April 3rd from 7:30 to 9 p.m.; 2960 Broadway near West 116th Street; tickets free, but reservations required (register here)

It’s not every day you get the chance to witness a foundational form of African American sacred music performed by one of the last active groups preserving the ring shout tradition, but you can today – and conveniently located right on the UWS.  The ring shout is rooted in the Gullah Geechee communities of coastal Georgia, where it endures as a sacred community practice involving call-and-response singing, clapping, a stick beat on the floor and a signature counterclockwise dance. It’s happening at Columbia’s Miller Theater – free and open to all (registration required). The concert’s presented by the Center for Jazz Studies at Columbia, which is also hosting a one-day symposium on the ring shout Friday. More info at jazz.columbia.edu.

Jewish Museum: Free for Passover: Thursday to Monday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. (closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays; open late Thursdays – till 8 p.m.); 1109 Fifth Avenue at East 92nd Street; free Friday in honor of Passover and always free on Saturdays

The Jewish holiday of Passover began with seders across the world on Wednesday evening, in celebration of the liberation of the ancient Israelites from slavery in Egypt. The holiday continues for eight additional days. In honor of the occasion, the Jewish Museum, which usually costs $24 for a full-price ticket, is offering free entry to all this Friday and Saturday. An exhibition of Swiss-born German artist Paul Klee’s late work is newly-opened, and a show of Joan Semmel’s “mesmerizing and beautiful” paintings is scheduled to close at the end of May.

Check out the Cherry Blossoms using the Central Park Cherry Blossom Tracker or take a walking tour Saturday, April 4th at 2 p.m., or Sunday, April 5th at 11 a.m.; tickets start at $30 (kids with an adult are free)

Central Park is looksmaxxing. The drive is freshly blacktopped, perfectly placed perennials have sprung forth from the ground, and the famous cherry blossoms are in tree branches across the northern part of the park. Discover the first blooms with the help of an online tracker, which the Tree Care team at the Central Park Conservancy updates regularly to help visitors find the most spectacular in-blossom trees around. The Conservancy’s also hosting a series of walks through flowering Cherry Blossom trees along the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Reservoir and environs, full of history concerning how the trees landed in NYC and how they survive.

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