Hi everyone! December is going to be a busy month with lots of fun events here in NYC.
This weekend head out and enjoy A Charlie Brown Christmas Live at Shapeshifter Lab, Santa Brunch at Polish & Slavic Center, Raga Kids at BAM, Hopalong Andrew at Jalopy Theatre, St. Nicholas Day at the Onderdonk House, Annual Tree Lighting in Fort Greene Park, The Giant Hoax at Theatre Row – Theatre One, Gateway Storytime in the Discovery Room at the American Museum of Natural History, Print, Poetry, and Play! at Irish Arts Center, Family Game NightFamily Game Night at Park Slope Brooklyn Public Library, Sinterklaas – Saint Nicholas Day at Wyckoff Farmhouse Museum and PAUSE/PLAY: LABA Lights at 14th Street Y.
Don’t forget to check out long running events like the NY Transit Museum Holiday Nostalgia Rides, Holiday Lights at the Bronx Zoo, the 18th Annual Holiday Train Show at Grand Central Terminal, NYC Winter Lantern Festival at Snug Harbor Cultural Center & Botanical Garden, Survival of the Slowest at Brooklyn Children’s Museum, Holiday Express: All Aboard to Richard Scarry’s Busytown at New-York Historical Society, T. rex: The Ultimate Predator at American Museum of Natural History, The Sleeping Beauty at Puppetworks, Film Forum Jr. Matinee at the Film Forum, Yeti, Set, Snow! at Swedish Cottage Marionette Theatre, Photos with Santa in Brookfield Place, GingerBread Lane at New York Hall of Science, 42FT – A Menagerie of Mechanical Marvels at The New Victory Theater and The Very Hungry Caterpillar Show Experience at The South Street Seaport Museum.
There are more events this weekend so check the calendar to see everything going on. Also like us on Facebook for last minute events and updates.
Have a fabulous time with the family!
~ Deirdre (mom to O & C)
Friday December 6th
Gateway Storytime in the Discovery Room at the American Museum of Natural History (UWS)
Fridays 1010a & 11a until December 20th. Programs do not run on public school holidays. Free with Museum admission. On Friday mornings during the school year, children 2 to 5 years of age are invited to join us for storytime. Visit each week to learn about a highlighted topic in natural science or culture. There is a period of free play followed by a story, song, and visit to a related Museum hall. Space is limited and tickets are distributed on a designated single-file line outside the 81st Street Planetarium Entrance between 9:45 and 10:05 on a first-come, first-served basis. Sessions take place at 10:10 and 11:00. The line forms on the east side of the plaza and is indicated by a sign in the doorway. If the line gets long, please curve up the sidewalk towards Central Park West. Any remaining tickets will be distributed from the Discovery Room itself. All visitors must also have general admission tickets to enter the building.
Family Game Night at Park Slope Brooklyn Public Library
Fridays 330-515p until December 13th. Free. For kids 6 and up. Younger kids are welcome with an adult. Join us as we turn our basement auditorium into a drop-in game room! Featuring a variety of new and classic board games, LEGO®, Little Bits, IPADs and video games. Also including cards with kittens that explode, sushi on the go and uno.
42FT – A Menagerie of Mechanical Marvels at The New Victory Theater
Friday December 6th 7p & Saturday December 7th 2p & 7p. Tickets start $22. 1 hour and 45 minutes including one intermission. For everyone 5 and up. Behold! A man so strong he juggles trees! An acrobat so light she floats on air! With a brilliant blur of sequined stilts, feathered frocks and flashing circus stripes, the endlessly inventive Cirque Mechanics upends expectations in a dizzying, dazzling array of acts that have never before appeared on the New Victory stage. Bright with light, laughter and good cheer, this stunning spectacle is a high-flying hit for the holidays! Performances are ongoing until January 5th. See website for all event details.
The Giant Hoax at Theatre Row – Theatre One [sponsored]
Friday December 6th 8p and Saturday December 7th 2p. Tickets: $40 Rear Orchestra, $55 Regular Orchestra & $75 Premium Seating. The runtime is approximately 90 minutes with no intermission. Step back in time with us to 1869! Emily, a bright young girl with an overactive imagination, has run away from home to prove that there are wonderful things in the world out there! Before long, she finds herself in the employ of a shady showman, William “Stub” Newell, the owner of a prehistoric, petrified giant! She and the Giant become instant “imaginary friends,” but all is not well. When the unscrupulous circus impresario, P.T. Barnum, offers a hefty sum to buy Newell’s profitable, prehistoric attraction and is refused, he comes up with a scheme to steal Stub’s business right out from under his nose forcing Emily to sort through what is fact, what is fiction, and what’s all in her imagination. Kit Goldstein Grant’s new musical, based on the true story of New York’s famed Cardiff Giant, features a catchy score packed with wonderfully whimsical music and clever lyrics making for a fun, family musical that bursts with excitement – and even a bit of history – as a cast of colorful characters takes you on a journey to the past by way of a young girl’s imagination.
See all the Friday events here.
Saturday December 7th
Raga Kids at BAM (Fort Greene)
Saturday December 7th 1030a & 2p. All tickets $10. For ages 5+. Run time: 60 min. Discover the awesomeness of raga music with Raga Kids! Through original multilingual songs and sing-alongs, kids learn the Indian equivalent of Do-Re-Mi and the percussion language of the tabla, as well as enjoying classics from the American songbook. With deep roots in Indian classical, jazz, and American traditions, these exceptional musicians create a cultural space, sound, and community that is uniquely Brooklyn. Come early for a free warm-up with Raga Kids musician Sameer Gupta and Neel Murgai! Kids learn a five-syllable South Indian rhythm called “Ta-ka-di-mi-tom” and a traditional throat song from Tibet. Activities begin 30 minutes before the show.
Print, Poetry, and Play! at Irish Arts Center (Hell’s Kitchen)
Saturday December 7th 12n. Tickets: $12 general / $10 members. Recommended for ages 5 to 10, but open to all! Join us for a delightful exploration of the art of printmaking! Grab an oversized letter stamp for a paint-filled, collaborative project with SMASH TYPE’s Ben Weber, sculpt your body into letter shapes and form human poems with Darrah Carr Dance, and join Irish printmaking artist Fiona Kelly from Cork Printmakers to print your own holiday cards, wrapping paper, and tote bag. Materials are included in the price of admission.
Sinterklaas – Saint Nicholas Day at Wyckoff Farmhouse Museum (East Flatbush)
Saturday December 7th 1-4p. The festivities will kick off at 1PM with a traditional concert by colonial balladeer Linda Russell. Children will enjoy a special visit from St. Nicholas as he arrives on horseback around 2:30PM. In the Dutch tradition, visitors can feed St. Nicholas’s faithful horse carrots and hay. Children are invited to sign the Red Book with St. Nicholas before he tells the traditional tale of The Bakers Dozen. Sip hot cider, try your hand at colonial games, create a holiday pomander, decorate a Dutch clog for Sinterklaas, and dress the tree for the tree lighting that will close the day as the sun goes down. Limited quantity of tickets to meet St. Nicholas. $7 for general admission (ages 11+) and $4 for child tickets (ages 3-10). Bundle tickets also available. See the website for schedule of events and to purchase tickets.
PAUSE/PLAY: LABA Lights at 14th Street Y (East Village)
Saturday December 7th 3-6p. Free. The 14th Street Y invites you to PAUSE/PLAY: LABA Lights, a festive community Hanukkah celebration with the 14Y LABA Artist Fellows. We invite you to hit the pause button in your busy lives and join us for an afternoon of lights, laughter, sufganyot, celebration, and relaxation. This event will include exciting activities for the whole family, including a bling-your-dreidel station! Come experience all that our downtown community and LABA Fellows have to offer.
See all the Saturday events here.
Sunday December 8th
Santa Brunch at Polish & Slavic Center (Williamsburg/Greenpoint)
Sunday December 8th 930a & 130p seatings (1130a sold out). $20 online, $30 door * $5 Special for infants under 1 year, $15 at door. Proceeds benefit Town Square & local Boy Scouts Pack 7 & Troop 26. Purchase tickets here. What’s that sound? Is it the jingle of Santa’s bells? Yes! Guess what, kids! Bring your list & whisper your wishes! Santa’s coming to Greenpoint! $20 pp cover online, includes delicious, homemade pancakes, baked ham, fresh fruit salad, hot chocolate, music, holiday crafts and, of-course, precious moments with Santa. Yummy-delicious holiday drinks at cash bar for moms & dads. A talented professional photographer will be on hand to take pictures for purchase. And Queen Elsa may drop in for a special visit!
Hopalong Andrew at Jalopy Theatre (Red Hook)
Sunday December 8th 11a. Tickets: $5 kids, $10 adults, $25 family ticket. Former NYC Urban Park Ranger HOPALONG ANDREW invites you to celebrate nature and the richness of city life — the energy, diversity, and sense of possibility — with the fun-loving “can-do” spirit of the American West. He will be appearing with his crackerjack Western band. Hopalong Andrew sings clever and whimsical urban cowboy songs and his high-spirited concerts are meant for the whole family to enjoy. In recent news, his debut album won a NAPPA Award, he’s been featured in the New York Times, there’s ongoing national radio airplay, he’s been performing at top venues such as Levitt Pavilion, State Theater, Bryant Park, Brooklyn Bridge Park, and more. Who else will lasso you a cab while playing the “William Tell” Overture on harmonica? Hoof it up and hop along to JALOPY THEATRE for Hopalong Andrew’s Good Time Fandango.
NY Transit Museum Holiday Nostalgia Rides (various locations)
Sundays 10a, 12n, 2p & 4p until December 29th. Celebrate the magic of New York City during the holidays with a ride back in time on the New York Transit Museum’s vintage fleet. Vintage Train: This holiday season, we continue the tradition of placing our vintage 1930s R1-9 train cars in regular service every Sunday between Thanksgiving and New Year’s. Don’t miss your chance to travel through time – for just the cost of a MetroCard swipe! On December 1st, 8th, 15th, 22nd, and 29th, the Nostalgia Train departs 2nd Avenue on the uptown F line in Lower Manhattan. There will also be a Nostalgia Train will depart 125th Street on the downtown A line on December 8th 11a, 1p, 3p & 5p. See the website for all the event details.
St. Nicholas Day at the Onderdonk House (Ridgewood)
Sunday December 8th 12n-5p. Admission $5.00, Free for children, members and active service members. Annual St. Nicholas Day celebration at the Onderdonk House. Traditional Dutch Christmas, visits with St. Nicholas, Sinterklaas exhibit, take home holiday crafts, treats and mulled cider, music. Weather permitting, we will also be outside playing 18/19th century games, popping popcorn & roasting chestnuts!
Annual Tree Lighting in Fort Greene Park
Sunday December 8th 4-5p. Free. Location: Northwest Plaza Enter at Myrtle and St. Edwards. What better way to celebrate the holidays than with a festive tree lighting with neighbors and cheer in Fort Greene Park? Lets enjoy Live Music, Selfies w/ Santa Claus, Hot Cocoa, Cookies and Hot Apple Cider courtesy of Myrtle Avenue businesses.
See all the Sunday events here.
All Weekend
The Very Hungry Caterpillar Show Experience at The South Street Seaport Museum [sponsored]
Saturdays-Sundays 10a, 1130a & 1p until December 29th and Thursday-Friday December 26th-27th 10a, 1130a & 1p. Tickets: $25 (Children under one are $5 with accompanying paid adult ticket). The South Street Seaport Museum presents The Very Hungry Caterpillar Show Experience, a fun-filled hour-long experience complete with an interactive puppet show, activities, and the opportunity to take a picture with The Very Hungry Caterpillar. Witness these timeless classics come to life during an interactive story time at The Very Hungry Caterpillar Show Experience. Created by Jonathan Rockefeller, The Very Hungry Caterpillar Show Experience features a variety of puppets, faithfully adapting three of Eric Carle’s stories, Brown Bear, Brown Bear, 10 Little Rubber Ducks, and of course, the star of the event – The Very Hungry Caterpillar. The experience lasts approximately sixty minutes, including a puppet show with special audience participation elements. Plus, all attendees will have the opportunity to take a picture with The Very Hungry Caterpillar! Each performance will feature The Very Hungry Caterpillar paired with the story. See the website for details.
A Charlie Brown Christmas Live at Shapeshifter Lab (Gowanus)
Saturday-Sunday December 7th-8th 12n, 2p & 5p. Additional performances December 14th-15th. See website for details. Tickets: $15. Join the Peanuts gang again this year and help us celebrate our 11th anniversary at Shapeshifter Lab in Brooklyn!! We’ll still be performing the classic Charlie Brown Christmas special word for word and gesture for gesture and of course, what Charlie Brown Christmas would be complete without our jazz trio playing the iconic Vince Guaraldi score.
18th Annual Holiday Train Show at Grand Central Terminal (Midtown East)
Ongoing until February 23rd 2020. Free. Hours: Monday–Friday 8a–8p, Saturday and Sunday: 11a–6p. Closed for special events and major holidays. Every holiday season, the New York Transit Museum’s Grand Central Gallery plays host to a city within a city with the display of a miniature electric railroad running over, through, and beneath some of New York’s most magnificent landmarks. Celebrating its 18th year of operation, this beloved annual holiday exhibit features model trains traveling along a 34’ long, two-level, “O” gauge model train layout. This year’s exhibit is set against a mural designed by cartoonist Julia Wertz. Departing from a miniature replica of Grand Central Terminal, the Transit Museum’s collection of Lionel trains including Metro-North, Polar Express, and vintage subway train sets will dazzle the eyes of children and adults alike as they make their way past New York landmarks and on to the North Pole!
Holiday Lights at the Bronx Zoo
Ongoing until December 31st (excluding December 24th-25th) and January 3rd-5th. Hours: Sunday-Thursday 5-9p & Friday-Saturday 5-10p. Tickets: $22.95 for children 3-12y, $29.95 for adult. Discount available for WCS. See website for details. Discover the holiday season at the Bronx Zoo. Animal lanterns, animated sculptures, and colorful designs will light your way throughout the park. Enjoy a magical night that’s greener than ever thanks to LED technology. There will also be roaming carolers, ice carving, a holiday train, costumed characters ad seasonal food & souvenirs. See the website for all the details.
Winter Zoo Wonderland at Prospect Park Zoo
Saturdays-Sundays 11a-3p. Free with Zoo admission. Every weekend in December and January, explore Prospect Park Zoo’s wintery outdoor trail, warm up in their indoor exhibits, and discover the special adaptations animals have to survive in the cold. You’ll be toasty warm at the Zoo as you find out who at the zoo loves the cold…and who doesn’t. Post your “Zoo Year” resolutions for a better planet on the Zoo’s special wall and on social media to inspire others.
Photos with Santa in Brookfield Place (Battery Park City)
Ongoing until December 24th. Hours: Tuesday-Friday 12n-8p, Saturdays 10a-8p, Sundays 10a-6p, December 24th 10a-4p. Closed Mondays except 12/23. Santa takes a break to feed his reindeer around 3-4pm each day. Create lasting photo memories with Santa at BFPL! Photo packages start at $29. See website for full pricing information. Walk ins for photos with Santa are welcome, or click here to reserve your spot in advance.
NYC Winter Lantern Festival at Snug Harbor Cultural Center & Botanical Garden (Staten Island)
Hours: Wednesdays-Thursdays 5-930p. Fridays-Sundays 5-1030p until January 12th. Also open Monday-Tuesday December 30th-31st 5-10p. Tickets: $25 general admission, $17 youth ticket (ages 3-12y), $20 Senior/Military/Student. After our success last year, the NYC Winter Lantern Festival is back to transform Staten Island’s Snug Harbor Cultural Center & Botanical Garden into a whimsical world of light. There will be over 1,000 lanterns on display, sculpted into magnificent figures of luminescent art. Bring your whole family to revel in eight acres of lights, live cultural shows, interactive exhibits, and more. For those of you who attended last year’s event, prepare yourself for a completely fresh, new, and unique display! Purchase tickets here.
Yeti, Set, Snow! at Swedish Cottage Marionette Theatre (Central Park)
Friday November 29th 11a, 1p & 3p, Saturday November 30th 11a & 1p and Sunday December 1st 1p and ongoing at various times until February 23, 2020. See website for the full schedule. Tickets: $12 adult, $8 child. An original story and production from the Swedish Cottage Marionette Theatre, Yet, Set, Snow! is the story of a young girl named Widget, and her friend, Twig, who encounter a yeti named Pascetti on the first snow day of the winter season. Pascetti, who lives on a mountain top nearby, dislikes the snow. Through songs and snow day activities, Pascetti discovers not only that snow can be fun but also the value of friendship.
Holiday Express: All Aboard to Richard Scarry’s Busytown at New-York Historical Society (UWS)
Ongoing until February 23rd 2020. Museum hours: Tuesday-Thursday 10a-6p, Friday 10a-8p, Saturday 10a-6p & Sunday 11a-5p. Free with Museum admission. Holiday Express returns to New-York Historical this holiday season, reimagined to celebrate the 100th birthday of Busytown author and illustrator Richard Scarry. The installation showcases artwork and graphics of Scarry’s characters (like Huckle Cat and Lowly Worm!) from publisher Penguin Random House alongside Jerni Collection toys. Children and adults can also experience dynamic displays exploring the workings of the railroad, the services it provides, and the jobs required to keep people and goods moving.
GingerBread Lane at New York Hall of Science (Flushing Meadows)
Daily until January 12th 2020. Hours are Monday-Friday 930a-5p & Saturday-Sunday 10a-6p. Free with Museum admission. GingerBread Lane is the record-holder of the Guinness World Records for largest gingerbread village. In order to be eligible for the title, every element of the gingerbread display must be edible, and the display must imitate a village with houses, shops and town services such as a firehouse and police station. Creator Jon Lovitch will again try to break his own record with this year’s GingerBread Lane. This year’s GingerBread Lane includes a number of storefronts with quirky names: Eleven Pipers Piping – Piping Hot Soup, My Two Front Teeth General Dentistry, Visions of Sugar Plums Eye Glasses, and Letters to Santa – GingerBread Lane’s Post Office. Also check out the The Art of the Brick exhibit.
Survival of the Slowest at Brooklyn Children’s Museum (Crown Heights)
Ongoing until February 2nd 2020. Hours: Tuesday, Wednesday & Friday 10a-5p, Thursday 10a-6p & Saturday-Sunday 10a-7p. Free with Museum admission. Meet Roger the sloth! He has two toes, lives in Central America, and is visiting Brooklyn with his friends. Learn about how slow animals survive and thrive in our fast-paced world at BCM’s newest exhibit. Survival of the Slowest features 19 distinct habitats with live animals, including Roger the two-toed sloth, a blood python, a roughneck monitor lizard, and many more. Each day this exhibit will offer up-close experiences with slow and small species that survive and thrive in a world where large, strong, and fast animals are often at the top of the food chain. Survival of the Slowest prompts families to appreciate the different evolutionary paths of these incredible creatures, and showcases the value of deliberation in our fast-paced city. While exploring Survival of the Slowest, young visitors will explore concepts of biology and evolutionary science. Live animal presentations are offered throughout the day to educate, entertain, and most importantly, connect visitors with wildlife and nature.
Origami Holiday Tree at the American Museum of Natural History (UWS)
On display 10a-545p until January 12th (except 12/25). Free with Museum admission. Visit the American Museum of Natural History this holiday season to see one of New York’s most beloved displays, the Origami Holiday Tree—an annual tradition for more than 40 years. The theme of this year’s 13-foot tree is T. rex and Friends: History in the Making, with models inspired by the Museum’s special exhibition T. rex: The Ultimate Predator, which celebrates the most famous dinosaur species that was first discovered, named, and exhibited to the public by the Museum. Feeling crafty? Volunteers from OrigamiUSA will be on hand at the Museum to teach paper folding to visitors of all ages. Also check out the T. rex: The Ultimate Predator exhibit.
The Sleeping Beauty at Puppetworks (Park Slope)
Saturdays-Sundays 1230p & 230p until December 22nd. Suggested for 4 and up. Admission for a Child is $10, an Adult $11. Reservations are suggested: 718-965-3391 or e-mail us: puppetworks@twcmetrobiz.com (NO same day e-mail reservations). Perrault’s real Faery Tale with Music by Tchaikovsky.
Film Forum Jr. Matinee at the Film Forum (Lower East Side)
Saturdays-Sundays at 11a until December 8th. ALL TICKETS $9. Advance tickets on sale at the box office and online. Most programs appropriate for ages 5 and up. Classics For Kids and Their Families! December 7th-8th Rodgers & Hammerstein’s THE KING AND I