There’s never a dull moment in the greatest city on the planet.
There are so many ways to enjoy New York City this fine fall week, including a FREE financial seminar, FREE talk on leadership during a crisis with the Prime Minister of Iceland, FREE virtual concerts by Country and Latinx stars, the 32nd week of FREE performances from the Metropolitan Opera. Plus, NYC museums are open, there’s indoor and outdoor dining in 10,000 NYC restaurants, and so much more.
Add these events to your calendar for Monday, Oct. 19 to Sunday, Oct. 25.
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Curated by Freebird Books of Redhook, one of NYC’s top independent bookstores, this event features Vikki Law, the co-founder of NYC Books Through Bars, and Piper Kerman, author of Orange Is the New Black and a former incarcerated reader herself.
Law and Kerman will discuss how prisons make access to literature exceptionally difficult, compounding institutional barriers to education. Often books are the sole instruments of learning for an inmate.
Books-to-prisons programs remain some of the few supply chains for making this happen. It’s particularly critical now, as many of the incarcerated are in lockdown due to the pandemic.
- This program is free and features a reading and Q & A with the authors.
- FREE at 7pm. Click here to sign up
Tuesday - FREE Discussion on National Leadership During a Crisis
One of a series of live discussions with national leaders on newsworthy subjects.
| October 20 | 9:30 a.m. ET Coronavirus Leadership During CrisisKatrín Jakobsdóttir Prime Minister of Iceland Register for a reminder |
![Grand Central Terminal 100th anniversary]()
Tuesday - Grand Central Terminal Freebie
On the remaining Tuesdays in October (13th, 20th, 27th) get a FREE reusable shopping tote with any purchase from a Grand Central Market merchant.
Make any purchase between 11am and 2pm show the receipt at the table just outside the main interior Market entrance, near Track 19, to get your free shopping bag.
Even better: each bag contains a unique code for $10 off your first order at Mercato.com, the Market’s home delivery partner. So, if you can’t make it to the Market, the Market will come to you!
Open weekdays from 8am–7pm and weekends from 11am–5pm, Grand Central Markets is open weekdays 8am–7pm and weekends from 11am–5pm.
Merchants open now include:
Ceriello Find Foods
Li-Lac Chocolates
Murray’s Cheese
Pescatore Seafood Co.
Pescatore Sushi & Noodles
Spices and Tease
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Wednesday - FREE Financial Planning Seminar
Making Sense of Your Taxes for 2020 and Beyond
In 2020, taxpayers have to face a mind- bending array of adjustments to the tax code. Many of this year’s stimulus initiatives were delivered via the IRS. Some will have an impact on taxable income or maybe not
Just how do you make sense out of this? Add to that a national election where the political parties have dramatically different approaches to taxing individuals. Is there anything special that New Yorkers should know about? Attend this seminar to understand how these moving parts come together so you can develop a plan for the 2020 tax year and beyond.
Topics covered include income taxes, retirement savings, education benefits, stimulus payments, and investments. Presented by Dan Olsen CFA, CFP® and by the NYPL Business Center.
- Noon. Registration required for this virtual seminar.
![NYC SummerStage goes virtual in 2020]()
Wednesday & Thursday - Free Music Performances
SummerStage Anywhere
Wednesday, October 21 - Don’t miss this an encore presentation with acclaimed guitar rock duoRodrigoy Gabriela and neotraditional country band The Mavericks.
Rodrigo y Gabriela are a Mexican acoustic guitar duo whose music is influenced by a number of genres including nuevo flamenco, rock, and heavy metal with the duo’s recordings consist largely of instrumental duets on the flamenco guitar.
The Cover Girls were a classic pop/dance group of the late 80’s and early 90’s whose glamour and beauty combined with musical talent have made them one of the most successful female groups of their time. Along with concert performances, they appeared on every music and video television show on the air at that time.
They were featured on Nickelodeon, Soul Train, Showtime at the Apollo, MTV, MTV international, the Disney Channel numerous times, and, of course on the top dance show of the era, Dick Clark’s American Bandstand. The group released four albums, sold more than three million records, charted 11 singles in a row on Billboard’s Hot 100 singles chart, and have had international success all over the world.
- Watch these two Latin and rock groups at 7 PM ET on SummerStage Anywhere Facebook, Instagram and YouTube pages.
Thursday, Oct. 22 - Groove with “the kings of freestyle” TKA.
TKA is a representation of the initials of Tony Ortiz, Louis “Kayel” Sharpe and Angel “Love” Vasquez, three New York City born and bred freestyle pioneers of Puerto Rican descent. They were discovered while singing at a sweet sixteen party, and signed to the Tommy Boy Records label. Their first single together, “One Way Love,” was a huge hit in NYC’s Latin club circuit, as well as in Chicago and Miami.
TKA released a Greatest Hits collection album in 1992, before they each pursued solo projects, and rejoined again in 2001, with the release Forever. After that, original member of the group “Aby” Cruz replaced Kayel, and the band has been touring again, promoting their latest album, 2016’s Love Goes On.
- Catch the New York Latin trio perform their hit-filled discography at 5pm on SummerStage Anywhere Facebook, Instagram, Twitch and YouTube pages sponsored by AARP New York.For the most up-to-date scheduling and lineup information, visit SummerStageAnywhere.org.
Thursday - FREE Discussion on National Security
One of a series of live discussions with national leaders on newsworthy subjects.
| October 22 | 9:30 a.m. ET A Conversation with John O. Brennan Former CIA Director & Author, “Undaunted: My Fight Against America’s Enemies, at Home and Abroad”Register for a reminder |
NYC Museums & Attractions Now Open Include:
- National September 11 Museum at the 9/11 Memorial
- New York Aquarium at Coney Island
- The Metropolitan Museum of Art
- The Museum of Modern Art (MOMA)
- American Museum of Natural History
- The Guggenheim
- New York Historical Society
- The Rubin Museum of Art
- The Museum of Jewish Heritage
- Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum
All museums and attractions have advance ticketing requirements for social distancing, and mask-wearing requirements.
See the full list here.
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Ongoing Events
Riverside Park
Limón Live
Join the company of the José Limón Dance Foundation on Instagram for daily dance classes. All classes will be available on their story for 24 hours after start time! Donation-based.
- Daily at 3pm
- The High Line is now open its entire length, 14th to 30th Street, with FREE timed entry and visitors all walking in the same direction, south to north.
- More information here.
Piano in Bryant Park is back on the Upper Terrace, presenting New York City’s finest ragtime, stride, and jazz pianists performing free lunchtime concerts
- Every Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday from 12:30pm-2:30pm.
Shakespeare in the Park - Much Ado About Nothing
For the first time in over more than four decades, PBS Great Performances presents a Public Theater production recorded live at the free Shakespeare in the Park in Central Park.
After a highly successful, critically acclaimed run at the outdoor Delacorte Theater in New York City’s Central Park, “Much Ado About Nothing” is a bold interpretation of Shakespeare’s comedic masterpiece featuring Danielle Brooks as Beatrice.
- Streaming now
- Link to watch
![virtual ballet lessons with NYC ballet]()
Wednesday with Wendy
Join the NYC Ballet for Wednesday With Wendy, a series of ballet-inspired movement classes taught by New York City Ballet Associate Artistic Director Wendy WhelanThe FREE virtual classes are suitable for people of all ages and levels of dance training.Classes are on Instagram Live, and each class will also be available after the livestream concludes on NYCB’s IGTV channel.
Every Wednesday at 5pm.
Central Park Virtual Walks
These FREE virtual walks with a Central Park expert showcase some of the flowers and trees currently in bloom, share Park history, and give you the mid-week recharge that we all so desperately need.
Sign up now to access the FREE live Zoom program and learn the history of this incredibly significant site.
- Wednesday, 12:30p.
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Carnegie Hall Fridays
Each week for the the forseable future, Carnegie Hall is streaming a concert from its archived recordings.
- Watch each week’s livestream from Friday 3am through Monday at 3 AM
- Watch here on medici.tv
Every DaySummerStage Anywhere
Metropolitan Opera photo
Metropolitan Opera Live Streams
Every night of the week, the world-famous Met Opera is streaming a different performance from its repetoire of recorded performances, including operas by Puccini, Verdi and Mozart, and legendary stars including Luciano Pavarotti and Renée Fleming.
Each day, a different encore presentation from the company’s Live in HD series is being made available for free streaming on the Met website, with each performance available for a period of 23 hours, from 7:30 p.m. EDT until 6:30 p.m. the following day.
The schedule will include outstanding complete performances from the past 14 years of cinema transmissions, starring all of opera’s greatest singers.The streams are also available through the Met Opera on Demand apps for Apple, Amazon, and Roku devices and Samsung Smart TV.
This is the 32ndt week of live streaming nightly operas.
Last week was all Donizetti. This week it’s operatic comedies.
Monday, October 19
Rossini’s Il Barbiere di Siviglia
Starring Joyce DiDonato, Juan Diego Flórez, Peter Mattei, John Del Carlo, and John Relyea, conducted by Maurizio Benini. From March 24, 2007.
Tuesday, October 20
Lehár’s The Merry Widow
Starring Renée Fleming, Kelli O’Hara, Nathan Gunn, Alek Shrader, and Thomas Allen, conducted by Sir Andrew Davis. From January 17, 2015.
Wednesday, October 21
Mozart’s Così fan tutte
Starring Amanda Majeski, Serena Malfi, Kelli O’Hara, Ben Bliss, Adam Plachetka, and Christopher Maltman, conducted by David Robertson. From March 31, 2018.
Thursday, October 22
Rossini’s La Cenerentola
Starring Cecilia Bartoli, Ramón Vargas, Simone Alaimo, and Alessandro Corbelli, conducted by James Levine. From October 27, 1997.
Friday, October 23
Verdi’s Falstaff
Starring Mirella Freni, Barbara Bonney, Marilyn Horne, Bruno Pola, and Paul Plishka, conducted by James Levine. From October 10, 1992.
Saturday, October 24
Rossini’s Le Comte Ory
Starring Diana Damrau, Joyce DiDonato, Susanne Resmark, Juan Diego Flórez, Stéphane Degout, and Michele Pertusi, conducted by Maurizio Benini. From April 9, 2011.
Sunday, October 25
Strauss’s Der Rosenkavalier
Starring Renée Fleming, Elīna Garanča, Erin Morley, Matthew Polenzani, Marcus Brück, and Günther Groissböck, conducted by Sebastian Weigle. From May 13, 2017.
More information about Metropolitan Opera streaming
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Replays
All Balanchine Program
New York City Ballet
Watch New York City Ballet perform landmark works by George Balanchine, including Concerto Barocco (2004 broadcast) and the third act of the comic story ballet Coppélia (1978 broadcast). Part of the Live from Lincoln Center schedule of virtual performances.
What do you think about this? We welcome your comments.