twi-ny recommended events

FREE SUMMER FILMS 2014

French classic PURPLE NOON will screen

French classic PURPLE NOON will screen in Central Park on May 30

There’s nothing quite like catching a free movie in the summer in New York City, lying on a blanket in a park, gathering on an aircraft carrier, or huddling in an air-conditioned theater. The season’s free festivals are slowly being announced, with more to come. Below are the day-by-day listings of favorites as well as lesser-known festivals, including Summer on the Hudson, Rooftop Films, the Bryant Park Summer Film Festival, the Intrepid Summer Movie Series, Syfy Movies with a View, SummerScreen, Films on the Green, Outdoor Cinema at Socrates Sculpture Park, Red Hook Flicks on Valentino Pier, the Central Park Conservancy Film Festival in Central Park, Front/Row Cinema at the South Street Seaport, SummerStage, RiverFlicks, Coney Island Flicks on the Beach, Passport Thursdays at the Queens Museum, and Celebrate Brooklyn! Keep watching this page as more festivals are announced. (Films without exact start times generally begin around sunset.)

Saturday, May 17
Feature Screenings: The Iron Giant (Brad Bird, 1999), Sony Wonder Technology Lab, 3:00 (RSVP two weeks in advance)

Wednesday, May 21
Rooftop Films: Cold in July (Jim Mickle, 2014), Solar One, free for Time Warner Cable customers with RSVP, live music at 8:30, screening at 9:00, followed by Q&A with director Jim Mickle and star Michael C. Hall

Friday, May 23
Intrepid Summer Movie Series: Top Gun (Tony Scott, 1986), Intrepid flight deck

Saturday, May 24
Feature Screenings: Short Circuit (John Badham, 1986), Sony Wonder Technology Lab, 3:00 (RSVP two weeks in advance)

Friday, May 30
Movies at Crocheron Park: Super Buddies (Robert Vince, 2013), Crocheron Park, 8:00

Films on the Green: Purple Noon (René Clément, 1960), Cedar Hill in Central Park, 8:30

Saturday, May 31
Feature Screenings: Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla (Jun Fukuda, 1974), Sony Wonder Technology Lab, 3:00 (RSVP two weeks in advance)

Front/Row Cinema: Jaws (Steven Spielberg, 1975), South Street Seaport

Wednesday, June 4
Front/Row Cinema: WALL-E (Andrew Stanton, 2008), South Street Seaport

Friday, June 6
Movies at Crocheron Park: Brave (Mark Andrews & Brenda Chapman, 2012), Crocheron Park, 8:00

Rooftop Films: Sundance Film Festival Shorts, preceded by live music by Salt Cathedral, Metro-Tech Commons, music at 8:30, screening at 9:00

Films on the Green: Les Tontons Flinguers (Georges Lautner, 1963), Washington Square Park, 8:30

Saturday, June 7
Feature Screenings: The Monuments Men (George Clooney, 2014), Sony Wonder Technology Lab, 12:15 (RSVP two weeks in advance)

Feature Screenings: After Earth (M. Night Shyamalan, 2014), Sony Wonder Technology Lab, 3:00 (RSVP two weeks in advance)

Front/Row Cinema: Rise of the Planet of the Apes (Rupert Wyatt, 2011), South Street Seaport

Wednesday, June 11
Front/Row Cinema: The Muppets Take Manhattan (Frank Oz, 1984), South Street Seaport

Friday, June 13
Movies at Crocheron Park: Tangled (Nathan Greno & Byron Howard, 2010), Crocheron Park, 8:00

Films on the Green: Buffet Froid (Bertrand Blier, 1979), Washington Square Park, 8:30

Saturday, June 14
Feature Screenings: The Past (Asghar Farhadi, 2013), Sony Wonder Technology Lab, 12:15 (RSVP two weeks in advance)

Feature Screenings: Think Like a Man (Tim Story, 2012), Sony Wonder Technology Lab, 3:00 (RSVP two weeks in advance)

Front/Row Cinema: The Breakfast Club (John Hughes, 1985), South Street Seaport

Monday, June 16
Bryant Park Summer Film Festival: Saturday Night Fever (John Badham, 1977), Bryant Park Lawn

Wednesday, June 18
Front/Row Cinema: Rango (Gore Verbinski, 2011), South Street Seaport

Thursday, June 19
BAMcinemafest Outdoor Screening, with live music and food, Pier 1, Brooklyn Bridge Park

Friday, June 20
Films on the Green: The Women on the Sixth Floor (Philippe Le Guay, 2010), Tompkins Square Park, 8:30

Saturday, June 21
Feature Screenings: The Social Network (David Fincher, 2010), Sony Wonder Technology Lab, 12:15 (RSVP two weeks in advance)

Feature Screenings: Searching for Sugar Man (Malik Bendjelloul, 2012) Sony Wonder Technology Lab, 3:00 (RSVP two weeks in advance)

Front/Row Cinema: The Perks of Being a Wallflower (Stephen Chbosky, 2012), South Street Seaport

Sunday, June 22
SummerStage: Whistle! A Tribute to Frankie Knuckles, with the Soul Summit DJs, DJ Kervyn Mark, DJ Stormin’ Norman, vocalists Kenny Bobien and Lynn Lockamy, and others, followed by a screening of the director’s cut of Hands to the Sky (Angelo Boyke & Jean-Paul Noel, 2012), Herbert von King Park, 7:00

Monday, June 23
Bryant Park Summer Film Festival: The Mark of Zorro (Rouben Mamoulian, 1940), Bryant Park Lawn

RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK is part of free summer tribute at the Museum of Jewish Heritage

RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK is part of free summer tribute at the Museum of Jewish Heritage

Wednesday, June 25
Close Encounters of the Spielberg Kind: Raiders of the Lost Ark (Steven Spielberg, 1981), Museum of Jewish Heritage, 6:30

Front/Row Cinema: Brave (Mark Andrews & Brenda Chapman, 2012), South Street Seaport

Friday, June 27
Films on the Green: La Haine (Mathieu Kassovitz, 1995), Tompkins Square Park, 8:30

Rooftop Films: Five Star (Keith Miller, 2014), Metro-Tech Commons, 9:00

Saturday, June 28
Feature Screenings: Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2 (Cody Cameron & Kris Pearn, 2013), Sony Wonder Technology Lab, 12:15 (RSVP two weeks in advance)

Feature Screenings: The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones (Harald Zwart, 2013), Sony Wonder Technology Lab, 3:00 (RSVP two weeks in advance)

Monday, June 30
Bryant Park Summer Film Festival: A Soldier’s Story (Norman Jewison, 1984), Bryant Park Lawn

Coney Island Flicks on the Beach: Gravity (Alfonso Cuarón, 2013), beach at West Tenth St.

Wednesday, July 2
Close Encounters of the Spielberg Kind: Saving Private Ryan (Steven Spielberg, 1998), Museum of Jewish Heritage, 6:30

Outdoor Cinema: Pussy Riot: A Punk Prayer (Maxim Pozdorovkin & Mike Lerner, 2013), Socrates Sculpture Park, preceded by live music at 7:00

Front/Row Cinema: The Karate Kid (John G. Avildsen, 1984), South Street Seaport

Saturday, July 5
Pier/Party: The Avengers (Joss Whedon, 2012), South Street Seaport, preceded by Midtown Comics Fan Party at 4:00

Monday, July 7
Bryant Park Summer Film Festival: Blazing Saddles (Mel Brooks, 1974), Bryant Park Lawn

Coney Island Flicks on the Beach: Frozen (Chris Buck & Jennifer Lee, 2013), beach at West Tenth St.

Tuesday, July 8
Rooftop Films at Bronx Terminal Market: Frozen (Chris Buck & Jennifer Lee, 2013), Level 6 Garage Roof Deck, activities 7:00, film 8:30

Red Hook Flicks: Dazed and Confused (Richard Linklater, 1993), Valentino Pier

Wednesday, July 9
Close Encounters of the Spielberg Kind: Jurassic Park (Steven Spielberg, 1993), Museum of Jewish Heritage, 6:30

Outdoor Cinema: La Pirogue (Moussa Touré, 2012), Socrates Sculpture Park, preceded by live music at 7:00

Front/Row Cinema: Wreck-It Ralph (Rich Moore, 2012), South Street Seaport

SummerScreen: Back to the Future (Robert Zemeckis, 1985), McCarren Park

Summer on the Hudson: Pier I Picture Show presents Clueless (Amy Heckerling, 1995), Riverside Park, 8:30

RiverFlicks — Big Hit Wednesdays: Iron Man 3 (Shane Black, 2013), Pier 63, Hudson River Park

Thursday, July 10
Intrepid Summer Movie Series: Independence Day (Roland Emmerich, 1996), Intrepid flight deck

Syfy Movies with a View: Duck Soup (Leo McCarey, 1933), Pier 1, Brooklyn Bridge Park

Friday, July 11
RiverFlicks Family Fridays: Despicable Me 2 (Pierre Coffin & Chris Renaud, 2013), Pier 46, Hudson River Park

Rooftop Films: Broken Hearted: Twisted, Romantic Short Films, Metro-Tech Commons, 8:00

Films on the Green: The Moustache (Emmanuel Carrère, 2005), Pier 1, Riverside Park, 8:30

Saturday, July 12
Front/Row Cinema: I Am Legend (Francis Lawrence, 2007), South Street Seaport

Monday, July 14
Bryant Park Summer Film Festival: Suddenly Last Summer (Joseph L. Mankiewicz, 1959), Bryant Park Lawn

Coney Island Flicks on the Beach: E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (Steven Spielberg, 1982), beach at West Tenth St.

Tuesday, July 15
Rooftop Films at Bronx Terminal Market: The Odd Life of Timothy Green (Peter Hedges, 2012), Level 6 Garage Roof Deck, activities 7:00, film 8:30

Red Hook Flicks: Hustle and Flow (Craig Brewer, 2005), Valentino Pier

Wednesday, July 16
Close Encounters of the Spielberg Kind: Amistad (Steven Spielberg, 1997), Museum of Jewish Heritage, 6:30

Outdoor Cinema: The Deadly Ponies Gang (Zoe McIntosh, 2013), Socrates Sculpture Park, preceded by live music at 7:00

Front/Row Cinema: Fantastic Mr. Fox (Wes Anderson, 2009), South Street Seaport

SummerScreen: Zoolander (Ben Stiller, 2001), McCarren Park

Summer on the Hudson: Pier I Picture Show presents Back to the Future (Robert Zemeckis, 1985), Riverside Park, 8:30

RiverFlicks — Big Hit Wednesdays: American Hustle (David O. Russell, 2013), Pier 63, Hudson River Park

SHARKNADO will wreak havoc in Brooklyn Bridge Park on July 17

SHARKNADO will wreak havoc in Brooklyn Bridge Park on July 17

Thursday, July 17
The Historic Harlem Parks Film Festival: Brothers Hypnotic (Reuben Atlas, 2013), “Horn Section” DJ set with DJ Laylo at 7:30, film screening at 8:30, Jackie Robinson Park Bandshell

Intrepid Summer Movie Series: Gravity (Alfonso Cuarón, 2013), Intrepid flight deck

Syfy Movies with a View: Sharknado (Anthony C. Ferrante, 2013), Pier 1, Brooklyn Bridge Park

Friday, July 18
RiverFlicks Family Fridays: Ghostbusters (Ivan Reitman, 1984), Pier 46, Hudson River Park

Films on the Green: Grand Illusion (Jean Renoir, 1937), Pier 1, Riverside Park, 8:30

Saturday, July 19
Front/Row Cinema: True Grit (Joel & Ethan Coen, 2010), South Street Seaport

Monday, July 21
Bryant Park Summer Film Festival: National Lampoon’s Vacation (Harold Ramis, 1983), Bryant Park Lawn

Coney Island Flicks on the Beach: Iron Man 3 (Shane Black, 2013), beach at West Tenth St.

Tuesday, July 22
Red Hook Flicks: Hotel Transylvania (Genndy Tartakovsky, 2012), Valentino Pier

Wednesday, July 23
Close Encounters of the Spielberg Kind: Close Encounters of the Third Kind (Steven Spielberg, 1977), Museum of Jewish Heritage, 6:30

Outdoor Cinema: Umberto D. (Vittorio De Sica, 1952), Socrates Sculpture Park, preceded by live music at 7:00

The Historic Harlem Parks Film Festival: The Night James Brown Saved Boston (David Leaf, 2008), “Godfather of Soul” DJ set with DJ Chairman Mao at 7:30, film screening at 8:30, St. Nicholas Park

Front/Row Cinema: E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (Steven Spielberg, 1982), South Street Seaport

SummerScreen: Cry-Baby (John Waters, 1990), McCarren Park

Summer on the Hudson: Pier I Picture Show presents Harold and Maude (Hal Ashby, 1971), Riverside Park, 8:30

RiverFlicks — Big Hit Wednesdays: This Is the End (Seth Rogen & Evan Goldberg, 2013), Pier 63, Hudson River Park

Thursday, July 24
Seaport Film & Food Festival: Cockpit (Mårten Klingberg, 2012), with free Swedish cuisine and drinks, South Street Seaport, 6:00

Intrepid Summer Movie Series: Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (Gore Verbinski, 2003), Intrepid flight deck

Syfy Movies with a View: Fantastic Mr. Fox (Wes Anderson, 2009), Pier 1, Brooklyn Bridge Park

Rooftop Films: Animation Block Party, Brookfield Place, Winter Garden, live music at 8:30, short films at 9:00

Friday, July 25
Celebrate Brooklyn! Music and Movies: Amandla: A Revolution in Four-Part Harmony (Lee Hirsch, 2002) and Second-Hand Reading (William Kentridge, 2013), with live score performed by Neo Muyanga, Prospect Park Bandshell, 7:30

RiverFlicks Family Fridays: Ghostbusters II (Ivan Reitman, 1989), Pier 46, Hudson River Park

Films on the Green: Le Magnifique (Philippe de Broca, 1973), Transmitter Park, 8:30

Rooftop Films: NY Shorts, Brookfield Place, Winter Garden, live music at 8:30, short films at 9:00

Saturday, July 26
Front/Row Cinema: Men in Black 3 (Barry Sonnenefeld, 2012), South Street Seaport

Rooftop Films: The Case of the Three Sided Dream (Adam Kahan, 2014), Brookfield Place, Winter Garden, live music at 8:30, screening at 9:00

Monday, July 28
Bryant Park Summer Film Festival: Key Largo (John Huston, 1948), Bryant Park Lawn

Coney Island Flicks on the Beach: The Lego Movie (Chris Miller & Phil Lord, 2014), beach at West Tenth St.

Tuesday, July 29
Rooftop Films at Bronx Terminal Market: Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2 (Cody Cameron & Kris Pearn, 2013), Level 6 Garage Roof Deck, activities 7:00, film 8:30

AT&T Film for All: When Harry Met Sally (Rob Reiner, 1989), the Beach at Coney Island, 3059 West Twelfth St., 8:30

Red Hook Flicks: Fried Green Tomatoes (Jon Avnet, 1991), Valentino Pier

The Heathers will hatch quite a plan in

The Heathers will hatch quite a plan in McCarren Park on July 30

Wednesday, July 30
Close Encounters of the Spielberg Kind: Schindler’s List (Steven Spielberg, 1993), Museum of Jewish Heritage, 6:30

Dahesh Museum of Art Wednesday Night Movies: The Heiress (William Wyler, 1949), with free drinks and popcorn, Dahesh Museum of Art Gift Shop, 145 Sixth Ave., 6:30

Outdoor Cinema: Viola (Matias Piñeiro, 2013), Socrates Sculpture Park, preceded by live music at 7:00

Front/Row Cinema: The Goonies (Richard Donner, 1985), South Street Seaport

SummerScreen: Heathers (Michael Lehmann, 1988), McCarren Park

Summer on the Hudson: Pier I Picture Show presents The Princess Bride (Rob Reiner, 1987), Riverside Park, 8:30

RiverFlicks — Big Hit Wednesdays: The Lego Movie (Chris Miller & Phil Lord, 2014), Pier 63, Hudson River Park

Thursday, July 31
Seaport Film & Food Festival: Nosotros los Nobles (The Noble Family) (Gary Alazraki, 2013), with free Mexican cuisine and drinks, South Street Seaport, 6:00

Passport Thursdays: India, with The World Before Her (Nisha Pahuja, 2012) and dance performance by Sonali Skandan & Jiva Dance, outside Queens Museum in Flushing Meadows Park, 7:00

Intrepid Summer Movie Series: The Hunt for Red October (John McTiernan, 1990), Intrepid flight deck

Syfy Movies with a View: Beetlejuice (Tim Burton, 1988), Pier 1, Brooklyn Bridge Park

Friday, August 1
RiverFlicks Family Fridays: Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2 (Cody Cameron & Kris Pearn, 2013), Pier 46, Hudson River Park

Films on the Green: 2 Autumns, 3 Winters (Sébastien Betbeder, 2013), Transmitter Park, 8:30

Saturday, August 2
Front/Row Cinema: When Harry Met Sally (Rob Reiner, 1989), South Street Seaport

Sunday, August 3
Nitehawk Outdoors — 50 Kent Festival: ¡Three Amigos! (John Landis, 1986), 50 Kent Ave., live music at 7:00, screening at sunset

Monday, August 4
Bryant Park Summer Film Festival: The Karate Kid (John G. Avildsen, 1984), Bryant Park Lawn

Coney Island Flicks on the Beach: American Hustle (David O. Russell, 2013), beach at West Tenth St.

Tuesday, August 5
Red Hook Flicks: Paris Is Burning (Jennie Livingston, 1991), Valentino Pier

Wednesday, August 6
Close Encounters of the Spielberg Kind: Jaws (Steven Spielberg, 1975), Museum of Jewish Heritage, 6:30

Dahesh Museum of Art Wednesday Night Movies: The Picture of Dorian Gray (Albert Lewin, 1945), with free drinks and popcorn, Dahesh Museum of Art Gift Shop, 145 Sixth Ave., 6:30

Outdoor Cinema: Forest of the Dancing Spirits (Linda Västrik, 2013), Socrates Sculpture Park, preceded by live music at 7:00

Front/Row Cinema: The Croods (Kirk DeMicco & Chris Sanders, 2013), South Street Seaport

SummerScreen: The Big Lebowski (Joel & Ethan Coen, 1998), McCarren Park

Summer on the Hudson: Pier I Picture Show presents Anchors Aweigh (George Sidney, 1945), Riverside Park, 8:30

RiverFlicks — Big Hit Wednesdays: Lone Survivor (Peter Berg, 2013), Pier 63, Hudson River Park

Thursday, August 7
The LOT LIC Film Series: Chop Shop (Ramin Bahrani, 2008), 43-29 Crescent St., Long Island City, 6:00

Passport Thursdays: Brazil, with O Mistério do Samba (Carolina Jabor Lula Buarque de Hollanda, 2008) and live music and dance by Batala NYC, outside Queens Museum in Flushing Meadows Park, 7:00

Intrepid Summer Movie Series: Spaceballs (Mel Brooks, 1987), Intrepid flight deck

Syfy Movies with a View: Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (Richard Brooks, 1958), Pier 1, Brooklyn Bridge Park

Friday, August 8
RiverFlicks Family Fridays: Groundhog Day (Harold Ramis, 1993), Pier 46, Hudson River Park

Saturday, August 9
Front/Row Cinema: Four Weddings and a Funeral (Mike Newell, 1994), South Street Seaport

Monday, August 11
Bryant Park Summer Film Festival: Lover Come Back (Delbert Mann, 1961), Bryant Park Lawn

Tuesday, August 12
Red Hook Flicks: Madagascar (Eric Darnell & Tom McGrath, 2005), Valentino Pier

Movies at Crocheron Park: Despicable Me 2 (Pierre Coffin & Chris Renaud, 2013), Crocheron Park, 8:00

Wednesday, August 13
SummerStage: Bobby Sanabria and screening of Chico & Rita (Tono Errando, Javier Mariscal & Fernando Trueba, 2010), Marcus Garvey Park, 6:00

Close Encounters of the Spielberg Kind: E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (Steven Spielberg, 1982), Museum of Jewish Heritage, 6:30

Dahesh Museum of Art Wednesday Night Movies: The Moon and Sixpence (Albert Lewin, 1942), with free drinks and popcorn, Dahesh Museum of Art Gift Shop, 145 Sixth Ave., 6:30

Front/Row Cinema: Charlie & the Chocolate Factory (Tim Burton, 2005), South Street Seaport

Outdoor Cinema: 13 Assassins (Takashi Miike, 2011), Socrates Sculpture Park, preceded by live music at 7:00

SummerScreen: Audience Pick, McCarren Park

Summer on the Hudson: Pier I Picture Show presents The Outsiders (Francis Ford Coppola, 1983), Riverside Park, 8:30

RiverFlicks — Big Hit Wednesdays: The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (Francis Lawrence, 2013), Pier 63, Hudson River Park

Captain Phillips lands on the Intrepid on

Captain Phillips lands on the Intrepid on August 14

Thursday, August 14
Seaport Film & Food Festival: Au Revoir Taipei (Arvin Chen, 2010), with free Taiwanese cuisine and drinks, South Street Seaport, 6:00

The LOT LIC Film Series: Polyester (John Waters, 1981), 43-29 Crescent St., Long Island City, 6:00

SummerStage: Bobby Sanabria and screening of Chico & Rita (Javier Mariscal, Fernando Trueba & Tono Errando, 2010), Marcus Garvey Park, 6:00

Passport Thursdays: Cuba, with Habanastation (Ian Padrón, 2012) and live music by the Cimarron Project, outside Queens Museum in Flushing Meadows Park, 7:00

Intrepid Summer Movie Series: Captain Phillips (Paul Greengrass, 2013), Intrepid flight deck

Syfy Movies with a View: Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai (Jim Jarmusch, 1999), Pier 1, Brooklyn Bridge Park

Friday, August 15
RiverFlicks Family Fridays: The Smurfs 2 (Raja Gosnell, 2013), Pier 46, Hudson River Park

Saturday, August 16
Front/Row Cinema: When Harry Met Sally (Rob Reiner, 1989), South Street Seaport

Sunday, August 17
SummerStage: Nuyorican Poets Café 40th Anniversary Celebration, with screening of Our Latin Thing (Leon Gast, 1972), East River Park, 6:00

SummerStage: Bellatrix! A Soul Train Tribute to Women in Music, with Ubiquita Sound System and screening of Twenty Feet from Stardom (Morgan Neville, 2013), Marcus Garvey Park, 6:00

Monday, August 18
Central Park Conservancy Film Festival – Scenes from Our City: Big (Penny Marshall, 1988), north of Sheep Meadow, 8:00

Bryant Park Summer Film Festival: The Shining (Stanley Kubrick, 1980), Bryant Park Lawn

Tuesday, August 19
Red Hook Flicks: Independence Day (Roland Emmerich, 1996), Valentino Pier

Central Park Conservancy Film Festival – Scenes from Our City: The Royal Tenenbaums (Wes Anderson, 2001), north of Sheep Meadow, 8:00

Movies at Crocheron Park: Monsters University (Dan Scanlon, 2013), Crocheron Park, 8:00

Wednesday, August 20
Dahesh Museum of Art Wednesday Night Movies: The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (Alfred L. Werker, 1939), with free drinks and popcorn, Dahesh Museum of Art Gift Shop, 145 Sixth Ave., 6:30

RiverFlicks — Big Hit Wednesdays: Captain Phillips (Paul Greengrass, 2013), Pier 63, Hudson River Park

Front/Row Cinema: Who Framed Roger Rabbit (Robert Zemeckis, 1988), South Street Seaport

Central Park Conservancy Film Festival – Scenes from Our City: The Way We Were (Sydney Pollack, 1988), north of Sheep Meadow, 8:00

Thursday, August 21
Seaport Film & Food Festival: Amélie (Jean-Pierre Jeunet, 2001), with free French cuisine and drinks, South Street Seaport, 6:00

The LOT LIC Film Series: Strictly Ballroom (Baz Luhrmann, 1992), 43-29 Crescent St., Long Island City, 6:00

Passport Thursdays: Korea, with Approved for Adpotion (Laurent Boileau & Jung Henin, 2012) and dance performance by Song Hee Lee Dance Company, outside Queens Museum in Flushing Meadows Park, 7:00

Syfy Movies with a View: The Birds (Alfred Hitchcock, 1963), Pier 1, Brooklyn Bridge Park

Central Park Conservancy Film Festival – Scenes from Our City: Coming to America (John Landis, 1988), north of Sheep Meadow, 8:00

Friday, August 22
RiverFlicks Family Fridays: The Wizard of Oz (Victor Fleming, 1939), Pier 46, Hudson River Park

Central Park Conservancy Film Festival – Scenes from Our City: Rear Window (Alfred Hitchcock, 1954), north of Sheep Meadow, 8:00

Saturday, August 23
Front/Row Cinema: The Aviator (Martin Scorsese, 2004), South Street Seaport

Tuesday, August 26
Red Hook Flicks Neighborhood Choice: On the Waterfront (Elia Kazan, 1954), Valentino Pier

Movies at Crocheron Park: Europa Report (Sebastián Cordero, 2013), Crocheron Park, 8:00

Wednesday, August 27
Outdoor Cinema: Microcosmos (Claude Nuridsany and Marie Perénnou, 1996), Socrates Sculpture Park, preceded by live music at 7:00

Front/Row Cinema: Frozen (Chris Buck & Jennifer Lee, 2013), South Street Seaport

Thursday, August 28
The LOT LIC Film Series: The Triplets of Belleville (Sylvain Chomet, 2003), 43-29 Crescent St., Long Island City, 6:00

Syfy Movies with a View: Public Vote, Monty Python and the Holy Grail (Terry Gilliam & Terry Jones, 1975), Groundhog Day (Harold Ramis, 1993), or Who Framed Roger Rabbit (Robert Zemeckis, 1988), Pier 1, Brooklyn Bridge Park

Saturday, August 30
Front/Row Cinema: Crazy, Stupid, Love (John Requa & Glenn Ficarra, 2011), South Street Seaport

Sunday, August 31
Front/Row Cinema: Skyfall (Sam Mednes, 2012), South Street Seaport

Thursday, September 4
The LOT LIC Film Series: Lo Quattro Volte (Michelangelo Frammartino, 2010), 43-29 Crescent St., Long Island City, 6:00

Films on the Green: The French Minister (Bertrand Tavernier, 2013), Columbia University, 7:30

Thursday, September 11
The LOT LIC Film Series: Pariah (Dee Rees, 2011), 43-29 Crescent St., Long Island City, 6:00

Thursday, September 18
The LOT LIC Film Series: Wild Style (Charlie Ahearn, 1983), 43-29 Crescent St., Long Island City, 6:00

BIG APPLE BARBECUE BLOCK PARTY 2014

There’s plenty of smokin’ good ’cue at annual BBQ Block Party in Madison Square Park (photo by twi-ny/mdr)

There’s plenty of smokin’ good ’cue at annual BBQ block party in Madison Square Park (photo by twi-ny/mdr)

Madison Square Park
23rd to 26th Sts. between Fifth & Madison Aves.
Saturday, June 7, and Sunday, June 8, 11:00 am – 6:00 pm
Admission: free; $9 per plate of barbecue, $3-$8 per dessert
Fast Pass: $125; BigPiggin’ Pass: $265
www.bigapplebbq.org
www.madisonsquarepark.org
big apple barbecue block party 2013 slideshow

The immensely popular and ridiculously crowded Big Apple Barbecue Block Party is less than a month away, when pitmasters from around the country gather in Madison Square Park and serve up some damn fine BBQ. The twelfth annual event, being held June 7-8, features some old favorites as well as some up-and-comers: North Carolina’s Ed Mitchell, Mike Mills of the 17th Street Bar & Grill (Murphysboro, Illinois), Chris Lilly of Big Bob Gibson Bar-B-Q (Decatur, Alabama), Joe Duncan of Baker’s Ribs (Dallas), Mike Emerson of Pappy’s Smokehouse (St. Louis), Jimmy Hagood of BlackJack Barbecue (Charleston, South Carolina), Patrick Martin of Martin’s Bar-B-Que Joint (Nashville), Garry Roark of Ubon’s Barbeque of Yazoo (Yazoo City, Mississippi), Scott Roberts of the Salt Lick Bar-B-Que (Driftwood, Texas), John Wheeler of Memphis Barbecue Co. (Horn Lake, Mississippi), Rodney Scott of Scott’s Bar-B-Que (Hemingway, South Carolina), Sam Jones of the Skylight Inn (Ayden, North Carolina), and local purveyors Jean-Paul Bourgeois of Blue Smoke, Charles Grund Jr. of Hill Country, John Stage of Dinosaur Bar-B-Que, and Daniel Delaney of Delaney Barbecue. The lines can get extremely long, so the best way to enjoy the event is to go with a bunch of friends, get on different lines, and then gather in the park to devour your meal. Each plate of ’cue is nine bucks, with desserts ranging from three to eight dollars each. Even the express lines for those BBQ lovers with the FastPass can get long — the FastPass is $125, with $100 redeemable for food, and tends to sell out in advance — so this year you can get the BigPiggin’ Pass, where for $265 you get $100 worth of barbecue using the express line and access to the VIP hospitality tent, which includes a Danny Meyer southern buffet, open bar (wine, beer, specialty cocktails), shaded seating, and air-conditioned rest rooms. There will also be live music, seminars, cooking demos, and more.

AN AUTEURIST HISTORY OF FILM: MY NIGHT AT MAUD’S

Jean-Louis (Jean-Louis Trintignant) is more than a little intrigued by Maud (Françoise Fabian) in the fourth of Eric Rohmer’s Six Moral Tales

MY NIGHT AT MAUD’S (MA NUIT CHEZ MAUD) (Eric Rohmer, 1969)
MoMA Film, Museum of Modern Art
The Lewis B. and Dorothy Cullman Education and Research Building
4 West 54th St. between Fifth & Sixth Aves.
May 14-16, 1:30
Tickets: $12, in person only, may be applied to museum admission within thirty days, same-day screenings free with museum admission, available at Film and Media Desk beginning at 9:30 am
212-708-9400
www.moma.org

Nominated for the Palme d’Or and a Best Foreign Language Film Oscar, My Night at Maud’s, Éric Rohmer’s fourth entry in his Six Moral Tales series (Claire’s Knee, Love in the Afternoon), continues the French director’s fascinating exploration of love, marriage, and tangled relationships. Three years removed from playing the romantic racecar driver Jean-Louis in Claude Lelouch’s A Man and a Woman, Jean-Louis Trintignant again stars as a man named Jean-Louis, this time a single thirty-four-year-old Michelin engineer living a relatively solitary life in the French suburb of Clermont. A devout Catholic, he is developing an obsession with a fellow churchgoer, the blonde, beautiful Françoise (Marie-Christine Barrault), about whom he knows practically nothing. After bumping into an old school friend, Vidal (Antoine Vitez), the two men delve into deep discussions of religion, Marxism, Pascal, mathematics, Jansenism, and women. Vidal then invites Jean-Louis to the home of his girlfriend, Maud (Françoise Fabian), a divorced single mother with open thoughts about sexuality, responsibility, and morality that intrigue Jean-Louis, for whom respectability and appearance are so important. The conversation turns to such topics as hypocrisy, grace, infidelity, and principles, but Maud eventually tires of such talk. “Dialectic does nothing for me,” she says shortly after explaining that she always sleeps in the nude. Later, when Jean-Louis and Maud are alone, she tells him, “You’re both a shamefaced Christian and a shamefaced Don Juan.” Soon a clearly conflicted Jean-Louis is involved in several love triangles that are far beyond his understanding, so he again seeks solace in church. My Night at Maud’s is a classic French tale, with characters spouting off philosophically while smoking cigarettes, drinking wine and other cocktails, and getting naked. Shot in black-and-white by Néstor Almendros, the film roams from midnight mass to a single woman’s bed and back to church, as Jean-Louis, played with expert concern by Trintignant, is forced to examine his own deep desires and how they relate to his spirituality. Fabian (Belle de Jour, The Letter) is outstanding as Maud, whose freedom titillates and confuses Jean-Louis. One of Rohmer’s best, most accomplished works despite its haughty intellectualism, My Night at Maud’s is screening May 14-16 at 1:30 as part of MoMA’s ongoing series “An Auteurist History of Film,” which continues May 21-23 with Robert Altman’s McCabe and Mrs. Miller and May 28-30 with Rainer Werner Fassbinder’s Merchant of the Four Seasons.

CABARET

Michelle Williams and Alan Cumming star in return of CABARET to Studio 54 (photo by Joan Marcus)

Michelle Williams and Alan Cumming star in return of CABARET to Studio 54 (photo by Joan Marcus)

Studio 54
254 West 54th St. between Seventh & Eighth Aves.
Tuesday – Sunday through January 4, $47-$352
212-719-1300
www.cabaretmusical.com

The Roundabout has brought back its exciting 1998 Tony-winning revival of Cabaret, once again turning Studio 54 into the lasciviously decadent Kit Kat Klub in pre-WWII Berlin, where a debauched Emcee (Alan Cumming) hosts an evening of naughty nightclub fun during the rise of the Third Reich. The audience sits at small, round tables in the orchestra section (and regular seats in the mezzanine) as the Emcee introduces music and dance and hovers in the background as the narrative plays out onstage. Michelle Williams makes a strong Broadway debut as Sally Bowles, a British ex-pat who performs at the Kit Kat Klub and takes an instant liking to American writer Cliff Bradshaw (Bill Heck). In order to make money, Cliff teaches English to Ernst (Aaron Krohn) and others and also does favors for him. Meanwhile, Sally moves in with Cliff, who lives in a boardinghouse run by the spinsterish Fraulein Schneider (Linda Emond), who is being subtly courted by successful fruitier Herr Schultz (Danny Burstein). When Ernst proudly reveals he is a member of the Nazi party, the relationships among the characters go through a swift and sudden change, setting in motion one of the greatest second acts in Broadway history.

(photo by Joan Marcus)

Herr Schultz (Danny Burstein) and Fraulein Schneider (Linda Emond) consider a dangerous love in CABARET (photo by Joan Marcus)

Adapted from John van Druten’s 1951 play, I Am a Camera, which itself was based on Christopher Isherwood’s Berlin Stories, this version of Cabaret, directed by Sam Mendes (American Beauty, the Bridge Project) and codirected and choreographed by Rob Marshall (Chicago, Into the Woods), uses elements of both Harold Prince’s original 1966 show as well as Bob Fosse’s Oscar-nominated 1972 film to craft a new way to experience this ultimately heart-wrenching sociopolitical tale, which features a marvelous score by John Kander and Fred Ebb and a powerful book by Joe Masteroff. Robert Brill’s two-level set features the scantily clad Kit Kat Girls, Kit Kat Boys (the daring costumes are by William Ivey Long), and musical director (Patrick Vaccariello) upstairs, often seen behind a large, tilted frame that hangs from the ceiling, surrounded by bulbs that slowly go out over the course of the evening. Meanwhile, the story plays out on the main floor, as relationships develop and fall apart. Heck (The Orphans’ Home Cycle) is relatively bland as Cliff, but the rest of the cast is excellent: Williams (Brokeback Mountain, Blue Valentine) more than holds her own in a role made famous by Liza Minnelli and also played by such stars as Miranda Richardson, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Deborah Gibson, and Brooke Shields, among others, nailing such familiar songs as “Mein Herr,” “Maybe This Time,” and the title song. Burstein (Talley’s Folly, Golden Boy) and Emond (Death of a Salesman, 1776) give added depth to their touching characters, who are caught in the middle of what is happening in Germany, while Cumming (Macbeth, The Good Wife) has a blast reprising his Tony-winning role, offering a very different take from Oscar and Tony winner Joel Grey as he makes his playfully raunchy way through such classics as “Willkommen,” “Money,” and “If You Could See Her.” It all leads to one of the most striking and harrowing final images you’ll ever see onstage.

FREE SUMMER MUSIC 2014

Here We Go Magic (photo by Gregory Mitnick)

Here We Go Magic headlines the first night of the Brooklyn Half Pre-Party on May 14 (photo by Gregory Mitnick)

The weather is changing just in time for the start of the free summer music season, with concerts in parks, plazas, and other public spaces all over the city. Among those festivals that have announced their schedule are SummerStage, River to River, the BAM R&B Festival at MetroTech, the Lot Music Series in Long Island City, the Today show and Good Morning America series, and Celebrate Brooklyn!, with more to come. Below is the day-by-day lineup through June; keep watching this space as more festivals are announced and July and August dates are added.

Wednesday, May 14
Brooklyn Half Pre-Party, with Porcelain Raft (6:15), Gospels (7:30), and Here We Go Magic (8:45), Pier 2, Brooklyn Bridge Park

Thursday, May 15
Brooklyn Half Pre-Party, with Chaos Chaos (6:15) Radical Dads (7:30), and Oberhofer (8:45), Pier 2, Brooklyn Bridge Park

Celebrate Brooklyn! Dance Parties: Electro-Jamz Dance Party with Cibo Matto, Javelin, and JD Samson, Harbor View Lawn, Brooklyn Bridge Park, 7:00

Friday, May 16
Toyota Concert Series on Today: Mariah Carey, Rockefeller Plaza, 7:00 am

Brooklyn Half Pre-Party, with Frances Cone (6:15), Body Language (7:30), and DJ set by Sinkane (8:45), Pier 2, Brooklyn Bridge Park

Thursday, May 22
Celebrate Brooklyn! Dance Parties: African Dance Party with Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars and Okayafrica Electrafrique w/ Chief Boima & DJ Underdog, Harbor View Lawn, Brooklyn Bridge Park, 7:00

Friday, May 23
Good Morning America Summer Concert Series: Lady Antebellum, Central Park, 7:00 am

Toyota Concert Series on Today: Tim McGraw, Rockefeller Plaza, 7:00 am

Friday, May 30
Toyota Concert Series on Today: Austin Mahone, Rockefeller Plaza, 7:00 am

Good Morning America Summer Concert Series: Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson, Central Park, 7:00 am

Sunday, June 1
Third annual Bushwick Collective Block Party, with Naam, Pampers, Iron Force, Tournament, Fletcher C. Johnson, Such Hounds, Blackout, the Montauk Project, No Way, and Twin Strike, Troutman St. between Wyckoff & St. Nicholas, 11:00 am

Open Air Street Fair, with Jolliff, Johnson & Tice (12 noon), Mountain Animation (1:00), Odetta Hartman & the Jamborees (2:00), and the Harmonica Lewinskies (3:00), Crosby St. between Houston & Prince

Tuesday, June 3
Hudson Square Music & Wine Festival: Wicked Knee, 155 Varick St. back parking lot, 5:00

SummerStage: Ty Dolla $ign, Red Hook Park, 7:00

Janelle Monae kicks off Celebrate Brooklyn! festival on June 4

Janelle Monáe kicks off Celebrate Brooklyn! festival on June 4

Wednesday, June 4
SummerStage: Mark McGuire, Marissa Nadler, Delicate Steve, Red Hook Park, 7:00

Celebrate Brooklyn! with Janelle Monáe, Prospect Park Bandshell, 8:00

Thursday, June 5
Toyota Concert Series on Today: Pharrell, Rockefeller Plaza, 7:00 am

BAM R&B Festival at MetroTech: Darlene Love, MetroTech Commons at MetroTech Center, 12 noon

SummerStage: Pro Era, Red Hook Park, 7:00

Friday, June 6
Good Morning America Summer Concert Series: Demi Lovato, Central Park, 7:00 am

Toyota Concert Series on Today: Sara Bareilles, Rockefeller Plaza, 7:00 am

Saturday, June 7
Big Apple Barbecue Block Party: The Roosevelts (1:00), Black Taxi (2:45), Lissie (4:30), Madison Square Park

SummerStage: Twelfth Brazilian Film Festival of New York: Tribute to Vinicius de Moraes, with Toquinho, DJ Gaspar Muniz, Central Park, 7:00

Celebrate Brooklyn! with the Soul Rebels, Jon Cleary & the Absolute Monster Gentlemen, and Lost Bayou Ramblers, Prospect Park Bandshell, 7:00

Sunday, June 8
Big Apple Barbecue Block Party: Riders Against the Storm (1:00), Lera Lynn (2:45), JD McPherson (4:30), Madison Square Park

Tuesday, June 10
Hudson Square Music & Wine Festival: Commander Cody, 155 Varick St. back parking lot, 5:00

SummerStage: The Duck Down BBQ with Boot Camp Clik & Friends, Betsy Head Park, 7:00

Wednesday, June 11
SummerStage: Sisqó, Betsy Head Park, 7:00

Thursday, June 12
BAM R&B Festival at MetroTech: Nicholas Payton presents Black American Music, MetroTech Commons at MetroTech Center, 12 noon

Celebrate Brooklyn! Celebrate Ornette: The Music of Ornette Coleman Featuring Denardo Coleman Vibe, Prospect Park Bandshell, 7:00

Friday, June 13
Toyota Concert Series on Today: Train, Rockefeller Plaza, 7:00 am

Good Morning America Summer Concert Series: Paramore, Central Park, 7:00 am

Thee Oh Sees are playing a free show at the Northside Festival on June 14

Thee Oh Sees are playing a free show at the Northside Festival on June 14

Saturday, June 14
Northside Festival: Thee Oh Sees (advance RSVP required), McCarren Park, 2:00

Celebrate Brooklyn! with Ozomatli’s Ozokidz, Prospect Park Bandshell, 4:00

SummerStage: Roberto Roena y su Apollo Sound, La Mecánica Popular, Little Louie Vega, Central Park, 6:00

Sunday, June 15
SummerStage: Black Coffee Live, with DJ Spoko, Celebrating 15 Years of Okayplayer, Central Park, 6:00

Tuesday, June 17
Toyota Concert Series on Today: Little Mix, Rockefeller Plaza, 7:00 am

Hudson Square Music & Wine Festival: TBA, 155 Varick St. back parking lot, 5:00

SummerStage: John Butler Trio and Allen Stone, Central Park, 5:30

Wednesday, June 18
Bryant Park After Work: The Universal Thump, Fountain Terrace, Bryant Park, 6:00

Mad. Sq. Music: Nicole Atkins, Madison Square Park, 7:00

SummerStage: Salute to Hip Hop, with DJ Bent Roc, Chubb Rock, Dana Dane, Special Ed, Herbert Von King Park, 7:00

Thursday, June 19
BAM R&B Festival at MetroTech: the Ohio Players, MetroTech Commons at MetroTech Center, 12 noon

SummerStage: Algebra, Herbert Von King Park, 7:00

Friday, June 20
Good Morning America Summer Concert Series: Jennifer Lopez, Central Park, 7:00 am

Toyota Concert Series on Today: Fall Out Boy, Rockefeller Plaza, 7:00 am

SummerStage: Jason Samuel Smith, All Levels Open Dance Master Class with Jamal Jackson, Herbert Von King Park, 7:00

River to River: Original Music Workshop’s Ex-Situ Series with Terry Riley & Friends, Federal Hall, 7:00

Celebrate Brooklyn! with Amos Lee and Lake Street Drive, Prospect Park Bandshell, 7:00

The Dum Dum Girls are at SummerStage in Central Park on June 21 (photo by Malia James)

The Dum Dum Girls will be celebrating in Brooklyn on June 21 (photo by Malia James)

Saturday, June 21
River to River: Pete M. Wyer’s “And Death Shall Have No Dominion,” 11:00 am

SummerStage: ChoreoQuest, All Levels Open Dance Master Class with Jamel Gaines, Herbert Von King Park, 7:00

River to River: Original Music Workshop’s Ex-Situ Series with Claire Chase & Svet Stoyanov, Federal Hall, 7:00

SummerStage: Fete de la Musique -M- Émilie Simon, Central Park, 7:00

Celebrate Brooklyn! with Dum Dum Girls, Hospitality, and TEEN, Prospect Park Bandshell, 7:00

Saturday June 21
and
Sunday, June 22

SummerStage: Brooklyn Family Day, with Barolosolo Cirkus Company, Brooklyn Bridge Park, 3:00 & 7:00

Sunday, June 22
River to River: Bang on a Can Marathon, Brookfield Place, Winter Garden, 2:00 – 10:00

SummerStage: Buika, Marques Toliver, Central Park, 7:00

SummerStage: Whistle!: A Tribute to Frankie Knuckles with screening of Hands to the Sky, Herbert Von King Park, 7:00

Monday, June 23
River to River: Original Music Workshop’s Ex-Situ Series with Kimmo Pohjonen & Jeffrey Zeigler, Pier 15, 7:00

SummerStage: The Metropolitan Opera Summer Recital Series, with Amber Wagner, Jamie Barton, Russell Thomas, and Dan Saunders, Central Park, 8:00

Tuesday, June 24
SummerStage: Our Latin Thing, New Swing Sextet, Crotona Park, 7:00

Naumburg Orchestral Concerts: The Knights, works by Luigi Boccherini, Andrew Norman, Charles Ives, and Timo Andres, Naumburg Bandshell, Central Park, 7:30

River to River: Ethel with Special Guest Kaki King . . . and Other Stories, Brookfield Place, Winter Garden, 7:30

Wednesday, June 25
Hudson Square Music & Wine Festival: John Doe album release party, 155 Varick St. back parking lot, 5:00

Bryant Park After Work: Ethan Lipton & His Orchestra, Fountain Terrace, Bryant Park, 6:00

Mad. Sq. Music: Ester Rada & Maya Azucena, Madison Square Park, 6:00

SummerStage: The Metropolitan Opera Summer Recital Series, with Amber Wagner, Jamie Barton, Russell Thomas, and Dan Saunders, Brooklyn Bridge Park, 7:00

SummerStage: Chuck Chillout, DJ Hollywood, Brucie B, Chief Rocker Busy Bee, and LA Luv and 4th Quarter Boyz, hosted by Mick Benzo, Crotona Park, 7:00

Thursday, June 26
BAM R&B Festival at MetroTech: Butler Bernstein & the Hot 9, MetroTech Commons at MetroTech Center, 12 noon

SummerStage: D.I.T.C. featuring Lord Finesse, A.G., Diamond D, DJ Boogie Blind, and Large Professor, Crotona Park, 7:00

Celebrate Brooklyn! with Warpaint and Yellowbirds, Prospect Park Bandshell, 7:00

Friday, June 27
Toyota Concert Series on Today: Phillip Phillips, Rockefeller Plaza, 7:00 am

Good Morning America Summer Concert Series: Afrojack, Central Park, 7:00 am

River to River: Fronteras: New & Old Sounds from Latin America & the Caribbean, with Piñata Protest, Kuenta I Tambu (KIT), Helado Negro & SLV, the Uplands, South Street Seaport, 4:00 – 9:30

Celebrate Brooklyn! with Shovels & Rope, Valerie June, and Shakey Graves, Prospect Park Bandshell, 7:00

Saturday, June 28
SummerStage: Club Classics Live! featuring Sam Sparro, Ultra Naté, Kevin Aviance, Company Freak, Alfa Anderson, Luci Martin, and Norma Jean Wright, with special guests and DJ set by Andre Collins, 3:00

River to River: Fronteras: New & Old Sounds from Latin America & the Caribbean, with Bélo & Curupira , the Uplands, South Street Seaport, 5:30 – 9:30

Celebrate Brooklyn! with Luciano and Sandra St. Victor & Oya’s Daughter, Prospect Park Bandshell, 7:00

Sunday, June 29
River to River: Fronteras: New & Old Sounds from Latin America & the Caribbean, with Sergio Mendoza y la Orkestra and Rey Vallenato Beto Jamaica, the Uplands, South Street Seaport, 1:30 – 5:00

SummerStage: Jon Batiste and Stay Human and Hypnotic Brass Ensemble, Central Park, 3:00

Tuesday, July 1
SummerStage: The Metropolitan Opera Summer Recital Series, with Mary-Jane Lee, Ginger Costa-Jackson, Yunpeng Wang, and Dan Saunders, Crotona Park, 7:00

Wednesday, July 2
See/Change: DJ Ben the Beyonder, South Street Seaport, 5:00

Bryant Park After Work: Stephen Clair and the Millionaires, Fountain Terrace, 6:00

Thursday, July 3
BAM R&B Festival at MetroTech: Davell Crawford, MetroTech Commons at MetroTech Center, 12 noon

Pier/Party: Mike Verge (12 noon), Chris Bergson Blues (3:00), Dandy Wellington & His Band (6:00), South Street Seaport

SummerStage: Freedom Party, with Herbert Holler, DJ Cosi, and Marc Smooth, Central Park, 6:00

SummerStage: The Metropolitan Opera Summer Recital Series, with Mary-Jane Lee, Ginger Costa-Jackson, Yunpeng Wang, and Dan Saunders, Clove Lakes Park, 7:00

Friday, July 4
Pier/Party: USO Show Troupe (1:30), Hungry March Band (4:00), Twin Forks ft. Chris Carrabba (8:00), South Street Seaport

Saturday, July 5
Pier/Party: Sam Barnes Bluegrass Review, South Street Seaport, 1:00

SummerStage: Teddy Afro, Noura Mint Seymali, HaHu Dance Crew, Central Park, 3:00

Celebrate Brooklyn!: Robert Glasper Experiment Featuring Talib Kweli, Glenn Kotche, and Aja Monet, Prospect Park Bandshell, 7:00

On Stage at Kingsborough: Hot Summer Nights — Jeremy Davis & the Fabulous Equinox Orchestra: The Great American Swagger, Kingsborough Bandshell, 8:00

Tuesday, July 8
SummerStage: Andrew Bird & the Hands of Glory, Luke Temple, Central Park, 7:00

SummerStage: Tony Vega, St. Mary’s Park, 7:00

SummerStage: The Metropolitan Opera Summer Recital Series, with Mary-Jane Lee, Ginger Costa-Jackson, Yunpeng Wang, and Dan Saunders, Jackie Robinson Park, 7:00

Wednesday, July 9
For the Sake of the Song: A Tribute to Townes Van Zandt, with David Berkeley, One New York Plaza, 12:30

Bryant Park After Work: Defibulators, Fountain Terrace, 6:00

SummerStage: The Latin Alternative Music Conference, with Beatnuts, Ana Tijoux, Bodega Bamz, and DJ Tony Touch, Central Park, 7:00

SummerStage: Jose Alberto “El Canario,” St. Mary’s Park, 7:00

Thursday, July 10
BAM R&B Festival at MetroTech: Fredericks Brown, MetroTech Commons at MetroTech Center, 12 noon

Broadway in Bryant Park: STOMP, Rocky, Wicked, If/Then, Bryant Park Lawn, 12:30

For the Sake of the Song: A Tribute to Townes Van Zandt, with Amber Rubarth, Grace Building, 1114 Sixth Ave. at 41st St., 12:30

SummerStage: The Metropolitan Opera Summer Recital Series, with Mary-Jane Lee, Ginger Costa-Jackson, Yunpeng Wang, and Dan Saunders, Socrates Sculpture Park, 7:00

SummerStage: Domingo Quinones, St. Mary’s Park, 7:00

RiverRocks: Wild Beasts, Mutual Benefit, DJ Bill Pearis, Pier 84, 7:00

Celebrate Brooklyn!: Illya Kuryaki & the Valderramas, Choc Quib Town, RVSB, Prospect Park Bandshell, 7:00

Friday, July 11
New Music in Bryant Park: World Time Zone, Sybarite5, Upper Terrace Steps, 6:00

Seaport Music Festival: Protomartyr, Alvvays, Fulton & Water Sts., 7:00

Celebrate Brooklyn!: Vote, It Ain’t Illegal Yet!, with Burning Spear, Vernon Reid, Maya Azucena, Roger Guenveur Smith, Carl Hancock Rux, Rosario Dawson, and Ramya Ramana, directed by Nelson George, Prospect Park Bandshell, 7:30

Saturday, July 12
4Knots Music Festival, with Dinosaur Jr., Mac DeMarco, Those Darlins, Speedy Ortiz, Radkey, Viet Cong, Nude Beach, Juan Wauters, Re-TROS, and Dead Stars, 1:00 – 8:00

SummerStage: The Latin Alternative Music Conference, with Babasónicos, Juana Molina, La Santa Cecilia, Central Park, 3:00

Celebrate Brooklyn!: Alloy Orchestra: live score to He Who Gets Slapped (Victor Sjöström, 1924), Stephane Wrembel, Prospect Park Bandshell, 7:30

On Stage at Kingsborough: Hot Summer Nights — John Beasley’s MONK’estra, Kingsborough Bandshell, 8:00

Sunday, July 13
SummerStage: Bronx Family Day, with David Gonzalez’ Aesop Bops! Funky Fables, Kids Junk Orchestra, *Secret Agent 23 Skiddoo, St. Mary’s Park, 4:00

SummerStage: Celebrating Fifteen Years of Okayplayer, with Bonobo and Cibo Matto, Central Park, 6:00

Tuesday, July 15
SummerStage: Ismael Miranda, Rebel Tumbao, Queensbridge Park, 7:00

Live at the Gantries: Solomon Hicks, Gantry Plaza State Park, 7:00

Naumburg Orchestral Concerts: Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, works by Ludwig van Beethoven, Naumburg Bandshell, Central Park, 7:30

Wednesday, July 16
Bryant Park After Work: Howard Fishman and the Biting Fish Brass Band, Fountain Terrace, 6:00

Lowdown Hudson Blues Festival: No BS! Brass Band (6:00), Lake Street Dive (7:00), Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings (8:30), Waterfront Plaza at Brookfield Place

SummerStage: J Holiday, Queensbridge Park, 7:00

Mobb Deep will get deep on July 17 in Queensbridge Park

Mobb Deep will get deep on July 17 in Queensbridge Park

Thursday, July 17
BAM R&B Festival at MetroTech: Third World, MetroTech Commons at MetroTech Center, 12 noon

See/Change: Jazz Franchise, South Street Seaport, 12 noon

Broadway in Bryant Park: Pippin, Chicago, Les Misérables, Atomic, Bryant Park Lawn, 12:30

For the Sake of the Song: A Tribute to Townes Van Zandt, with the Sea the Sea, Grace Building, 1114 Sixth Ave. at 41st St., 12:30

See/Change: Dandy Wellington & His Band, South Street Seaport, 6:00

Lowdown Hudson Blues Festival: James Carter Organ Trio (6:00), the Robert Cray Band (7:00), John Hiatt & the Combo (8:45), Waterfront Plaza at Brookfield Place

SummerStage: Mobb Deep, Queensbridge Park, 7:00

Friday, July 18
See/Change: Devon Marie and the Band Pineapples, South Street Seaport, 12 noon

New Music in Bryant Park: Cassatt Quartet, Greg Osby Group, Upper Terrace Steps, 6:00

Seaport Music Festival: Calvin Love, Las Rosas, Fulton & Water Sts., 7:00

Celebrate Brooklyn!: Bebel Gilberto, Vinicius Cantuaria, and Netsayi, Prospect Park Bandshell, 7:00

Saturday, July 19
SummerStage: Brasil Summerfest, with Lenine & the Martin Fondse Orchestra: The Bridge, Maíra Freitas, Tutu Moraes, Central Park, 7:00

Celebrate Brooklyn!: Deltron 3030, Nomadic Massive, Prospect Park Bandshell, 7:30

On Stage at Kingsborough: Hot Summer Nights — Carole J. Bufford in Speak Easy with Vince Giordano & the Nighthawks, Kingsborough Bandshell, 8:00

Sunday, July 20
SummerStage: Catalan Sounds on Tour, with Mishima, Txarango, and DJ sets by Headbirds, Central Park, 3:00

SummerStage: Queens Family Day, with the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, Rashida Bumbray, Michael Mossman & Copland Jazz, Queensbridge Park, 4:00

Lincoln Center Out of Doors: A Memorial Concert for Pete and Toshi Seeger, with Judy Collins, Peter Yarrow, Holly Near, Paul Winter Consort, Martha Redbone, Dar Williams & Dan Zanes, Guy Davis, Tom Chapin & the Chapin Sisters, David Amram with Adira & Alana Amram, George Wein, Michael Moore, and many others, hosted by Kitama Cahill-Jackson, Damrosch Park Bandshell, 4:00

Monday, July 21
SummerStage: New Songs of Justice: An Evening Honoring Pete Seeger, with Anti-Flag, Toni Blackman, the Chapin Sisters, Rebel Diaz, Steve Earle, Sarah Lee Guthrie and Johnny Irion, James Maddock, Elizabeth Mitchell and Dan Zanes, Mike + Ruthy, Nyraine, Amanda Palmer, Michael Glabicki, the Tony Lee Thomas Band, and DJ sets by Kool Herc, Central Park, 6:00

Tuesday, July 22
Live at the Gantries: Dahka Band, Gantry Plaza State Park, 7:00

Naumburg Orchestral Concerts: The Knights, works by Gyorgy Ligeti, Bela Bartok, Sufjan Stevens, Ljova, and Igor Stravinsky, Naumburg Bandshell, Central Park, 7:30

Lincoln Center Out of Doors: Behind the Goove — Welcome Party for A Batalha do Passinho, with DJ KS*360, David Rubenstein Atrium, 8:00

Wednesday, July 23
For the Sake of the Song: A Tribute to Townes Van Zandt, with Keith Everett & the Orange Morris, One New York Plaza, 12:30

Bryant Park After Work: Morley, Fountain Terrace, 6:00

Lincoln Center Out of Doors: Larry Harlow’s Hommy: A Latin Opera and Michael Stuart y Su Tremendo, Damrosch Park Bandshell, 7:30

Thursday, July 24
BAM R&B Festival at MetroTech: Bobby Rush, MetroTech Commons at MetroTech Center, 12 noon

Broadway in Bryant Park: Phantom of the Opera, Piece of My Heart, Cinderella, Avenue Q, Bullets over Broadway, Bryant Park Lawn, 12:30

For the Sake of the Song: A Tribute to Townes Van Zandt, with Jason Myles Goss, Grace Building, 1114 Sixth Ave. at 41st St., 12:30

RiverRocks: Teenage Fanclub, Honeyblood, Saint Rich, Pier 84, 7:00

Celebrate Brooklyn!: Wordless Music, with Nickel Creek, Prospect Park Bandshell, 7:30

Friday, July 25
New Music in Bryant Park: Diane Moser Quintet, Guidonian Hand, Upper Terrace Steps, 6:00

Seaport Music Festival: Torres, Fulton & Water Sts., 7:00

Celebrate Brooklyn!: Amandla: A Revolution in Four-Part Harmony (Lee Hirsch, 2002), Neo Muyanga & William Kentridge’s Second-Hand Reading, Prospect Park Bandshell, 7:30

Friday, July 25
and
Saturday, July 26

Lincoln Center Out of Doors: John Luther Adams’s Sila: The Breath of the World, Hearst Plaza, 6:00

Saturday, July 26
Lincoln Center Out of Doors Family Day: Deep Roots of Rock and Roll, with musical direction by Toshi Reagon, with Black Rock Coalition Orchestra and special guests, Hearst Plaza, 2:00

SummerStage: Celebrating 15 Years of Okayplayer and Federation Sound, with Chronixx & the Zincfence Redemption, Junior Reid, the Rice and Peas Crew, Central Park, 3:00

Lincoln Center Out of Doors: Roberta Flack and Davell Crawford, Damrosch Park Bandshell, 7:30

On Stage at Kingsborough: Hot Summer Nights — Swingadelic with guest vocalist Gina Fox, Kingsborough Bandshell, 8:00

Sunday, July 27
Lincoln Center Out of Doors: globalFEST for Families, with Banda de los Muertos and M.A.K.U. Soundsystem, Hearst Plaza. 1:00

Lincoln Center Out of Doors: globalFEST, with BaianaSystem, Red Baraat, Emiline Michel, and Emil Zrihan, Damrosch Park Bandshell, 5:00

Lincoln Center Out of Doors: globalFEST, with Charanjit Singh, DJs Ushka and Ripley, Baiana Play Som, Jaffe Drive/Toll Porte-cochère, 5:00

Lincoln Center Out of Doors: globalFEST, with M.A.K.U. Soundsystem, Banda de los Muertos, and Debauche, Hearst Plaza, 5:45

SummerStage: The Rock Steady Crew 37th Anniversary Concert, Central Park, 7:00

Tuesday, July 29
Live at the Gantries: Kevin Batchelor’s Grand Concourse, Gantry Plaza State Park, 7:00

SummerStage: The Felix Hernandez Rhythm Revue, Clove Lakes Park, 7:00

Wednesday, July 30
Bryant Park After Work: Ayo Awosika, Fountain Terrace, 6:00

Lincoln Center Out of Doors: Amel Larrieux, Avery*Sunshine, and the Jones Family Singers, Damrosch Park Bandshell, 6:30

SummerStage: The 40th Anniversary of Hip-Hop, with Lisette Melendez, Coro, and George Lamond, hosted by Mick Benzo, Clove Lakes Park, 7:00

Thursday, July 31
BAM R&B Festival at MetroTech: Snarky Puppy, MetroTech Commons at MetroTech Center, 12 noon

Broadway in Bryant Park: Rock of Ages, Once, Heathers, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder, Bryant Park Lawn, 12:30

For the Sake of the Song: A Tribute to Townes Van Zandt, with Milton, Grace Building, 1114 Sixth Ave. at 41st St., 12:30

Lincoln Center Out of Doors: José González and yMusic, Damrosch Park Bandshell, 6:30

SummerStage: Joe Bataan, Boogaloo Assassins, DJ Turmix, Clove Lakes Park, 7:00

Friday, August 1
Lincoln Center Out of Doors: A Celebration of Jenneth Webster, with Mingus Dynasty, Taylor 2, Yoshiko Chuma & the School of Hard Knocks (with Robert Black), Elder Edward Babb of McCollough Sons of Thunder, Pauline Oliveros, Elaine Summers, the Skymusic Ensemble conducted by Carman Moore, Imani Uzuri’s Mosaic (with guests Morley, Haleh, and Martha Redbone), Ologundê, Brooklyn Jumbies, Chinese American Arts Council, Hungry March Band, LaTasha Natasha Nevada Diggs, and special guest speakers, Hearst Plaza, 4:30

New Music in Bryant Park: Different but the Same, Del Sol Quartet, Upper Terrace Steps, 6:00

Seaport Music Festival: Snowmine, the Casket Girls, Fulton & Water Sts., 7:00

Celebrate Brooklyn!: Jimmy Bosch y Su Estrellas, Pedrito Martinez Group Featuring Ariance Trujillo, Prospect Park Bandshell, 7:30

Kes the Band will be celebrating Brooklyn in Prospect Park on August 2

Kes the Band will be celebrating Brooklyn in Prospect Park on August 2

Saturday, August 2
Lincoln Center Out of Doors: La Casita, with live music by Acardenchados, Arooj Aftab, Soni Moreno, Sonia Olla & Ismael Fernández, Ologundê, and Orquesta SCC, and poetry by Jennifer Celestin, Louise Sky Dancer Halfe, Jamaal May, Tony Medina, Lenelle Moïse, Jessica Care Moore, Taqralik Partridge, Ramya Ramana, and Frank X Walker, with MC Baba Israel, Hearst Plaza, 12 noon

SummerStage: Dr. John & the Night Trippers, Hurray for the Riff Raff, Central Park, 3:00

Celebrate Brooklyn!: Kes the Band, Kuenta i Tambu, DJ Dr Wax, Steel Sensations, Prospect Park Bandshell, 7:00

Sunday, August 3
Lincoln Center Out of Doors: Heritage Sunday, Echoes of the Divine: Arts of the Turko-Persian Diaspora, with Ahmet Erdogdular, Shashmaqam, Quraishi, and the New York Crimean Tatar Ensemble, Hearst Plaza, 1:00

Lincoln Center Out of Doors: La Casita, with live music by Acardenchados, Arooj Aftab, Soni Moreno, Sonia Olla & Ismael Fernández, Ologundê, and Orquesta SCC, and poetry by Jennifer Celestin, Louise Sky Dancer Halfe, Jamaal May, Tony Medina, Lenelle Moïse, Jessica Care Moore, Taqralik Partridge, Ramya Ramana, and Frank X Walker, with MC Baba Israel, Teatro Pregones in the Bronx, 3:00

SummerStage: Gregory Porter & Revive Big Band led by Igmar Thomas, Central Park, 7:00

Lincoln Center Out of Doors: Tribute to Pete “El Conde” Rodriguez, featuring the Cita Rodriguez Orchestra and Pete Rodriguez with Tito Allen, Herman Olivera, Karen Joseph, Willie Torres, Eddie Montalvo, Ray Martinez, and the Alma Moyo Drummers with special guest star Johnny Pacheco, Damrosch Park Bandshell, 7:00

Tuesday, August 5
SummerStage: Tipica 73 with guest Adalberto Santiago, Williamsburg Salsa Orchestra, East River Park, 6:00

Live at the Gantries: And You and I, Gantry Plaza State Park, 7:00

Naumburg Orchestral Concerts: Christina & Michelle Naughton, works by Darius Milhaud, John Adams, Maurice Ravel, and Igor Stravinsky, Naumburg Bandshell, Central Park, 7:30

Wednesday, August 6
Bryant Park After Work: ABIAH, Fountain Terrace, 6:00

Uptown Bounce: Summer Nights at 104th & Fifth — Throwback, with DJ D’Marquesina, DJ Grand Master Caz, breakdancers the NBS Crew, video projections and sidewalk art by the Murcielagos Fumando Collective, and discussion with Perla de Leon, 6:00

SummerStage: Mobile Mondays Live, the Salsoul Edition featuring Joe Bataan, First Choice, Double Exposure, Instant Funk, and Ladies of Skyy, East River Park, 7:00

Lincoln Center Out of Doors: Americanafest NYC, with Emmylou Harris & Rodney Crowell, and Robert Ellis, Damrosch Park Bandshell, 7:30

Thursday, August 7
BAM R&B Festival at MetroTech: Lisa Fischer, MetroTech Commons at MetroTech Center, 12 noon

Broadway in Bryant Park: Jersey Boys, 50 Shades! The Musical, Cabaret, Revolution in the Elbow of Ragnar Agnarsson Furniture Painter, Bryant Park Lawn, 12:30

SummerStage: Mykki Blanco, East River Park, 7:00

RiverRocks: Temples, Here We Go Magic, Spires, Pier 84, 7:00

Celebrate Brooklyn!: Altan, Maura O’Connell, Prospect Park Bandshell, 7:30

Lincoln Center Out of Doors: Americanafest NYC, with Tift Merritt, David Rubenstein Atrium, 7:30

Friday, August 8
New Music in Bryant Park: Claudia Quintet +1, Lincoln Trio, Upper Terrace Steps, 6:00

Seaport Music Festival: Black Bananas, Shockwave Riderz, Fulton & Water Sts., 7:00

Celebrate Brooklyn!: Asian Dub Foundation: THX 1138, Taylor McFerrin, Prospect Park Bandshell, 7:30

Lincoln Center Out of Doors: Americanafest NYC, with Cassandra Wilson, and the Campbell Brothers: A Sacred Steel Love Supreme featuring visuals by Brock Monroe, Damrosch Park Bandshell, 7:30

Saturday, August 9
Lincoln Center Out of Doors: Americanafest NYC, with the Devil Makes Three, Old 97’s, and John Fullbright, Hearst Plaza, 1:30

SummerStage: Motown Gospel Revue featuring Tasha Cobbs, Smokie Norful, Pastor Charles Jenkins, Vashawn Mitchell, Kierra Sheard, and Micah S., Central Park, 3:00

The LOT LIC Music Series: Streets of Laredo, Walking Shapes, 43-29 Crescent St., Long Island City, 3:00

Lincoln Center Out of Doors: Americanafest NYC, with Rosanne Cash, the Lone Bellow, and Buddy Miller & Jim Lauderdale, Damrosch Park Bandshell, 6:00

Celebrate Brooklyn!: St. Vincent, San Fermin, Prospect Park Bandshell, 7:30

Lincoln Center Out of Doors: Heroes of American Roots: From the Historic Films Archives, rare archival footage, Elinor Bunin Munroe Film Center, 1:00 & 4:00

Sunday, August 10
Lincoln Center Out of Doors: Americanafest NYC Roots Sympoisum, with Heroes of Americana: From the Historic Films Archives (introduced by Joe Lauro); Talkin’ Blues: Music Makers Relief Foundation’s Beverly “Guitar” Watkins, Ironing Board Sam, Dom Flemons, and Tim Duffy in conversation with Coleman “Spike” Barkin; and SiriusXM’s “Buddy & Jim Show” with Buddy Miller & Jim Lauderdale, David Rubenstein Atrium, 1:00

SummerStage: Passenger, Laiam Bailey, and DJ Natasha Diggs, Central Park, 3:00

Lincoln Center Out of Doors: Americanafest NYC, with Charles Bradley & His Extraordinaires, St. Paul & the Broken Bones, and Bobby Patterson Music Maker Blues Revue featuring Dom Flemons, Beverly “Guitar” Watkins, and Ironing Board Sam, Damrosch Park Bandshell, 5:00

Tuesday, August 12
SummerStage: Joe, Marcus Garvey Park, 7:00

Live at the Gantries: Zikrayat, Gantry Plaza State Park, 7:00

Naumburg Orchestral Concerts: The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, works by Franz Joseph Haydn, Paul Schoenfield, and Carl Maria von Weber, Naumburg Bandshell, Central Park, 7:30

Wednesday, August 13
SummerStage: Bobby Sanabria and screening of Chico & Rita (Javier Mariscal, Fernando Trueba & Tono Errando, 2010), Marcus Garvey Park, 6:00

Uptown Bounce: Summer Nights at 104th & Fifth — Remix, with DJ D’Marquesina, DJ Grand Master Caz, Kelly Peters and his Generation X Hip Hop Dancers, video projections and sidewalk art by the Murcielagos Fumando Collective, and El Museo founder Raphael Montañez Ortiz in conversation with Chon Noriega, 6:00

Bryant Park After Work: Miwa Gemini, Fountain Terrace, 6:00

Thursday, August 14
Broadway in Bryant Park: Matilda, On the Town, Mamma Mia!, Motown the Musical, Bryant Park Lawn, 12:30

Friday, August 15
SummerStage: Byron Cage, Marcus Garvey Park, 7:00

Seaport Music Festival: Boogarins, Jacco Gardner, Fulton & Water Sts., 7:00

Saturday, August 16
The LOT LIC Music Series: Taylor McFerrin, Jennah Bell, 43-29 Crescent St., Long Island City, 3:00

SummerStage: Blood Orange with guests Moses Sumney and Sean Nicholas Savage, Central Park, 7:00

Sunday, August 17
SummerStage: Harlem Family Day, with Shine and the Moonbeams, Moona Luna, Kojo Odu Roney & Friends, B-Love’s Hip Hop Jazzy Groove, and DJ KS*360, Marcus Garvey Park, 4:00

SummerStage: The Nuyorican Poets Cafe’s Fortieth Anniversary Celebration, with DJ Rahsaan and screening of Our Latin Thing (Leon Gast, 1972), East River Park, 6:00

SummerStage: Bellatrix! A Soul Train Tribute to Women in Music, with Ubiquita Sound System, Marcus Garvey Park, 7:00

SummerStage: WBLS Sixth Annual R&B Fest, with Musiq Soulchild, Central Park, 7:00

Wednesday, August 20
Bryant Park After Work: Thiefs, Fountain Terrace, 6:00

Friday, August 22
SummerStage: “The Marriage of Latin Music & Jazz,” musical discussion with Joe Conzo Sr., the New School, 55 West Thirteenth St., 6:30

Seaport Music Festival: Dead Gaze, Fulton & Water Sts., 7:00

Saturday, August 23
Summerstage: La Mega Seventh Annual Tropical Fest, featuring Alex Sensation, Central Park, 3:00

The LOT LIC Music Series: Small Black / Kevin Morby, 43-29 Crescent St., Long Island City, 3:00

SummerStage: Charlie Parker Jazz Festival, with the Wallace Roney Orchestra, Lionel Loueke, Melissa Aldana, and Kris Bowers with special guest Chris Turner, Marcus Garvey Park, 3:00

Sunday, August 24
SummerStage: Charlie Parker Jazz Festival, with Kenny Barron, Cindy Blackman Santana, Craig Handy & 2nd Line Smith, and Brianna Thomas, Tompkins Square Park, 3:00

Wednesday, August 27
Bryant Park After Work: Black Bottom Revue, Fountain Terrace, 6:00

Friday, August 29
Seaport Music Festival: Joanna Gruesome, Big Ups, Fulton & Water Sts., 7:00

Saturday, August 30
The LOT LIC Music Series: Fredricks Brown, Silver feat. Eddie Henderson, 43-29 Crescent St., Long Island City, 3:00

Saturday, September 6
The LOT LIC Music Series: Hollis Brown, Jonny Fritz, 43-29 Crescent St., Long Island City, 3:00

Saturday, September 13
The LOT LIC Music Series: Widowspeak, Alex Bleeker and the Freaks, 43-29 Crescent St., Long Island City, 3:00

Saturday, September 20
The LOT LIC Music Series: Sugarman 3, Naomi Shelton and the Gospel Queens, Daptone Records Family DJs, 43-29 Crescent St., Long Island City, 3:00

AN EVENING WITH CINEMA 16: IIII

Tadanori Yokoo’s 1965 KACHI KACHI YAMA is one of six experimental films being shown in latest Cinema 16 presentation

Tadanori Yokoo’s 1965 KACHI KACHI YAMA is one of six experimental films being shown in latest Cinema 16 presentation

The Kitchen
512 West 19th St. between Tenth & Eleventh Aves.
Wednesday, May 14, $20, 9:00
212-255-5793 ext11
www.cinemasixteen.com
www.thekitchen.org

Back in June 2011, photographer and curator Molly Surno told twi-ny, “The more experimental films I watch, the harder it is for me to sit through big-budget films. I mean, let’s put it this way: For me, a Saturday night spent among purely escapist entertainment would include The Godfather or The French Connection. . . . That is about as mainstream as I like to get.” Since 2008, the Brooklyn-based Surno, who earned her MFA from Columbia last year, has been reviving Cinema 16, the film society founded by Amos Vogel in 1947, combining experimental films with cutting-edge live music. The 2014 edition takes place May 14 at the Kitchen, with a half dozen far-from-mainstream films that examine the intersection of love, paradise, adventure, and mythology being accompanied by an original score by drum-synth collective IIII (“Four,” consisting of Hisham Akira Bharoocha, Ryan Sawyer, Brian Chase, and Ben Vida, joined by electronic musician Seja). The short films being presented are David Rimmer’s 1969 Migration, Frans Zwartjes’s 1968 Birds, One, Henri Platt’s 1968 I Am an Old Smoking Moving Indian Movie Star, Len Lye’s 1952-53 Color Cry, Tadanori Yokoo’s 1965 Kachi Kachi Yama, and Kihachirō Kawamoto’s 1965 Broken Branches.

FRENCH CINEMA’S SECRET TROVE: LE BONHEUR

LE BONHEUR

François (Jean-Claude Drouot) tries to convince Thérèse (Claire Drouot, his real-life wife), that he has plenty of happiness to spread around in LE BONHEUR

CURATED BY CAHIERS DU CINÉMA: LE BONHEUR (HAPPINESS) (Agnès Varda, 1965)
CinéSalon, French Institute Alliance Française, Florence Gould Hall
55 East 59th St. between Madison & Park Aves.
Tuesday, May 13, $13, 7:30
Series continues Tuesdays through May 27
212-355-6100
www.fiaf.org

In 1965, French Nouvelle Vague auteur Agnès Varda said about her third film, Le Bonheur, which translates as Happiness: “Happiness is mistaken sadness, and the film will be subversive in its great sweetness. It will be a beautiful summer fruit with a worm inside. Happiness adds up; torment does too.” That is all true nearly fifty years later, as the film still invites divided reaction from critics. “Miss Varda’s dissection of amour, as French as any of Collette’s works, is strikingly adult and unembarrassed in its depiction of the variety of love, but it is as illogical as a child’s dream,” A. H. Weiler wrote in the New York Times in May 1966. “Her ‘Happiness,’ a seeming idyll sheathed in irony, is obvious and tender, irresponsible and shocking and continuously provocative.” All these decades later, the brief eighty-minute film is all that and more, save for the claim that it is illogical. In a patriarchal society, it actually makes perfect, though infuriating, sense.

François and Émilie (Marie-France Boyer) seek out their own happiness in Nouvelle Vague classic

François and Émilie (Marie-France Boyer) seek out their own happiness in Nouvelle Vague classic

French television star Jean-Claude Drouot (Thierry La Fronde) stars as the handsome François, who is leading an idyllic life with his beautiful wife, Thérèse (Claire Drouot), and their delightful kids, Pierrot (Olivier Drouot) and Gisou (Sandrine Drouot), in the small, tight-knit Parisian suburb of Fontenay. While away on a job, François meets the beautiful Émilie (Marie-France Boyer), a postal clerk who connects him to his wife via long-distance telephone, flirting with him although she knows he is happily married. And despite being happily married, François returns the flirtation, offering to help with her shelves when she moves into an apartment in Fontenay. Both François and Émilie believe that there is more than enough happiness to go around for everyone, without any complications. “Be happy too, don’t worry,” Émilie tells him. “I’m free, happy, and you’re not the first,” to which he soon adds, “Such happiness!” And it turns out that even tragedy won’t put a stop to the happiness, in a plot point that angered, disappointed, confused, and upset many critics as well as the audience but is key to Varda’s modern-day fairy tale.

The beauty of nature plays a key role in LE BONHEUR

The beauty of nature plays a key role in LE BONHEUR

Le Bonheur is Varda’s first film in color, and she seems to have been heavily influenced by her husband, Jacques Demy (The Umbrellas of Cherbourg), bathing the film in stunning hues that mimic Impressionist paintings, particularly the work of Pierre-Auguste Renoir, in a series of picnics and flower-filled vases. In a sly nod, at one point a black-and-white television is playing the 1959 film Le Déjeuner Sur L’herbe (“Picnic on the Grass”), which was directed by Jean Renoir, one of Auguste’s sons, and also deals with sex, passion, procreation, and nature. Le Bonheur also features numerous scenes that dissolve out in singular blocks of color that take over the entire screen. Cinematographers Claude Beausoleil and Jean Rabier shoot the film as if it takes place in a candy-colored Garden of Eden, all set to the music of Mozart, performed by Jean-Michel Defaye. Varda doesn’t allow any detail to get away from her; even the protagonists’ jobs are critical to the story: François is a carpenter who helps builds new lives for people; Thérèse is a seamstress who is in the midst of making a wedding gown; and Émilie works in the post office, an intermediary for keeping people together. As a final touch, François, who represents aspects of France as a nation under Charles de Gaulle, and his family are played by the actual Drouot clan: Jean-Claude and Claire are married in real life (and still are husband and wife after more than fifty years), and Olivier and Sandrine are their actual children, so Le Bonheur ends up being a family affair in more ways than one.

Le Bonheur is screening May 13 at 7:30 as part of the FIAF CinéSalon series “French Cinema’s Secret Trove, Curated by Cahiers due Cinéma” and will be introduced by sex therapist Esther Perel and followed by a wine reception. The festival continues through May 27 with Jacques Becker’s Rue de l’Estrapade, Adolfo Arrieta’s Flammes, and Jacques Rozier’s Maine-Océan.