Get excited, Brooklynites! We’ve got tons of fun activities to keep your family completely occupied all weekend long. One of our top picks for this weekend will be sure to gross you out, but in a good way, of course. The IckyFest at the Brooklyn Children’s Museum is back for the 4th time and we’re sure it’s going to be all kinds of amazing. We’re pretty excited about The Berenstain Bears LIVE! show, the Big Apple Circus’ show, Dream On that’s still playing, and Math Midway at Liberty Science Center that’s still going strong. The Secret of Circle exhibit will have you spinning in circles, but that’s all apart of the fun! We’re also ditching about a super fun spot for Friday Family Movie Night, Puppets on Film, and a Lion, a Witch, and a Wardrobe. Read on, folks! Don’t forget to check our music listings and calendar for more events! Cheers to the weekend!
ALL WEEKEND
Saturday, November 19th and Sunday, November 20th from 10am – 5pm
IckyFest Weekend at the Brooklyn Children’s Museum
Give “icky” a whole new meaning as science takes center stage at the 4th annual IckyFest Weekend at the Brooklyn Children’s Museum! There will be a variety of science-based activities that are designed to educate children about naturally occurring “gross” events, but are important to the cycle of life. Children will be totally grossed out as they become “Grossologists” – scientific experts on all things slimy, yucky, and downright disgusting at the “Meet and Greet Creepy Crawly Creatures” (12pm – 2:30pm, all ages), the “Time For Slime” (1:30pm – 2:30pm, ages 4+), and the “Live Animal Encounter” (4:15pm – 4:45pm, all ages) activities. They will also be able to create their very own snotty slime, watch worms chomp on crickets, dissect owl pellets, and more!
Details: IckyFest Weekend programs are included with general museum admission.
Friday, November 18th – Sunday, November 20th: various times
The Big Apple Circus: Dream Big
The Big Apple Circus at Lincoln Center is back again and we loved it! Grandma Clown (the emcee) is hilarious as she guides you through the Big Apple’s acts and set changes. The thread of the show’s theme, “Dream Big,” begins with a little girl who appears to have been plucked from the audience. She proclaims her desires to be a trapeze performer, which by the end of the show, she does become. Apparently, dreaming big does work! Fabulous international circus artists perform under an intimate tent with varying acts from acrobats to clowns. People seemed to especially respond to the animals, which include horses, dogs, and a porcupine. The acrobats were particularly enthralling to watch as they were jumping around as a human pyramid. The kids were doing acrobatics in their seats during the intermission. This is probably because they could totally relate it to their own experiences on the monkeybars. The show is perfect for ages 2.5 years and up. Both our children were totally engaged by it, and honestly, we were too. Runs Oct 20 – Jan 8.
Details: Tickets start at $15, children under 3 years are free on the lap of a paid adult.
Saturday, November 19th through January 22nd
Math Midway at Liberty Science Center
This fabulous exhibit makes math fun for all ages from babies all the way up to adults. Try a square-wheeled bicycle, hang out with magnetic monkeys, or check out mind-bending mirrors. This show debuted at the World Science Festival Fair in Washington Square in 2009, and even in its smaller capacity there, it dazzled visitors. This interactive exhibit is fabulous fun worth a trip to New Jersey for – stay for an Imax show or one of the other permanent exhibits. The exhibit runs through January 22, 2012. It’s highly recommended.
Details: Liberty State Park, 222 Jersey City Boulevard. Jersey City, NJ 07305
Saturday November 19th through Sunday, November 27th, 4pm
Classic Brunch Matinee Series: ‘The Little Rascals’ Movie at Canal Park Playhouse
Check out three classic shorts from Our Gang, famously known as THE LITTLE RASCALS: Waldo’s Last Stand, School’s Out (with Jackie Cooper), and Our Gang Follies of 1938. Enjoy the exuberant shenanigans of Spanky, Alfalfa, Buckwheat, Darla, Froggie, and the rest of the gang screened in the intimate Playhouse Theater. The Rascals are proceeded by classic cartoons just like the ones Grandma and Grandpa used to watch.
Details: Canal Park Playhouse, 508 Canal Street, between Greenwich and West Street. $9 per ticket. Brunch package is $15.95
Friday, November 18th – Saturday March 31, 2012 from 10am – 5pm
Secrets of Circles Exhibit at Brooklyn Children’s Museum
There’s no doubt about it, circles are everywhere! The “Secrets of Circles” exhibit at the Brooklyn Children’s Museum features 18 different interactive activities that explore the nature of this simple, but amazing shape. From building mechanical contraptions to using a compass to draw awesome glow-in-the-dark circles, this fun exhibit provides a great way for math and science to come to life. This is going to be a crowd-pleaser, for sure, and will definitely give new meaning to “the wheels on the bus go round and round.”
Details: 145 Brooklyn Avenue
Saturday, November 19th – Sunday, February 26, 2012: various times
The Berenstain Bears LIVE!
We are so excited about the “beary” good show that will be held at the Marjorie S. Dean Little Theatre! In The Berenstain Bears LIVE! in Family Matters, our favorite Bear Country citizens come to life on the Off-Broadway stage. In addition to teaching life lessons during the show, there will be a mini dance party and face painting afterwards. It’s going to be “bear”mazing!
Details: Marjorie S. Dean Little Theatre. 5 West 63 rd Street. Tickets start at $34.95. 866.811.4111.
Saturday, November 19th – Sunday, December 11th from 2:30pm – 3:30pm
Handiwork: Crafts and Tasks from the Past at Lefferts Historic House
History will come to life as kids make arts and crafts the old-fashioned way (long before there was television). They’ll also play games that were popular 150 years ago (a long time before video games and iPad apps were available).
Details: Free for children under 16. Prospect Park. 718.287.6215 x104
FRIDAY November 18th
Friday, November 18th at 6:15pm
Family Movie Night at The Moxie Spot
Still stumped on how to enjoy Family Friday Nights after a long week? We’ve got you covered! Just head on over to The Moxie Spot, a family-friendly restaurant and play space for a fun Friday night film screening. Kids get to eat for free when you purchase an entrée of dinner special after 5:30pm. Now that’s what we call “family friendly.”
Details: The short feature begins at 6:15pm; the feature begins at 6:45pm. 81-83 Atlantic Avenue (at Hicks Street); 718.923.9710
Friday, November 18th – January 31, 2012 – various times
Polar Express 4D at Central Park Zoo, The Bronx Zoo, and New York Aquarium
The amazing Polar Express is making stops this Holiday Season at the Central Park Zoo, The Bronx Zoo, and the New York Aquarium. It is sure to be a great time and will play at The Bronx Zoo and New York Aquarium until January 2, 2012, and at the Central Park Zoo through January 31, 2012.
Details: 718. 220. 5100
Friday, November 18th from 11am – 12pm
Transit Tots at The New York Transit Museum
Toddlers will be thrilled transportation fans in this weekly drop-in program as they engage in stories, songs, lots of hands-on activities, and surprises at Transit Tot! And who doesn’t like surprises, right?!
Details: Free with Museum admission. Children ages 2-5 with an adult companion. Boerum Place and Schmerhorn Street. 718.694.1600.
Friday, November 18th at 11:30am and 2:30pm
Art Works at The Brooklyn Children’s Museum
Visit the Totally Tots Art Studio to see what’s in store for your budding Picasso!
Details: Ages 5 and under. 145 Brooklyn Avenue; 718.735.4400
Friday, November 18th and Saturday, November 19th from 10am – 5pm
Fall Book Sale
Brooklyn Public Library’s Gerritsen Beach Branch is hosting a FREE Fall Book Sale, which will feature gently used and like-new books, DVD’s and VHS tapes (remember those?). The proceeds will benefit the Gerritsen Beach Library.
Details: Gerritsen Beach Library; 2808 Gerritsen Avenue; 718. 386.1435
Friday, November 18th (7:30pm) and Saturday, November 19th (2pm & 7:30pm)
The Infernal Comedy
The serial killer turned writer, Jack Unterweger, inquires, “Does Jekyll know about Hyde?” before strangling a soprano with a brassiere in The Infernal Comedy: Confessions of A Serial Killer at BAM. Played by John Malkovich, Unterweger tells the audience his story. Two singers, accompanied by the Orchester Wiener Akademie, perform live opera arias by Mozart, Vivaldi, Haydn, and others in this ironic commentary on Unterweger’s disturbing confessions.
Details: BAM Howard Gilman Opera House; Season tickets — $17.50; Full price tickets start at $25
SATURDAY NOVEMBER 19th
Saturday, November 19th: various times
Puppets On Film
See puppets like you’ve never seen them before! Long before computer graphics, fantastic creatures came to life as puppets made of foam, fabric, metal, and wood. This festival features seven brand new documentaries about puppetry as well as a roster of fantasy films, Muppet movies, shorts from the US and around the world, New York premieres, gremlins, teenage mutant ninja turtles, and the story of an angry tire. “Puppets on Film” includes programs for both kids and adults alike. Curated by Cheryl Henson, Lindsey Z. Briggs, and BAMcinématek.
Details: BAM in Fort Greene.
Saturday, November 19th at 3pm
“The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe” at the NY Public Library
If you and your little ones are a fan of Narnia, then this FREE event will be well worth the subway ride to the NY Public Library. Based on C.S. Lewis’s classic about the siblings Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy, who are magically transported to Narnia through a wardrobe, this show is sure to be a winner! Presented by the Hampstead Stage Co., the show will actively involve the audience as children ages 4 and older will join the creatures of Narnia in battling the evil witch who cursed the land to an ever-lasting winter.
Details: The NY Public Library Children’s Center. Fifth Avenue and 42nd street. 212.930.0800
Saturday, November 19th from 12pm – 4pm
Brooklyn Museums’ Children’s Book Fair
Start your afternoon off at the Brooklyn Museums’ Children’s Book Fair, where families are invited to meet their favorite Brooklyn bases Authors and Illustrators. This will feature more than thirty newly published stories and participants will be able to engage in book signings, and interactive game, and book readings.
Details: Free with Museum admission.
Saturday, November 19th at 4pm
Peter and the Wolf
Now is your chance to enjoy Sergei Prokofiev’s classic interpretation of the folk tale, Peter and the Wolf, along with other music shorts at the Brooklyn Museum. The Brooklyn Conservatory Community Orchestra will present the comedic family performance with narration and routine by the Maestrosities.
Details: Free with museum admission, but as seating is limited for the Peter and the Wolf performance, advance ticket purchase for general admission is recommended via www.museumtix.com
Saturday, November 19th 1pm – 3pm
Art at the Audubon Center
Two hours of crafting?! Sign me up! Little ones can pretend to be bats or monkeys or whatever else tickles their fancy during indoor nature play while making their very own artistic creatures at Prospect Park.
Details: Free of charge. 718.287.6215 x104
Saturday, November 19th from 1pm – 3pm
Waltz of the Flowers at The Brooklyn Botanic Garden
Children ages 4-12 can become magical waltzing flowers or busy bumblebees during this dance workshop akin to “The Nutcracker.” The workshop is taught by a teaching artist from the American Ballet Theatre and will entail basic ballet steps as well as craft projects in the Botanic Garden’s Steinhardt Conservatory. Don’t worry if your kid doesn’t have dance experience because none is necessary. The only prerequisites are that they wear comfy shoes and arrive ready to have a blast! All registrants will be entered to win a family four-pack of tickets to ABT’s upcoming performances of “The Nutcracker.”
Details: 900 Washington Avenue. Free with Garden admission, but preregistration required. 718.623.7220
Saturday, November 19th at 2:30 pm
City Stomp Concert at Littlefield
This group is getting more popular. At their last concert they had 450 people! So, get early in case those numbers happen again for this concert.
Details: 622 Degraw Street. Tickets are $5 per person 2 years and older or $20 per family in advance. $8 per person at the door.
Saturday, November 19th from 10am – 4pm
e-Waste Recycling Day
The Ecology Center, Flatbush Food Coop, and Sustainable Flatbush are hosting an electronic waste recycling event. They are accepting printers, phones, DVD players, mice, scanners, cell phones, and working and non-working computers from households, small businesses, and not-for-profits. They are not accepting microwaves, refrigerators, or air conditioners.
Details: Cortelyou Road between Rugby and Marlborough Roads; Brooklyn, NY 11226.
Saturday, November 19th from 11am – 3pm
Brooklyn TV and Movie Site Tours
Led by a licensed Tour Guide, you will be able to experience an entertaining look at the Brooklyn Bridge, bistros, and brownstones seen on the big and small screens with the Brooklyn TV and Movie Sites Tours. The 4-hour bus tour will feature multiple filming locations and TV shows such as Boardwalk Empire, Gossip Girl, The Departed, White Collar, Moonstruck, and more. The tour leads you through Brooklyn Heights, DUMBO, Carroll Gardens, Park Slope, and Fort Greene.
Details: Reservations required — 212.209.3370; adults — $44/ children (6-9 years old) — $26.
SUNDAY NOVEMBER 20
Sunday, November 20th at 1pm and 2pm
Third Rail Projects – Walking In Two
Kids of all ages can explore the important themes of heritage and identity through contemporary and traditional Native American dance. Hosted by Tom Pearson, a Cherokee/Muscogee and Third Rail Projects, the performance will include hoop dance, a Native storytelling technique that uses hoops to represent the natural world.
Details: 145 Brooklyn Avenue. Free admission. 718.735.4400