Unusual New York Events You Should Attend in 2024
'20.12.2023'
Alina Prikhodko
If you don't go to events and shows, why are you even paying rent in New York? There are a lot of different events going on in the city every day. Time-out compiled a selection of 10 quirky events in New York that are worth attending in 2024.
1.Books and burlesque
How about a duet of “books and burlesque”? This burlesque show features famous authors reading excerpts from their new books. The burlesque or drag performer then performs a new routine inspired by the book.
An acrobatic act with cash and purses (inspired by Kirstin Chen's book "Fake"), an avant-garde drag performance (dedicated to Elissa Maxx Goodman's book "Glitter and Concrete: A Cultural History of Drag in New York City") and much more. The shows are both fun and insightful and will make your evening joyful and positive.
The next show is Saturday, March 9, 2024 at the Caveat on the Lower East Side.
2. Exhibition construction
Instead of leaving cans of food to languish in boxes until they are distributed to those in need, they are turned into art. Local architecture and design firms use jars as building blocks to create intricate sculptures. This year's sculptures included Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Winnie the Pooh Bear, and an improvisation of "Under the Wave off Kanagawa" (my personal favorite).
The Canstruction exhibit usually takes place at Brookfield Place around Thanksgiving, so keep an eye out for it in the fall. Admission is free, but don't forget to bring some canned food to donate to the cause of art.
3. THC NYC, weed museum
Whether you smoke or not, a visit to New York's new weed museum promises a psychedelic experience. The museum boasts an array of multi-sensory bells and whistles, but at the same time it showcases art, highlights scientific advances, and confronts social justice issues surrounding the persecution of cannabis.
The space is beautifully designed and exciting experiences await around every corner. The Euphorium, where you can lie down on a massive spinning record while it plays music important to stoner culture, from The Doors to Santana. THC NYC is now open, with tickets starting at $39.
4.Chocolate Room at MoMA
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You know how sometimes you can smell a good restaurant before you see it? Now, it's something like that, but it's art.
Ed Ruscha's "Chocolate Room" at MoMA is covered in chocolate. While immersive art isn't a surprise these days, Ruscha created his first “Chocolate Room” back in 1970, long before the advent of Instagram. It still retains its uniqueness today, and it certainly makes the immersive art experience refreshing and somewhat different from digital projections on the wall.
Get there before the exhibition closes on January 13, 2024.
5. Body Art Day
This summer, dozens of completely naked models stood motionless in Union Square while they were painted head to toe as part of Naked Body Day. The event celebrated the human body in all its beautiful shapes, sizes, genders, ethnicities and ages (participants ranged in age from 20 to 80).
Most spectators watch the spectacle with a kind of reverence for the artists and as a sign of respect for the event, which, according to organizer Andy Golub, is aimed at “spreading and feeling joy.”
Although this year's event was the last NYC Naked Bodypainting Day, Golub's company Human Connection Arts is in talks to create an event called BodyFest this spring. If it happens, you definitely won't want to miss it.
6. Spending the night with wolves
New York may be called “the city that never sleeps,” but there's a place in Westchester County that could be a formidable contender for that title. You can book a tour called “Sleeping with Wolves” at the Wolf Conservation Center, located an hour north of Manhattan. You can stay in a luxurious tent and sleep while listening to wolves howl. The overnight stay includes a pizza dinner, a chance to see wolves, and a movie. Reservations are available from May to October 2023.
7. Laboratory of celebrations
After attending an event called Celebration Lab, you will find pieces of colorful confetti in your bag for a long time, and every time it will bring a smile, because this event is magic. Presenter Elena Aleksic guides participants through meditation and movement.
Strangers quickly become friends at this event, which culminates in a “let it all go and embrace it” dance circle.
You will even be able to visit the podium, where everyone will rejoice and throw confetti at you, and a photographer will capture this moment. The next event will take place on February 3, 2024; tickets sell for $99.
8. Walking tour "Death in New York"
Forbidden stories lurk under the sidewalk and around every corner in New York City, and a series of walking tours from Purefinder tell the stories.
The author of these tours, K. Crombie, offers the tours “Psychiatric History of New York,” “Hell's Gate,” and “Oppenheimer in New York.” Each offers its own twist, but they all promise meticulously researched and theatrically presented historical accounts that you won't find in guidebooks.
Tickets start at $36.
9. Archery in Wild Captives
If archery is not one of your hobbies and the last time you held a bow and arrow was at a children's camp as a child, then you should definitely try again. Wild Captives, led by Kendall Tichner, is the country's first women-owned and LGBTQ-owned archery studio where everyone can “be their own superhero.”
The studio in Brooklyn's Industry City offers one-hour introductory archery classes every weekend for $45 per person.
10. The Straphangers Lounge, knitted metro
If a real New York City subway had fabric seats, you wouldn't want to sit on them, but at this unusual sewing pop-up, you'll want to make an exception.
Creative knitting duo Sue Hunter and Karima Sundarji created The Straphangers Lounge, in which they created an entire subway car interior out of textiles. You'll see amazingly realistic orange seats, advertisements, a spilled cup of coffee, and even a rat with a pizza.
Their debut took place last winter, and it was a spectacle to behold. This year they are going to host it again from January 26 to 28, 2024 at the Marriott Marquis in New York. The visit is free.
