Record Store Day! T-Swift Release Parties! Earth Day! BK Bookstore Crawl! Black Filmmakers @ BAM! Drinks w/ a Dog in a Hoodie!
Plus: Opera @ BAM! Cherry Blossoms @ BBG! Night of 1000 Dollys!
Welcome back to your Park Slope events newsletter. As always, links to sources are in (parentheses) after each event. Follow our IG for updates as events change and email us if you have tips!
Book Now
We have a habit of knowing what sells out.
🦑Kaiju 30th Anniversary Part 4: Halloween Beach Party on 6/2: “Whoa! Kaiju Big Battel is a modern conflict of epic proportions. A few privileged humans also get in on the action, as they try to contain danger within the three-roped arena of Kaiju Big Battel.” [Editor’s note: These always sell out months ahead of time.] (6:00 PM, Bell House, $30)
📕Casey Mcquiston + Mazey Eddings @ Ripped Bodice on 4/19: “To celebrate the debut of Eddings' 'Late Bloomer,' we're hosting a Brooklyn event with Eddings where she will chat about her newest romance with McQuiston. There will be a book signing with Mazey only after the conversation.”(9:00 PM, The Ripped Bodice)
🧛🗡️Buffering: A Rewatch Adventure Presents Buffy Prom 2024 on 4/20: “Dance the night away to your favorite 90s music with fellow Buffy fans while decked out in your prom best (or your best Buffy cosplay!), listen to live music from Buffering's own Jenny Owen Youngs, and have a nostalgic, vampyric, rollicking good time — guaranteed to be Hellhound-free.”(8:00 PM, The Bell House, $25)
Get Involved: Earth Day Edition
Note: The full list of Earth Day volunteering opportunities is too big for this section. Find more activities by looking for the 🌎emoji throughout our day-by-day listings below.
🌎🧹Earth Week Shoreline Clean & Green @ Gowanus Dredgers on Saturday: “We’re going to get the site ready for the upcoming season opening in May. Our plans include working on the OPTI habitats, creating some planters on the site and sprucing up everything to get ready to welcome the public for walk-up paddles and guided tours. We’ll also continue projects started last work-day.”(10:00 AM, Gowanus Dredgers Boathouse)
🌎🧹Park Pitch In: Earth Day Service @ Prospect Park on Saturday “This Earth Day, give back to Brooklyn’s Backyard by caring for Prospect Park’s trees. Volunteer with Prospect Park Alliance to support our urban oasis by caring for street trees along the park perimeter, breaking up soil, laying down mulch, and removing litter from the tree beds along Parkside + Ocean Avenue.”(11:00 AM, Prospect Park)
🌎🧹Spring Clean & Green w/Assemblyman Robert Carroll on Sunday: “I’m hosting my Spring Clean & Green event at Park Circle in Prospect Park. There will be e- & textile recycling, kid's stop n' swap, plus giveaways, special services, info & demos. ”(10:00 AM, Prospect Park)
🌎🪴Celebrate Earth Day: Seed Ball Making @ Old Stone House on Sunday: “Stop by our tent on 5th ave to make SEED BALLS with Old Stone House’s Garden Coordinator Angela. Mix compost, clay and native flower seeds all sourced from Washington Park. Create pollinator friendly packages that you can drop at the site of your choosing.”(10:00 AM, Old Stone House)
Links and Openings
The WNBA Draft Was at BAM. Just a reminder of how lucky we are to be able to walk over to where history is being made. (BAM IG)
🛋Steppe Opening Day w/Dog Day Afternoon “We're thrilled to invite you to the official opening of our Windsor Terrace showroom. Come browse our inventory of vintage furniture, rugs, and home goods — or just stop in to say hello! If you plan on attending, we just ask one thing: Bring your appetite! Our friends at Dog Day Afternoon will be on site from 12-4 p.m. selling hot dogs. And we'll have plenty of beer and wine to go around.” (12:00 PM, Steppe)
Events
Thursday, 4/18
📕Choice Words: Writers On Abortion: “The debate about the morality, legality, and politics of abortion has reached a tragic impasse in the United States. What fresh perspectives, complex insights, and wisdom can poets, dramatists, and fiction writers bring to this crucial cultural discussion? BPL Presents and Annie Finch invite you join a discussion to examine what diverse literary artists have to say on this fundamental issue of reproductive and human freedom.”(7:00 PM, Central Library)
📕Bill Wasik & Monica Murphy Present 'Our Kindred Creatures' @ Community Bookstore: “Wasik, editorial director of The New York Times Magazine, and veterinarian Monica Murphy offer a fascinating history of this crusade and the battles it sparked in American life. On the side of reform were such leaders as George Angell, the inspirational head of Massachusetts’s animal-welfare society and the American publisher of the novel Black Beauty; Henry Bergh, founder of the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals; Caroline White of Philadelphia, who fought against medical experiments that used live animals; and many more.”(7:00 PM, Community Bookstore)
🤣Chloe Radcliffe: Cheat (SOLD OUT) “In this gutsy, honest and electric solo show from a New York City-based rising star, Chloe admits to the guilty secret that most people keep forever. (FYI: Coming to the show doesn’t make you a cheater… actually, avoiding it seems way more suspicious). Chloe has written on and starred in Command Z from Steven Soderbergh, has been seen on Comedy Central, and was a writer for The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon.”(7:30 PM, Union Hall, $15)
🎨Gnome Painting Party @ Brewer’s Row: “We'll be featuring two beers from each brewery in addition to handing out free prizes and schwag! We'll provide all the necessary supplies, you provide the you!”(8:00 PM, Brewer's Row)
Friday, 4/19
🌎👣Prospect Park Wellness Walk: “Join Prospect Park Alliance at the Prospect Park Audubon Center for an uplifting and energizing morning walk including scenic trails along the Lullwater, Peninsula, Midwood or Waterfall. Please note, this walk leaves promptly at 10 am from the Prospect Park Audubon Center.”(10:00 AM, Prospect Park)
🌎🌳Open Air Care Connections: “Speak with trained Community Health Workers at LeFrak Center at Lakeside in Prospect Park! Through the pilot, community health workers provided by Neighborhood Housing Services of Brooklyn, will be placed at key locations in the park and embedded into Alliance events and public programs to address mental health needs of our community.”(11:00 AM, Prospect Park)
🐶Our "Wyatt" Dog Hoodie Launch - Sip + Shop: “Join us for our new ethically & sustainably made "Wyatt" Dog Hoodie Launch - Sip + Shop event at Gone to the Dogs! Join us for a fun-filled day of shopping for your furry friends while sipping 🍷 on delicious beverages. Our new dog hoodies are made with pride from reclaimed materials, by women-makers, ensuring a sustainable and ethical choice for your pets. Don't miss out on this exciting opportunity to support eco-friendly fashion for your beloved companions. See you there!”(5:00 PM, Gone to the Dogs)
🍿Black Film In Brooklyn @ BAM: “From a talent show to political documentary to footage of protest rallies, these films show the “boom” of independent Black filmmakers in Brooklyn in the 60s and 70s, echoing back to the urgent work decades before by towering figures Oscar Michaux and Paul Robeson. Join us after the program for a panel discussion with Jimmie Mannas, Lebert "Sandy" Bethune, Sylvester Bracey Jr., Timon Lyander, and J.T. Takagi, moderated by Ina Archer.”(7:00 PM, BAM, $16)
🗣Word. Sound. Power. 2024: Sound @ BAM: “BAM honors the bond between beat and rhyme at our annual celebration of hip-hop and spoken word. Drawing on 50 years of hip-hop greatness, let’s pay homage to the masters of vocal instrumentation, whose sounds reverberate all the way to the stratosphere. Join us as we celebrate the aural soul of the genre and write a collective love letter to hip-hop’s sonic heart. ”(7:30 PM, BAM, $25)
📕Casey Mcquiston + Mazey Eddings Brooklyn Event For 'Late Bloomer.' See Book Now above. (9:00 PM, The Ripped Bodice)
🪩Gaylor Swift *A Taylor Swift & Friends Party* @ Good Judy's: “Join us for a Taylor Swift and Friends dance party to celebrate the release of Tay Tay's new album!”(10:00 PM, Good Judy's, $6)
💃Fierce! Queer+ Dance Party @ Gemini & Scorpio: “Calling all LGBTQIA+, poly, kinky and other "alternative" dating/sex/gender-aligned humans and their allies for a community social & dance blowout. We got lights & smoke & lasers, booming bass, spinning disco ball, swirling visuals, lots of dance floor, lots of couches, killer AC or cozy heat, all in a luscious private loft. Queer DJs lay down an eclectic mix of retro and current pop hit remixes & mashups with happy house vibes.”(10:00 PM, Gemini & Scorpio, $20)
Saturday AM, 4/20
🌳Saturday Morning Run And Coffee: “Come join us for a casual run in Prospect Park at 8:45 am and then have coffee etc if you like with us at Overgreen’s Cafe on Prospect Park West between 14th Street and 15th Street two doors down from the movie theater. It is recommended that you be able to run at least 10:30 per mile for 3.5 miles in order to have someone to run with.”(8:45 AM, Prospect Park)
🌎🧹Earth Week Shoreline Clean & Green @ Gowanus Dredgers: See Get Involved above. (10:00 AM, Gowanus Dredgers Boathouse)
🎧Record Store Day: The line was around the block last year with a Taylor Swift RSD release that sold out in minutes. It may not be that insane this year, but if you care about records you should browse the list of 2024 RSD special editions and plan accordingly. (11AM, Psychic Records)
🌎🌳Nature Exploration: “Join Prospect Park Alliance to discover why Prospect Park is an important place for over 250 species of birds. Through fun games, experiments and citizen science projects, learn why warblers are so wonderful.”(11:00 AM, Prospect Park)
🌎🧹Park Pitch In: Earth Day Service: See Get Involved above. (11:00 AM, Prospect Park)
🌎Little Caribbean Earth Day: “A day of family-friendly nature activities to celebrate our planet! Create your own paper seed pot, enjoy an earth day game corner and much more in celebration of Earth Day.”(11:00 AM, Prospect Park)
🌎🧹Waste No More: Brooklyn Museum Clothing Swap @ Brooklyn Museum: “Clean out your closet and refresh your wardrobe for summer with us and Bed-Stuy Clothes Swap (BSCS)! Through this inclusive and eco-conscious clothing swap celebrating Earth Day, we can make a positive impact on the planet while embracing community, style, and sustainability.”(11:00 AM, Brooklyn Museum)
Saturday PM
🛋Steppe Opening Day!: See Openings and Closings above. (12:00 PM, Steppe)
🍿'La Rondine' Broadast @ BAM: “Puccini’s bittersweet love story returns to cinemas, with soprano Angel Blue starring as the French courtesan Magda, opposite tenor Jonathan Tetelman as Ruggero, an idealistic young man who offers her an alternative to her life of excess. Maestro Speranza Scappucci conducts Nicolas Joël’s Art Deco–inspired staging, which transports audiences from the heart of Parisian nightlife to a dreamy vision of the French Riviera. Soprano Emily Pogorelc and tenor Bekhzod Davronov complete the sterling cast as Lisette and Prunier.”(12:00 PM, BAM, $34)
Brooklyn Bookstore Crawl: “Pick up your Brooklyn Bookstore Crawl passport from any participating store between April 20 and April 27. Get a stamp or signature on your passport at each participating store you visit. Visit 5 stores and get a 25% off coupon good at all participating stores!” (12:00 PM @ Terrace Books, Community Bookstore, PowerHouse on 8th, The Ripped Bodice)
💋Ukulele Cabaret: Night Of 1000 Dollys: “The Gowanus Dredgers Boathouse transforms into a Dolly Parton paradise. Big hair, dazzling sequins, and country classics await! Don’t just Think About Love, come experience it in every strum and harmony!”(5:00 PM, Gowanus Dredgers Boathouse)
🍿Black Women In Independent Film And Arts @ Bam: “Bowser’s collection includes important works by Black women filmmakers of the 60s, 70s and 80s. This program spotlights films from Hortense "Tee" Beveridge, a politically progressive filmmaker and the first Black woman to be admitted to the film editor’s union; Madeleine Anderson, the first Black woman to direct a televised documentary film; and more. Join us after the program for a panel discussion with Melissa Lyde, Ina Archer, and others, moderated by Gillian Bowser.”(7:00 PM, BAM, $16)
🗣Word. Sound. Power. 2024: Sound @ BAM: See Friday listing. (7:30 PM, BAM, $25)
🧛🗡️Buffering: A Rewatch Adventure Presents Buffy Prom 2024: See Book Now above. (8:00 PM, The Bell House, $25)
Sunday, 4/21
Note: Libraries are closed Sunday due to city budget cuts.
🌎🧹Spring Clean & Green W/Assemblyman Robert Carroll: See Get Involved section above. (10:00 AM, Prospect Park)
🌎🪴Celebrate Earth Day: Seed Ball Making @ Old Stone House: See Get Involved section above. (10:00 AM, Old Stone House)
🌎🧹Earth Day @ Park Slope Farmers Market: “Between stops at all your favorite farmstalls and vendors, we'll have plenty of ways for you to help the planet:”(10:00 AM, Park Slope Farmers Market)
🍖🍛🌮🥙Smorgasburg: “Presented in partnership with Prospect Park Alliance, is considered the “Woodstock of Eating.” The celebrated open-air food fair is back in Prospect Park for the 2024 season! Over 60 local businesses will gather on Breeze Hill, near the Lincoln Road entrance, to offer a range of food and drink every Sunday ”(11:00 AM, Prospect Park)
🍷Special Afternoon Tasting With Iconic Wine Maker Pepe Raventos: “Discover the essence of Penedès through the exceptional craftsmanship of winemaker Pepe Raventos. Join us for an exclusive evening at Bar Vinazo, where you'll have the privilege of meeting Pepe himself and sampling six natural, organic, and biodynamic wines.”(1:00 PM, Bar Vinzano, $80)
🍿Pearl On Camera: Food & Film @ BAM: “In addition to her passion for cinema, Bowser was also an historian of Black American cuisine, writing a food column for Tuesday Magazine that culminated in her 1970 cookbook A Pinch of Soul. This program looks at the filmmaker’s work at the intersection of film and food and features some of her other appearances on camera, including a segment produced by Bowser originally to be aired on the seminal public affairs television program Like It Is.”(4:00 PM, BAM, $FREE)
💃A Contra Dance For All: “An afternoon of contra dancing on April 7th, starting with a free contra lesson at 4:30. Sunny Lawrence returns with her fan-favorite calling, and local musicians Anna Bosnick (Fiddle) and Colin Harte (Piano) are excited to make their Brooklyn Contra duo debut!”(4:30 PM, Camp Friendship)
🎺Brooklyn Swings & Danny Jonokuchi Present: Sunday Swing @ Gemini & Scorpio: “Get your last night out before Monday! An early night of great live jazz by Danny Jonokuchi & the Revisionists. Bring yourself, a date, or catch up with a friend in a lush private loft with a jungle-themed dry bar fully stocked with NA cocktails & beers to quench your thirst. Or if you want to pick up your feet and give it a Swing, a lesson is included with your ticket, and our wide open wood dance floor awaits. Come as you are, no partner or special attire required.”(7:00 PM, Gemini & Scorpio, $20)
Monday, 4/22
🌎🧹It’s My Park Day: “Looking to get involved in a park clean-up effort? Join Prospect Park Alliance for It’s My Park Day to care for the park after busy weekends. All necessary tools will be provided for your volunteer experience.”(10:00 AM, Prospect Park)
🌳Spring Break In Prospect Park: “The ingredients needed to produce the next generation of trees are found within nuts, cones and fruit. Join a naturalist and learn about seeds and the birds who eat them through hands-on crafts and activities. Continue your learning outside the park by potting your own take home plant.”(12:00 PM, Prospect Park Audobon Center)
🌳Free Film Screening: 'Shirley': “Join Department of Cultural Affairs Commissioner Laurie Cumbo and Prospect Park Alliance President Morgan Monaco, for a free screening of Shirley, the new Netflix film about Brooklyn Trailblazer Shirley Chisholm, depicting her run for the 1972 Democratic presidential nomination after becoming the first Black woman elected to Congress. The film stars Regina King, Lance Reddick and Terrence Howard”(6:00 PM, Prospect Park, $FREE)
🍿'The Iron Giant' @ Bam: “Something humungous is among us! A young boy rescues a huge robot which has rocketed to earth from space—and tries to protect the genial giant from a nosey government agent and the military. ”(7:00 PM, BAM, $16)
🎤️Pop Pantheon Live: Tortured Poets And The State Of Taylor Mania: “In the wake of her eleventh studio album, The Tortured Poets Department, Pop Pantheon’s DJ Louie XIV will be joined by Every Single Album’s Nora Princiotti, writer Hunter Harris and Rolling Stone’s Brittany Spanos to break down Taylor’s latest record, dissect her place atop the current pop firmament and ponder how long this blazing hot streak can possibly last.”(7:30 PM, The Bell House, $25)
Tuesday, 4/23
🎹Stomp, Clap And Sing With Sunny Songsters @ Central Library: “Come sing and dance with the Sunny Songsters! We take children on an exciting 45 minute musical journey filled with instruments, scarves, bubbles and much more. Our mission is to foster an appreciation for music through play-based learning. The creators of our program are children's entertainment professionals with degrees in acting, music and songwriting. With us, every day is sunny!”(10:30 AM, Central Library)
🌳Spring Break In Prospect Park: See Monday listing. (12:00 PM, Prospect Park Audobon Center)
🌸Hanami Nights: “Find a spot on Cherry Esplanade to enjoy the cherry blossoms, lit up for maximum effect, and savor the spring vibe with family and friends. Stroll in the Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden and along Cherry Walk, try your hand at origami, and view a curated display of bonsai in the Lillian and Amy Goldman Atrium. The evenings feature live performances, a bar selling Japanese beer and sake, and pop-up food menus curated with Sunrise Mart.”(5:00 PM, Brooklyn Botanic Garden)
🎶The Climate Opera Project: “A collection of four short operas celebrating Earth Day 2024 depicting unlikely heroes reeling from the cataclysm of human-influenced natural disasters. From a revengeful polar bear watching its home disappear to a water-stealing cactus, these operas tackle issues of the environment with humor and hope.”(7:30 PM, BAM, $25)
🍿'From Beyond' Followed By Screenwriter Q&A @ Nitehawk: “Obsessive scientist Dr. Pretorius (Bride of Frankenstein reference alert) successfully discovers a way to access a parallel universe of pleasure by tapping into the brain’s pineal gland. When he is seemingly killed by forces from this other dimension, his assistant, Dr. Crawford Tillinghast, is accused of the murder.”(8:30 PM, Nitehawk)
🇮🇷'Persepolis' @ BAM: “Marjane Satrapi adapted her acclaimed graphic novels—based on her experiences growing up amid Iran’s Islamic Revolution—into this masterfully moving animated fable, which finds irreverent humor in the darkest of circumstances. Inked in striking monochrome, it follows the precocious Marjane from age eight to 24 as she rebels against the increasingly oppressive conservatism infiltrating Iranian society, finding liberation in rock ’n’ roll and an adventurous life of the mind.”(9:00 PM, BAM, $16)
Wednesday, 4/24
💬Hidden In Full View: Learning How To Collect Oral History And Folklore In Your Own Community: “Join Brooklyn Public Library and oral historian/folklorist Dr. Hanna Griff-Sleven for an oral history workshop designed for artists. During this workshop, we will discuss oral history and folklore and how they are both used to document the history and culture of a community.” (10:00 AM, Central Library)
💸2024 Powerup Business Plan Competition Orientation: “Enter PowerUP as we celebrate our 21st year. You could win a $20,000 CASH AWARD to start your business. Attend classes, meet with a business counselor and learn how to write a business plan.” (10:00 AM, Central Library)
🌳Spring Break In Prospect Park: See Monday listing. (12:00 PM, Prospect Park Audobon Center)
🌸Hanami Nights: See Tuesday listing. (5:00 PM, Brooklyn Botanic Garden)
🎶🪦Phantom Waves: Amir Elsaffar @ Green-Wood: “An innovative music series crafted for the distinctive acoustic spaces of Green-Wood’s Historic Chapel and Catacombs. Headlined by musicians making waves with experimental approaches to voice, instrumentation, and composition, the series offers immersive sonic journeys that blur the line between the living and the spectral.”(6:30 PM, Green-Wood Cemetery, $40)
🌙🪦Moonlight Tour @ Green-Wood: “Join other fearless trekkers to explore Green-Wood’s intriguing monuments and unforgettable Catacombs under the glow of the full moon. Historian Jeff Richman leads these immensely popular walking tours, which begin at sunset and are accompanied by the ethereal and atmospheric sounds of live accordion music. Buy your tickets soon; these tours always sell out.”(8:30 PM, Green-Wood Cemetery, $30)
Thursday, 4/25
🍼Prospect Park Stroller Walk: “Calling all parents and caregivers with children! Join a Prospect Park Alliance Naturalist at the Prospect Park Audubon Center for a leisurely stroll along Prospect Park’s waterways. Embrace the sound of streams and songs of birds. Enjoy fragrant flowers and explore the towering trees of Brooklyn’s Backyard. Please note that this walk leaves promptly at 10 am from the Prospect Park Audubon Center.”(10:00 AM, Prospect Park)
🌎🧹Spring Spruce Up: “From April to early June, adult volunteers will have the opportunity to participate in a variety of projects around the park. These projects include mulching, painting, invasive plant removal and other landscaping tasks. Projects may involve repetitive bending, kneeling, lifting, transporting loaded wheelbarrows, using sharp tools and encountering potentially hazardous plants and materials.”(10:00 AM, Prospect Park)
🌳Spring Break In Prospect Park: See Monday listing. (12:00 PM, Prospect Park Audobon Center)
🌸Hanami Nights: See Tuesday listing.(5:00 PM, Brooklyn Botanic Garden)
💋Mia Sheridan Signing @ Ripped Bodice For 'Falling For Gage': “From New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Mia Sheridan comes her next novel in the Pelion Lake series. How is it possible that perfect Gage Buchanan is still single after all these years?”(6:00 PM, The Ripped Bodice, $19)
📕Brooklyn Poetry Slam @ Brooklyn Museum: “Celebrate Brooklyn Poetry Slam’s tenth year! Amplify the voices of Brooklyn at a series of pay-what-you-can slams, presented by poets and cofounders Mahogany L. Browne and DJ Jive Poetic. Come to listen to poets, or arrive early to sign up if you’d like to join the slam (limited availability). ”(7:00 PM, Brooklyn Museum)
🍿Shouting At The Screen @ Nitehawk: “Hosted by Wyatt Cenac and Donwill. Come early for a DJ set by Donwill in Trees Lounge from 8-9pm. Back in the days before live-tweeting, the only way to express your thoughts while watching a movie was to yell them out loud to the delight of your friends, and the disgust of some old people a few rows in front of you. Comedian Wyatt Cenac (HBO’s Problem Areas, Bob’s Burgers) and musician Donwill (Tanya Morgan, Adulting with Michelle Buteau & Jordan Carlos) invite you to join them as they recreate the kind of ridiculous, loud mouthed magic that is generally found in movie theaters owned by a guy named Magic.”(9:15 PM, Nitehawk)
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