IRISH REPERTORY THEATRE’S OFFICIAL REOPENING AND BLOCK PARTY | A ribbon-cutting ceremony kicks off a banner day for the Irish Repertory Theater, as the beloved Chelsea cultural stalwart presents a block-long, all-afternoon event in celebration of their return to the neighborhood, after having spent far too long n the figurative wilderness of Union Square’s DR2 Theater. Tony Award Winner Matthew Broderick (sad and funny and so very good in IRT’s recent production of “Shining City,” as an emotionally winded fellow literally haunted by his late wife) will be on hand — wielding an appropriately dramatic oversized pair of scissors, we hope — to cut the ribbon, thereby making the re-opening of the Rep’s much-improved W. 22nd St. facility official. Indoor and outdoor programming will include pipers, poets, musicians, dancers, actors, magicians, face painters, and singers.
Free. Sat., Sept. 24; Ribbon-cutting at 12:30pm; events, 12–4pm. Inside the IRT (132 W. 22nd St.) and on the W. 22nd St. block, btw. Sixth & Seventh Aves. For more info, visit irishrep.org.
THE WOMEN’S BUILDING COMMUNITY BLOCK PARTY | Whether as a waterfront YMCA for sailors and merchant marines, a drug treatment center or Bayview Correctional Facility, the towering structure at 550 W. 20th St. has spent its entire existence housing those whose lives are in transition or flux. Having closed its doors in 2012 after Hurricane Sandy forced the evacuation of its medium-security women’s prison population, construction is set to begin next year to usher in a new era of permanence and purpose — as New York City’s first Women’s Building, a hub for nonprofits and community organizations working to further the rights, and nurture the talents, of women and girls. Hosted by site developers The NoVo Foundation and Goren Group, this Community Block Party promises to “reflect and honor the Chelsea neighborhood’s long history of social activism and dedication to social justice,” while providing the opportunity for input regarding the features and functions on hand when the Women’s Building opens its doors in 2020.
A block-long line of booths will offer information and conversation from nonprofit and community organizations, including Women’s City Club of New York, Girls That Build, Caring Across Generations, the LGBT Community Center, Equality Now, and the Women in Prison Project (of the Correctional Association of New York). There will be entertainment and performances from, among others, Girl Be Heard, The Center for Anti-Violence Education, The Brooklyn Women’s Chorus, and Aimee Cox.
Free. Sun., Sept. 25, 12–5pm on W. 20th St. (btw. 10th & 11th Aves.). Visit womensbuildingnyc.org.
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THE 24TH ANNUAL LONDON TERRACE STREET FAIR | Having suffered through a long season’s worth of congested, closed-off city blocks overflowing with underwhelming fare such as tube socks, sunglasses, overcooked sausages and sugar-shock funnel cakes, what a relief it is to arrive at that annual late summer sweet spot, when the tenants of London Terrace return, Brigadoon-like, to turn the Street Fair from a cookie-cutter franchise concept to a genuine neighborhood gathering. Its vendor tables are populated, in large part, by residents of the event’s namesake W. 24 St. residential complex — guaranteeing a voluminous supply of good stuff drawn from decades worth of collecting (antiques, art, housewares, books, vintage photos, and one-of-a-kind handmade crafts). A few carefully chosen food vendors will be on hand as well, alongside local charities and elected officials who come bearing information to disseminate, and ears to be bended by concerned constituents.
Sat., Sept. 24, 10am–5pm on W. 24th St. (btw. Ninth & 10th Aves.). For more info, visit LTTA.info.
SUBMERGE NYC MARINE SCIENCE FESTIVAL | Immerse yourself in the lore of local marine life, during this all-day festival designed to raise awareness of our coastal waters. Hudson River Park’s Pier 26 is the site of multiple family-friendly programs and activities coordinated by the New York Hall of Science. Research stations and a science stage offer hands-on activities, presentations, experiments, and wildlife performances; a tour of Stony Brook University’s R/V Seawolf research vessel reveals how they conduct oceanographic sampling and sturgeon tagging; Pier 26’s Downtown Boathouse staff takes you through the history of kayaks, then puts you in one to paddle the Hudson River; scuba dive demos have frogmen (and frogwomen) plunging into the Hudson to collect river specimens; and surf/turf food truck options from the likes of Gorilla Cheese, Urban Lobster Shack and Yaki Taco ensure your energy level doesn’t ebb and flow like the tide.
Free. Sat., Sept. 24, 11am–4pm at Pier 26 in Hudson River Park (at N. Moore St.). Visit hudsonriverpark.org/special-events/view/events-Submerge and nysci.org.
FREE SCREENING OF “CLASS DIVIDE” | Anyone watching “Class Divide,” wrote Eileen Stukane in the April 7, 2016 issue of this newspaper, “will learn more from the soulful insights of the young in this film about the rapidly changing West Side, the effects of income inequality, and the gentrification of Chelsea, than they will from the many urban economists who write books and give speeches.” The passion project from Marc Levin and Daphne Pinkerson (of Chelsea-based Blowback Productions) will have its HBO premiere on Oct. 3 — but you can see it in a movie theater, for free, when Councilmember Corey Johnson hosts a screening to be followed by a Q&A with the filmmakers, who will be joined by a few of those who appear in this emotionally charged look at gentrification and growing inequality, as seen through portraits of children attending Avenues, The World School, and those growing up in the Elliott-Chelsea Houses, both attempting to cross the divide.
Free. Mon., Sept. 26, 6:30pm at Cinépolis Chelsea (260 W. 23rd St., btw. Seventh & Eighth Aves.). To reserve a ticket, call 212-564-7757 or visit coreyjohnson.nyc. For more info on the film, visit blowbackproductions.com.
CHELSEA COMMERCE: THE EVOLUTION OF EFFICIENCY IN THE 20TH CENTURY WORK PLACE | More than a just tour of tour of notable tech and commercial landmarks, this “walking discussion” covers a substantial amount of literal and factual ground. Led by work-flow behavioral analyst and systems developer Brad Martin, the two-hour trip through Chelsea contemplates the evolution of management and work environment design processes throughout the 20th century, as a succession of astonishing devices (calculators, copy machines, credit cards, computers, cellphones) brought radical change to business at hand and the culture at large. Among the scheduled stops are Google’s headquarters, the Ladies Mile Historic District, the former Toy Center, and A.E. Lefcourt’s Clothing Center Building.
Sun., Sept. 25, 2–4pm. For tickets ($20; reservations required, comfortable shoes recommended), visit the event sponsor, neighborhood preservation group Save Chelsea, at savechelseany.org.
