The Wander List

a daily guide to wanderlust in the city

Love a Parade May 18, 2009

Filed under: Arts and Culture,NYC East Village,Shopping,Spring,Year-round — thewanderlist @ 12:15 am
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NYC Dance Parade 2009

While hunting for an elusive affordable/comfortable/attractive sofabed this weekend, Chris and I stumbled onto a parade. Yellow tape held us up at Union Square, and a stream of shiny, happy people danced by, some of them holding hands.

 

Who knew Mayor Bloomberg declared May 16 “The 2009 Dance Parade and Festival Day?” The nonprofit, third-annual parade featured more than 5,000 dancers, 100 dance organizations and 60 dance styles. We caught Korean, patriotic, zydeco and belly dancing, and if my tap shoes were in tow, I’d have joined in for some soft shoe.

 

The parade wound its way down Broadway and St. Mark’s Place toward the East Village, culminating in a public dance party at Tompkins Square Park. We headed to Straight From the Crate and did a little dance ourselves when we found a trove of sleeper sofas for less than $900.

 

NYC Dance Parade 2009-USA  NYC Dance Parade-gypsy NYC Dance Parade 2009-Zydeco

 

 

Celebrate Poetry Month in Style May 5, 2009

Filed under: Arts and Culture,Celebrities,NYC Upper West Side,Spring — thewanderlist @ 3:46 am
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There are cheaper ways to celebrate National Poetry Month, but the best way is to pay a group of talented artists and celebrities to read to you.

Joan Baez adds poet to her storied resume.

Joan Baez adds "poet" to her storied resume.

 

On April 1, my friends and I headed to Lincoln Center with $25 tickets to hear a menagerie of notable poets, musicians and actresses read famous works. The Academy of American Poets hosts the Poetry & The Creative Mind event each year to raise money and kick off National Poetry Month. 

 

In a large auditorium constructed for elaborate plays and concerts, 10 performers sat in a row of folding chairs with white printer paper in hand and half-empty water bottles at their feet. At first the simplicity seemed awkward. But soon we settled in for a form of entertainment that required no HDTV or digital sound system.

 

It’s easy to forget, as an adult, how nice it is to be read to. Books like The Secret Garden and A Wrinkle in Time came alive when my mom read them to me as a kid. And even in high school, we’d lay our heads on desktops while listening to Ms. Peplinski read the Great Gatsby. I still remember the way she cried about Daisy’s silk scarves.

 

Each celebrity reader selected a few of their favorite poems, which is why Chip Kidd cracked the house up by reading Dr. Seuss’s If I Ran The Zoo. Kidd, an imaginative art director at Knopf, says he sent the book to President Obama as an inauguration gift.

 

Musician Joan Baez introduced herself as a novice poet and read her own work, including an amusing poem about low-low impact yoga for senior citizens with an instructor who had a “head full of rustling leaves.” She then whipped out a guitar and improvised a song with jazz trumpet player Wynton Marsalis.

 

The Dark Knight actress Maggie Gyllenhaal took a more serious approach, reading a haunting poem by Russian poet Anna Akhmatova. Anna found success in the early 1900s even though her father warned her not to become a “decadent poetess.” (Love that.) Gyllenhaal got a B.A. in English from Columbia University, and her mom is an award-winning scriptwriter, so perhaps she has a feel for captivating language. Her selection stayed with me for days:

Maggie Gyllenhaal
Maggie Gyllenhaal has handsome brother, digs Russian poetry.

 

I Wrung My Hands

by Anna Akhmatova

I wrung my hands under my dark veil. . .
“Why are you pale, what makes you reckless?”
– Because I have made my loved one drunk
with an astringent sadness.

 

I’ll never forget. He went out, reeling;
his mouth was twisted, desolate. . .
I ran downstairs, not touching the banisters,
and followed him as far as the gate.

 

And shouted, choking: “I meant it all
in fun. Don’t leave me, or I’ll die of pain.”
He smiled at me — oh so calmly, terribly –
and said: “Why don’t you get out of the rain?”

Chip Kidd read

Leave it to Chip Kidd to make poetry accessable.

 

 

 

If you’re in the NYC area, look for this event in 2010. It’s worth the price of admission, with new readers every year.

 

Celebrate Cinco in Offbeat Places May 3, 2009

Filed under: Arts and Culture,Holidays,NYC Harlem,Spring — thewanderlist @ 7:49 pm
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Folklorico Mexicano dancers work those skirts at Columbia University.

Folklorico Mexicano dancers work those skirts at Columbia University.

It’s  officially Cinco de Mayo in the city. While it arrived a few days early, I fully support stretching out a holiday that celebrates tequila and re-fried beans in all their tempting forms.

vvv

Students celebrate Cinco outside Columbia's towering library.

 

Chris and I took the red line up to Columbia University this weekend to wander the campus for the first time. In the lush courtyard outside the school’s historic library, we happened upon a taco truck, taco table, taco tent, and red, green and white balloons tied around trees. It was almost like being back in Arizona.

 

The Chicano Caucus hosted a fantastic, free show, blasting mariachi music and treating the crowd to  folklorico Mexicano dancing. The young women wore white boots, billowing skirts, colorful ribbons in their braided hair and tremendous amounts of eyeshadow. The men donned black suits with brass details and sombreros. The footwork reminded me of flamenco dancing — loud and precise — with even more flair, costume and movement.

Can I please rent a room in this taco truck?

Can I please rent a room in this taco truck?

 

We’ve been starved for decent Mexican food since arriving in New York, but when the dancing ended, we had to leave the taco truck behind. Every apartment I rented in Arizona was within walking distance of a burrito, and I took full advantage of the proximity. But when your pants won’t button, it’s time to go.

 

While walking 40 blocks home to work off the totillas, we came across a white-clad mariachi band performing in a liquor store. The doors were open wide and the musicians smiled joyfully, motioning to come inside for a free show and margarita samples.

 

Did I mention I love this holiday?

 

I’m ashamed to admit I grew up in a border state and never realized the significance of Cinco de Mayo until now. Did you know Mexico celebrates its independence in September and shrugs off May 5 as a secondary holiday? Tuesday marks a battle when Mexicans defeated the French back in 1860; Mexico’s forces were half the size and managed to deal France its first defeat in 50 years. The rest of the world embraces it as a time to celebrate all things Mexican. Or, if you attended Arizona State University, to skip class and drink all day at Dos Gringos.

 

I think it should become the official holiday of the underdog, the holiday of overcoming supposedly insurmountable obstacles. In light of our nations’ current woes, I’ll drink to that.

Free entertainment in a liquor store on Amsterdam and the West 90s.

Free entertainment in a liquor store on Amsterdam and the West 90s.

My favorite dancer. He had a lot of heart.

My favorite dancer. He had a lot of heart.

 

Screen a Film in Tribeca May 1, 2009

Filed under: Arts and Culture,NYC Tribeca,Spring — thewanderlist @ 6:53 pm
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It’s not too late to snap up tickets to the Tribeca Film Festival, although the clock is ticking in Hitchcockian fashion.

 

While most advance seats are sold out, several remain for Sunday, when screenings wrap up. The final day is one of Tribeca’s most overlooked secrets, festival staff say. All the winning films – features, documentaries and shorts – are scheduled for encores. If you didn’t do your homework early enough to predict the runaway hits, you can let the jury do the work for you and settle in with some popcorn and an extra large Coke. You’ll want to stay awake long enough to cram in several shows. And if you’re out of town, get a taste at the YouTube Screening Room.

 

Just today, I nabbed a ticket for a late-night showing of All About Actresses, a French Film about, well, actresses. Maïwenn, an actress who takes a turn as director, points the camera at contemporaries like Charlotte Rampling, Karin Viard and Julie Depardieu. The result is a psychological portrait of actresses and their insecurities.

 

I’m also catching the Best Narrative Feature (yet to be announced) Sunday night. Flicks like Roger Dodger and Let the Right One In have taken home the prize in the past, so I’m hopeful. Also worth checking out that day is the Tribeca Family Festival, when the triangle below Canal Street hosts craft tents, kite flying, surprise performances and fine food from local restaurants. I’m in it for the kite flying. May 2, 2009; 10 a.m.-6 p.m.;  Greenwich Street between Hubert and Chambers Street.

 

Check back and I’ll let you know which films are worth searching out at an indie theater near you.

 

Set Facebook Status: ‘It’s Complicated’ with NY April 30, 2009

Filed under: Dining,NYC Upper West Side,Spring,Uncategorized,Year-round — thewanderlist @ 2:38 am
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In the basement of Shake Shack on the Upper West Side, LCD Soundsystem’s song came on and everyone paused, for just a millisecond, to ponder their New York existence.

 

New York I love you

But you’re bringing me down.

Like a rat in a cage

Pulling minimum wage.

New York I love you

But you’re bringing me down.

 

It was like hearing our names over the loudspeaker. Hey, we wondered, is he talking about us? But the millisecond passed, and we went back to noshing delicious burgers and slurping creamy milkshakes. It was April, after all, 60 degrees and sunny. New York wasn’t bringing us down, at least not today.

 

I can imagine this song being spliced into a movie, at the critical juncture when a world-weary hipster-hero rides the subway home and momentarily ponders his life choices before acting valiantly/finding self-redemption/getting the girl. And sure enough, several YouTubers imagined it too. In this particular short flick, the creator simply holds a camera while riding the train and walking the streets. Beware, anything can look depressing with this song as the backdrop.

 

 

 
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