BY ROSE ADAMS AND RICO BURNEY |
ARTS
The Downtown Urban Arts Festival, which was started to help foster a new generation of American playwrights, returns for a 17th year with 18 new plays. The festival runs through Sat., May 11. All shows cost $20 and are at the Wild Project, at 195 E. Third St., between Avenues A and B. For tickets and show synopses, visit https://www.duafnyc.com/theater.
Elisa Monte Dance will hold its 38th annual season Thurs., May 9, through Sun., May 12, at The Flea Theater in Tribeca, at 20 Thomas St., between Broadway and Church St. The Harlem-based modern dance company — founded by Martha Graham protégé Elisa Monte, now run by artistic director Tiffany Rea-Fisher — will present both new and repertory pieces for this year’s program. Performances will run from Thurs., May 9, through Sat., May 11, at 7 p.m., and Sun., May 12, at 3 p.m. Tickets to the Sunday show include a free, all-ages and all-levels movement class after the program, plus a champagne and chocolate reception to attendees. Tickets for all shows are from $12 to $27. For tickets and information, visit https://theflea.org/shows/elisa-monte-dance-38th-nyc-season/.
COMMUNITY
Reuse of Closed Religious Properties: The Cooper Square Committee, Habitat for Humanity, Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer and City Councilmembers Carlina Rivera and Margaret Chin host a town hall discussion on the future of the shuttered Nativity Church on Second Ave., between E. Second and Third Sts., and the need for community land trusts. Mon., May 6, at 7 p.m., in the Rose Auditorium at The Cooper Union Annex, at 41 Cooper Square, between E. Sixth and Seventh Sts. Free.
MOVIES
The Children Act: Emma Thompson plays a British judge who must decide whether to overrule the wishes of a teenage cancer patient’s parents, who object to him receiving a blood transfusion for religious reasons. Also starring Stanley Tucci and Fionn Whitehead. 105 minutes. Originally released in 2018. The free screening will be on Thurs., May 9, at 2 p.m., at the Hudson Park Library, at 66 Leroy St. Free.
MUSIC
Miss Debra “Raffles” Trizzini, longtime friend of the late Joey Ramone and the official T-shirt model for The Ramones, will co-host the 18th Annual Joey Ramone Birthday Bash, along with Punk magazine Publisher John Holmstrom, Pete Aschner and Ramones road manager Monte Melnick, at Bowery Electric, 327 Bowery, on Sun., May 19. Organized by Joey’s brother Mickey Leigh, the evening will feature CJ Ramone, the Sick F*cks (with Tish and Snooky), Sea Monster and much more. The $40 ticket will send some cash to the Joey Ramone Foundation for Lymphoma Research. For information on donating, visit www.joeyramone.com/pages/foundation .
TALKS
“How To Be Less Stupid About Race”: The Mid-Manhattan Library will host author and Stony Brook University professor Dr. Crystal M. Fleming Wed., May 8, at 6:30 p.m., to discuss her new book and its irreverent take on what’s wrong with the national conversation about race, with an aim toward providing a guide for lasting social change. To learn more and preregister, visit https://www.showclix.com/event/howtobelessstupidaboutrace. Free.
The PEN America World Voices Festival runs from Mon., May 6, to Sun., May 12, featuring more than 125 writers and artists from around the world, in talks and readings about human rights, at more than 60 events citywide. Many but not all events are free. For a list of programs, visit https://worldvoices.pen.org.
The NEW New York: The passage of the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 brought with it a wave of racist violence against Chinese-Americans in the late 1800s. In response, a number of Chinese-Americans in many neighborhoods, including Greenwich Village, began organizing against this discrimination. Dylan Yeats, visiting scholar at the Asain-Pacific-American Institute at N.Y.U., will give a free talk about how Chinese-Americans who lived and worked in The Village fought for social justice more than 130 years ago. The talk is sponsored by the Village Preservation and the Merchant’s House Museum and will be on Thurs., May 9, from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m., at the Baha’i Center, 53 E. 11th St. To register, visit https://71712.blackbaudhosting.com/71712/The-NEW-New-York-Fighting-Anti-Asian-Discrimination-in-19th-Century-Greenwich-Village. Free.
WALKING TOURS
Jane’s Walk NYC: The Municipal Art Society and nonprofits around the city will hold free walking tours in all five boroughs from Fri., May 3, to Sun., May 5, to commemorate the birthday of the late urbanist Jane Jacobs. Jacobs was a leader in the fight to save Washington Square Park and large portions of Greenwich Village from Robert Moses’ bulldozers in the 1950s. Most tours run roughly 90 minutes. Preregistration for tours is strongly recommended by M.A.S. A full list of walks and registration forms can be found at https://www.mas.org/janes-walk-nyc/. Free.
COMMUNITY BOARDS
Community Board 5 meets Thurs., May 9, at Xavier High School, 30 W. 16th St., second floor library, at 6 p.m.
Community Board 6 meets Wed., May 8, at N.Y.U. School of Dentistry, 433 First Ave., Room 210, at 7 p.m.
Community Board 7 meets Tues., May 7, at Mount Sinai West, 1000 10th Ave., at 6:30 p.m.
COMMUNITY COUNCIL
Seventh Precinct Community Council meets Wed., May 8, at 19 ½ Pitt St., at 7:30 p.m.
19th Precinct Community Council meets Mon., May 6, at 153 E. 67th St., at 7 p.m.
