September is here and full of talks, lectures, and off-beat performances in New York. We're looking forward to hearing from Cory Doctorow, Bill McKibben, Anne Waldman, and the Pope's astronomer. Not to mention a composition for 50 micro-tuned pianos, the anthropologist-in-residence at the Department of Sanitation, and an insider look at an exhibition dedicated to fashion and psychoanalysis.
Alex Newell (center) in PERICLES: A Public Works Concert Experience. Photo: Marc J. Franklin.
Monday, September 1: Have faith in Pericles: A Public Works Concert Experience, crossing Shakespeare with inspirations from gospel music and the Black church. Cathedral of St. John the Divine. (Also Tuesday, September 2nd.)
Tuesday, September 2: Journey from the ancient origins of Mesopotamia to contemporary dystopias, with fragments of sacred texts, chants, mantras, and invocations along the way, as poet Anne Waldman shares her new Mesopotopia at 192 Books.
Photo: David Tešínský.
Wednesday, September 3: Revel in a "Different Beauty" as David Tešínský gives a photo and video talk on his experiences in 80 countries, capturing raw, provocative moments of lives on the fringe, from revolutionary youth in Iran to underground LGBTQ+ communities. Bohemian National Hall.
Photo: Pierre Planchenault.
Thursday, September 4: Steady yourself for French acrobatic troupe Compagnie Basinga and internationally renowned tightrope artist Tatiana-Mosio Bongonga at a Seaport performance as part of the ongoing Down to Earth performance series.
Friday, September 5: Talk trash with Robin Nagle, anthropologist-in-residence at the Department of Sanitation, as she gives a Nerd Nite presentation in Brooklyn on A Brief (and Possibly Life-Altering) Look at the History of New Yorkers & Their Trash.
Saturday, September 6: Take some pride in NYC's vibrant cosmopolitan society as the Perelman Performing Arts Center (PAC NYC) celebrates New York Proud: Stories from the City of Immigrants.
Sunday, September 7: Enter Ivohiboro: The Lost Forest at a Museum of the Moving Image screening on a pristine tropical forest in Madagascar; the afternoon continues with a conversation looking at fieldwork and collaboration between scientist and filmmaker.
Monday, September 8: Get a snapshot of contemporary photography at a Museum of Modern Art gathering featuring photographers from Johannesburg, Kathmandu, Mexico City, and New Orleans discussing intersections of "historical narrative, memory, and cultural inheritance."
Tuesday, September 9: Seek out the heavens with no less of an authority than the Pope's astronomer as St. Ignatius Loyola hosts an afternoon with Brother Guy J. Consolmagno, S.J., author of A Jesuit’s Guide to the Stars: Exploring Wonder, Beauty & Science.
Wednesday, September 10: Examine the state of the modern man during an Open to Debate night at the Comedy Cellar’s Village Underground around the prompt, Is Masculinity a Prison?
Thursday, September 11: Discover why Estonian composer Arvo Pärt is one of the world’s most-performed living artists with Estonian comic artist and illustrator Joonas Sildre, author of the graphic novel Between Two Sounds. Scandinavia House: The Nordic Center in America.
Friday, September 12: Follow up on a much-cited Wired article with its author, Cory Doctorow, who presents a virtual talk full of hope for a new internet, reaffirming that "we are not prisoners to the depraved foolishness of early 21st century policymakers."
Saturday, September 13: Grab a seat for a marathon public reading of Walt Whitman’s “Song of Myself” at Brooklyn Bridge Park.
Sunday, September 14: Spook yourself on a nighttime stroll through hidden spaces on The Ghosts & Dark Histories of Greenwich Village Walking Tour, presented by the Lower East Side Jewish Conservancy.
Monday, September 15: Bust some myths around immigration as the Center for Brooklyn History and Brooklyn Org bring together leading voices for This Moment in Immigration: What’s at Stake and What Can Be Done.
Tuesday, September 16: Find a lesson on public education as the cornerstone of American democracy with Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) and author of Why Fascists Fear Teachers: Public Education and the Future of Democracy. Congregation Beth Elohim.
Wednesday, September 17: Lend an ear to NPR’s Scott Simon as he talks about talk: a session on Persuasion, Propaganda, & the Power of the Human Voice. Roundtable by the 92nd Street Y.
Thursday, September 18: Work up an appetite at Niki Russ Federman & Josh Russ Tupper Present Russ & Daughters: 100 Years of Appetizing, a guide to both a culture and gastronomy. Center for New Jewish Culture.
Friday, September 19: Follow a panel celebrating producer Tom Kirdahy (last year's Broadway revival of Gypsy, the movie version of Kiss of the Spider Woman, and many others) on an evening dedicated to championing new storytellers. New York Public Library for the Performing Arts.
Saturday, September 20: Secure your reservation for a look at a New York dining legend—the SVA Theatre screens the 2025 documentary Raoul’s, A New York Story, followed by a Q&A.
Sunday, September 21: Think sunny thoughts with activist and author Bill McKibben, who shares his latest book, Here Comes the Sun: A Last Chance for the Climate and a Fresh Chance for Civilization. Fifteenth Street Friends Meeting.
Monday, September 22: Keep with the Climate Week vibes at the American Museum of Natural History and its afternoon panel on The Art and Science of Storytelling for Climate Progress.
Tuesday, September 23: Observe 250 years of the United States with Fraunces Tavern and author Michael Cecere on The Conflict Spreads: The American Colonies After Lexington & Concord.
Wednesday, September 24: Relive the heady days of fall, 2024, as Town Hall hosts two sittings of A Conversation with Kamala Harris.
Thursday, September 25: Explore other ways of relating to the world with one of the world’s leading anthropologists, Philippe Descola, at Columbia's Maison Française for a talk on Cosmopolitics of the Anthropocene.
Larry Shox, Man’s suit, 1985, USA, museum purchase. Photo by Eileen Costa, The Museum at FIT.
Friday, September 26: Book an appointment for Fashion and Psychoanalysis: An Evening with Dr. Valerie Steele, where “the Freud of Fashion” presents her current exhibition Dress, Dreams, and Desire: Fashion and Psychoanalysis at The Museum at FIT. The National Arts Club.
Saturday, September 27: Mark the equinox with Andean culture bearers Sisa Pakari and traditional dances and music. National Museum of the American Indian.
Sunday, September 28: Join the New York Adventure Club for a walking tour of the remnants of the Tenderloin, New York City's hub of vice at the turn of the 20th century.
Monday, September 29: Honor a trailblazing author at The New York Society Library with Susana M. Morris, author of Positive Obsession: The Life and Times of Octavia E. Butler.
Tuesday, September 30: Hearken to the North American premiere of maverick composer Georg Friedrich Haas's latest, "11,000 Strings," employing 50 micro-tuned pianos and a chamber orchestra. (Playing through October 6th at The Park Avenue Armory.)
