Cheap Chick Bargain Bulletin, July 30, 2009

MadCrush begins tonight!
5 p.m. to 10:30 p.m.
The Museum of Arts and Design has lauched MadCrush, a new series that offers wine and food from chefs such as Scott Conant, George Mendes, and Cesare Casella. Take a seat on furniture made of recycled wine boxes, and enjoy! (no whining-wine, get it? OK, I tried...)

Cheap Chick Info: $6 per glass of wine, and $6 for food
Location Info: Museum of Arts and Design, 2 Columbus Circle at 59th Street, 7th Floor
Subway: A,B,C,1 to 59th Street/Columbus Circle

Cheap Chick Weekend Picks, July 31st-August 2nd, 2009

Friday July 31st, 2009
Grand Opening of JC Penney

9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Yea, now we can go buy sheets and towels! Or see if the Arizona Jean Company is still going strong...there will also be fashion shows, and giveaways.

Cheap Chick Info: Free!

Location Info: JC Penney, 33rd Street and Sixth Ave.
Subway: N,R,Q,W,B,D,F,V to 34th Street Herald Square

Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory Theatrical Performance

7 p.m.
Bring a blanket and enjoy this free performance of the children's classic.
Cheap Chick Info: Free!
Location Info: Alley Pond Park, 76th Avenue off Springfield Boulevard
Subway: E, F to Kew Gardens/Union Turnpike

Metropolitan Opera Recital Series
7 p.m.
Enjoy an outdoor performance featuring Joyce El-Khoury, soprano, Keith Miller, bass, and Vlad Iftinca, pianist.
Cheap Chick Info: Free!
Location Info: East River Park
Subway: J,M,Z to Essex, V to Second Ave.

Notorious Screening
9:30 p.m.
If you haven't got your fill of Hitchcock this summer, here's your chance to catch up! The Rubin Museum is showing this Ingrid Bergman classic.
Cheap Chick Info: Free with $7 bar minimum
Location Info: Rubin Museum of Art, 150 West 17th Street
Subway: A,C,E to 14th Street, L to 8th Avenue

God'll Getcha for That: Bea Arthur Tribute
8:30 p.m.
Thank her for being your friend all those years on Rhoda and Golden Girls as Bea Arthur is honored with sing-alongs, screenings, and Broadway tunes.
Cheap Chick Info: Free!
Location Info: Dixon Place, 161 Christie Street
Subway: F,V to 2nd Ave.

Saturday August 1, 2009
Remembering Mr. Wright
10 a.m.
During this walking tour you visit sites relating to Frank Lloyd Wright including the Museum of Modern Art, the Peggy Guggenheim’s Art of This Century Gallery, and a rare, commercial interior from 1955.
Cheap Chick Info: $15
Location Info: Meet at the statue of Atlas, 5th Ave, between 50th and 51st streets.
Subway: D,F to 47-50th Street

Burning Ice
11 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Cool your butt off as you sit on some 21,ooo pounds of ice as part of an interactive art exhibit by Chin Chih. Don't let the flashing emergency lights scare you...
Cheap Chick Info: Free!
Location Info: Union Square
Subway: N,R,Q,W,L,4,5,6 to Union Square

Trust Art Perfume Workshop
2 p.m. to 4 p.m.
Learn how to "compose notes" or make perfume with Fragrance buff Anne McClain who teaches the class on her rooftop garden.
Cheap Chick Info: $10 donation to aid Mexican charity
Location Info: RSVP to annemcclain@mac.com to get the address
Subway: With address info.

Saturday August 1st and Sunday August 2nd, 2009
Opening Weekend for Theater for the New City!
The weekend marks the opening performance of the musical TALLY HO! or NAVIGATING THE FUTURE as part of this free cultural series. The show will be put on at different outdoor areas throughout the city.
Cheap Chick Info: Free!
Location Info: Sat: 2 p.m. at 10th Street at First Ave., Sun: 2 p.m. at Morningside Park, West 113th Street at Manhattan Ave.

Sunday August 3rd, 2009
Polestar Poetry Series

5 p.m.

Are you a poet and didn't know it? Or do you want to decide if others are true poets? Figure it all out at this monthly poetry event.

Cheap Chick Info: Free!

Location Info: Cake Shop, 152 Ludlow, near Stanton

Subway: F,V to 2nd Ave.

Merce Cunningham Dance Company, River to River Festival

6 p.m.
Check out this site-specific dance event that blends new and old techniques.
Cheap Chick Info: Free!
Location Info: Nelson Rockefeller Playground, Rockefeller Park
Subway: 1,2,3 to Chambers Street

Watch out for cars as you catch Measure for Measure as part of Shakespeare in the Parking Lot, running Thursdays-Fridays through August 15, 2009 http://drillingcompany.org/shakespeareparkinglot.html.

Don't forget that you can take 30% off at Housing Works bookstore on Saturday and Sunday. http://www.housingworks.org/social-enterprise/bookstore-cafe/.

And on Saturday the Brooklyn Museum is free! http://www.brooklynmuseum.org/visit/first_saturdays.php

Cheap Chick Bargain Bulletin, Wednesday July 29th through Thursday July 30th

Just got the word in on some great bargains in the next few days...

Wednesday July 29th, 2009
Deadline Club Networking Event
6:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.
Journalists of all types can gather to discuss the news and whatever else strikes their fancy at this event sponsored by the Society of Professional Journalists New York chapter.
Cheap Chick Info: Free (you don't need to be a member to attend though you should be a journalist-freelance, pt, or full-time), and must RSVP to rsvp@deadlineclub.org
Location Info: Hurley's, 232 West 48th St. b/t 8th Ave. & Broadway
Subway: C,E to 50th Street, N,R,W to 49th Street

Also Wycliffe Gordon is at Grant's tomb tonight! http://www.harlemonestop.com/event.php?id=7323

Thursday July 30th, 2009
Le Soiree Rouge
9 p.m. to 1 a.m. and beyond!
Mingle with creative types and enjoy performances including a jazz swing ensemble, opera arias, and the reading of a new play.
Cheap Chick Info: Free!
Location Info: People Lounge, 163 Allen Street between Stanton and Rivington
Subway: F,V to Second Avenue


Don't forget that Movies With a View is tonight with a free screening of To Catch a Thief. http://www.brooklynbridgepark.org/index.cfm?objectid=EF670B44-3048-2C77-F20C2202337458ED.

Mad Square Reads is also holding its Cheever: A Life program: https://www.madisonsquarepark.org/programs/madsqreads.aspx

Cheap Chick Weekend Picks, July 24th to 26th, 2009

Friday July 24, 2009
Passport Fridays at the Queens Museum of Art
6:30 p.m.
This weekly program helps New Yorkers travel around the world with a subway ride. This week's focus is Korea with a performance by Vongku Pak's Korean Dance and Drum Ensemble and a screening of Yoon Je-Kyoon's Miracle on 1st Street.
Cheap Chick Info: Free!
Location Info: New York Building, Flushing Meadows Corona Park
Subway: 7 to Willets Point/Shea Stadium

Ghostbusters
8:30 p.m.
Don't be afraid of no ghost (or that giant puffy marshmallow thing either!) at this screening that's part of Hudson Riverflicks.
Cheap Chick Info: Free! Plus free popcorn too!
Location Info: Pier 46 at Charles Street, Hudson River Park
Subway: 1 to Christopher Street

Friday July 24th and Saturday July 25th, 2009
Dracula at Inwood Park
7 :30 p.m.
The Inwood Shakespeare Company presents this outdoor performance.
Cheap Chick Info: Free, Performances continue Wednesdays through Saturdays through August 1, 2009
Location Info: Inwood Hill Park, on the Inwood HIll Park Peninsula, enter the park from 218th Street and Indian Road and walk past the Nature Center to the peninsula.
Subway: 1 or 9 to 215th Stret

Friday July 24th through Sunday July 26th, 2009
Animation Block Party
All weekend, various times
Channel your inner Animaniac (children of the 90's, you know who I'm talking about!) at this festival of more than 80 screenings, plus drinks, after-parties, and awards presentations. See animationblockparty.com for info.
Cheap Chick Info: $9-$11
Location Info: Various, Includes BAM and Rooftop Films
Subway: Various

Saturday July 25, 2009
G.I. Joe Stop-Motion Film Festival
8 p.m. and 10 p.m.
Yes, you can do more with action figures than dig them tunnels in the sandbox! (Or was that just me?) You can also pull off their heads and arms like my brother did with my Barbie dolls. Just him? OK, apparently you can also put them in movies...
Cheap Chick Info: $12
Location Info: 92nd Street Y, Tribeca, 200 Hudson Street
Subway: 1, 6, or E to Canal Street

Where Brooklyn Meets the Middle East
10 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Check out this walking tour of Brooklyn's earliest Arab American neighborhood. Tour includes information about two area churches and stops at various Arabic retail outlets.
Cheap Chick Info: $15
Location Info: N.W. corner of Remsen and Court streets, on Remsen St. side of Signature Bank.
Subway: 2,3,4,5 to Borough Hall

19th Annual Sand Sculpting Competition
12 p.m. to 5 p.m.
Don't get sand in your Nathan's hot dog while creating your sculpture, there's a cash prize for the winner! This event also features dancing, live music, clowns, and face painting.
Cheap Chick Info: Free!
Location Info: Coney Island, Brooklyn
Subway: D,Q,N,F to Stillwell Avenue

Portrait Exchange Round-Robin
2 p.m.
During this workshop created by artist Peter Walsh, you will sketch five minute portraits of changing partners. This event is for all ages.
Cheap Chick Info: Free! They provide art supplies, and you get to keep your own portraits.
Location Info: Sculpture Center, LIC, 44-19 Purves St.
Subway: E,V to 23rd Street/Ely Avenue

Sunday July 26th, 2009
Chelsea Northwest Walking Tour
10 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Learn about the upcoming stages of High Line Park, and the newly-designated West Chelsea Historic District. Stops include Manhattan's last freight railway, North Chelsea Cove, Pier 64, Terminal Warehouse Central Stores, and the restored Starrett-Lehigh Building.
Cheap Chick Info: $15
Location Info: Meet at the S.E. corner of 10th Ave. and 22nd St.
Subway: A,C,E to 23rd Street, M23 bus to 10th Ave.

Sacred Sites Walking Tour
11 a.m.
Get spiritual on the Lower East Side with this tour sponsored by the Museum at Eldridge Street. Sites include synagogues, churches, and temples spanning 200 years of religious life in America.
Cheap Chick Info: $15, $12 for students and seniors, RSVP to hgriff@eldridgestreet.org
Location Info: Meet at the Museum at Eldridge Street, 12 Eldridge Street between Canal and Division
Subway: N,R to Canal Street, F to East Broadway

Free Dessert Fest
11 a.m.
Despite the name, this event isn't quite free (see below), but it is cheap and sounds fun! This walking tour makes some sweet stops at five different Union-square area dessert-makers where you'll have the chance to sample fresh macaroons, Belgian brownie, a pretzel croissant, gourmet chocolates, and homemade gelato.
Cheap Chick Info: $5 donation to help fight hunger, plus your own $ for purchases.
Location Info: Madeleine Patisserie, 132 West 23rd Street
Subway: F to 23rd Street

Third Ward Pig Roast and Dance Party
4 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Pig out on pork tacos and sides such as rice, beans and mexi-slaw and Brooklyn Based ice cream. Live music, free Colt 45 from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m., and pig-inspired silk screening (bring your own T-shirt-silk screening is $5.)
Cheap Chick Info: Free! RSVP to events@3rdward.com
Location Info: 3rd Ward, 195 Morgan Ave. at Stagg Street
Subway: L to Grand Street

Mid-Summer Thunderbird Indian Pow-Wow
12 p.m. to 5 p.m.
Watch dance competitions and peruse Native American art, crafts, jewelry, and foods. Be sure to ask the sheep if they have any wool, if you see some of the museum's animals!
Cheap Chick Info: $9
Location Info: Queens County Farm Museum
Subway: E or F Train to Kew Gardens/Union Turnpike Station

Remember Mid-Summer Night Swing is wrapping up at Lincoln Center, and if you're looking for an indoor activity, I highly recommend "Between Collaboration and Resistance: French Literary Life under the Nazi Occupation" at the main branch (look for the two lions) of the New York Public Library. While there, be sure to visit the original Pooh and tell him I said, "Hi!"

Also there still seem to be some tickets available to the Asian-American film festival, so be sure to check that out too! http://www.asiancinevision.org/

Weekend Picks, July 17-19, 2009

Friday July 17, 2009
90's Sing-Along
9 p.m.
Revel in your flannel shirts while watching Saved by the Bell, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. The sing-along consists of 90's era videos projected on the wall with subtitles, don't forget to try the macarena!
Cheap Chick Info: Free!
Location Info: Legion, 790 Metropolitan Avenue, Brooklyn
Subway: L to Graham Avenue, G,L to Metropolitan Ave.

Capture the Flag
7 p.m.
Regress back to your elementary school days with a game incorporating a cell phone, and a flashlight, sponsored by Newmindspace and Urban Madness.
Cheap Chick Info: Free!
Location Info: North 7th Street and Kent Avenue, Brooklyn
Subway: L to Bedford

New York Philharmonic in Central Park
8 p.m.
Listen to selections from Copland's Old American Songs, selected arias from Mozart, and Mahler's Symphony No. 1 performed by the orchestra conducted by Alan Gilbert.
Cheap Chick Info: Free!
Location Info: Great Lawn, Central Park
Subway: 1,A,C,B,D to 59th Street/Columbus Circle

Jaws Screening
8:30 p.m. (doors open at 7:30 p.m.)
If you're afraid of the water, then you might want to skip this screening of the Spelberg movie, which is being screened on the Intrepid.
Cheap Chick Info: Free!
Location Info: Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum, Pier 86 (46th St and 12th Ave)
Subway: A,C to 42nd Street, M42 to 12th Ave.

Saturday July 18, 2009
Siren Music Festival
12 p.m. to 9 p.m
Enjoy a variety of music at this annual festival sponsored by the Village Voice.
Cheap Chick Info: Free!
Location Info: Coney Island
Subway: D,Q,N,F train to Stillwell Avenue

Great American Pie-off
4 p.m.
Enjoy pies, drinks, and Guitar Hero as celeb judges from Daniel and Top Chef preside.
Cheap Chick Info: $5
Location Info: Village Pourhouse, 64 Third Avenue
Subway: N,R,Q,W,4,5,6,L to 14th Street Union Square

Sunday July 19, 2009
Hooray for Hopper Walking Tour
10 a.m.
Visit sites associated with Hopper and other artists including his studio and home on Washington Square, the 10th Street Studio Building, and the original location of the Whitney Museum of American Art.
Cheap Chick Info: $15
Location Info: Meet in front of the Salmagundi Club, 47 Fifth Ave.
Subway: N,R,Q,W,4,5,6,L to 14th Street Union Square

Ice Cream Social
1 p.m. to 4 p.m.
It's Sunday so why not have a sundae? Van Leeuwen Artisan Ice Cream is topped with Knipschildt Chocolatier chocolate and house-made whipped cream.
Cheap Chick Info:$5
Location Info: Murray's Cheese, 254 Bleecker St., bet. Sixth & Seventh Aves.
Subway: A,C,E,D,F to West 4th Street

Cheap Chick Bargain Bulletin, July 9, 2009

Whew, there's just too many cheap and free things going on this summer to keep up with...

Anyway one of my fave (and mentioned in my Summer Guide as well as a previous blog post) outdoor movie fests (with a to-die for backdrop of the Brooklyn Bridge), is starting tonight when Movies with a View premieres with Raising Arizona! Food is provided by RICE, and there is even free bike valet parking!

Cheap Chick Info: Free!
Location Info: Brooklyn Bridge Park, DUMBO
Subway: F to York Street, A,C to High Street

Cheap Chick Weekend Picks, July 10-12, 2009

Friday July 10, 2009
Nerd Nite
7 p.m. Lesbian and gay speed-dating
8 p.m. Lectures
Get it on with your inner geek at this month's event, which includes talks on Korean pop music, Godzilla, and the harp.
Cheap Chick Info: $25 for speed dating, $7 for lectures
Location: 16 Main Street, Galapagos Art Space, DUMBO
Subway: F to York Street, A,C to High Street/Brooklyn Bridge

Road House Viewing
10:30 p.m.
This Patrick Swayze classic is part of a four week tribute to the actor presented by the 92nd Y Tribeca.
Cheap Chick Info: $10
Location Info: 200 Hudson Street, at the corner of Hudson and Canal
Subway: 1,6,E to Canal Street stations

Saturday July 11th, 2009
Summer on the Hudson Main Squeeze Accordion Festival
3 p.m. to 10 p.m.
Enjoy performances, a flea market, and dancing.
Cheap Chick Info: Free!
Location Info: Pier 70 at Riverside Park South
Subway: 1,2,3 to 72nd Street

Sunday July 12th, 2009
Bastille Day Festival
12 p.m. to 6 p.m.
Say "bonjour" to this annual street fair, complete with crepes, and petanque.
Cheap Chick Info: Free!
Location Info: 60th Street from Fifth to Lex
Subway: 6 to 59th and Lex

Coney Island Tour
10 a.m.
Learn about the history of the park during this 2-hour walking tour.
Cheap Chick Info: Free!
Location Info: Boardwalk in front of the Parachute Jump at West 19 Street,
Brooklyn
Subway: D, Q N or F train to Stillwell Avenue (last stop)

Joan of Arc play by Gorilla Rep
8 p.m.
Check out this play starring play, starring French actress Aleksandra Yermak, and directed and commissioned by Gorilla Rep’s Founding Artistic Director, Christopher Carter Sanderson. Play runs through August 9th.
Cheap Chick Info: Free!
Location Info: Fort Tryon Park, Pine Lawn west of the Heather Garden
Subway: A to 190th Street

Bushwick: A Tribute to our Dutch Ancestors Walking Tour
10 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Learn about this area of Brooklyn on a walking tour that includes a former brewery, the new Rheingold Gardens, Arion Hall, and the magnificent St. Barbara's Church.
Cheap Chick Info: $15
Location Info: Intersection of Myrtle Ave. and Broadway, beneath the Myrtle Ave. Station
Subway: J,M to Myrtle Avenue

Don't forget to grab a free slushy at 7-11 on Saturday 7/11-get it?

Cheap Chick Bargain Bulletin, July 8, 2009-Twist and Shout!

Midsummer Night Swing has started, so it's time to dance your a-- off! Tonight's special performer is Chubby Checker, so get ready to twist a little closer!

The dets:
Cheap Chick Info: $15, tkts can be purchased here. Dance lession at 6:30, music at 8:30 p.m.
Location Info: Damrosch Park, 62nd between Columbus and Amsterdam
Subway: 1 to 66th Street

Here's a link to the other performers in the line-up, also info is listed in my Summer Guide:
http://new.lincolncenter.org/live/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=167&Itemid=69

Cheap Chick 2009 Fourth of July Guide!

Hi fearless readers (a few friends and family...) it feels like it's been awhile since I've posted, I'm hoping that the long weekend will give me a chance to write some actual entries (or clean my apt., who knows?), tho I do enjoy the events listings...anyway, this will substitute for the Weekend Picks this week, Happy Fourth, don't forget to wear that red, white, and blue sailor outfit (or Old Navy T-shirt with a flag on it) and remember all you Brooklyn and Queens residents, the fireworks are the West Side this year ;-)

July 4th, 2009 (Happy Birthday America!)
PS 1 Warm-Up
2 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Today's party kicks off the annual series chock-full of music and art.
Cheap Chick Info: $10, to avoid lines get tkts at Agnes B. stores in advance
Location Info: PS1 Contemporary Art Center, 22-25 Jackson Ave at the intersection of 46th Ave.
Subway: E to 23rd St./Ely Ave., 7 to 45th Rd./Courthouse Square

The Great Fourth of July Festival
11 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Enjoy the all-American-ness (is that a word?) of food stands and vendors.
Cheap Chick Info: Free!
Location Info: DUMBO, Water Street from Fulton to Broad
Subway: F to York Street, A to High Street

Brooklyn Independence Day Parade
9:30 a.m.
Everyone loves a parade!
Cheap Chick Info: Free!
Location Info: Third Avenue bet. 76th Street Marine Avenue and Fourth Avenue to 101st Street
Subway: Varies.

Nathan's Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest
12 p.m.
How many hot dogs could you stuff down your throat at once? Watch these champs answer that age-old question at this annual event. Hope they have those trash bags ready...
Cheap Chick Info: Free!
Location Info: Coney Island, 1310 Surf Avenue
Subway: D, Q N or F train to Stillwell Avenue

Big Onion's Revolutionary War Walking Tour
1 p.m.
Imagine you are escaping from the Redcoats and don a tricorn hat as you tour historic lower Manhattan site.
Cheap Chick Info: $15
Location Info: Intersection of Broadway and Murray Street, at gated entrance to City Hall Park
Subway: 2,3 to Park Place, 4,5,6 to Brooklyn Bridge, R,W to City Hall

Jewish Museum is Free!
11 a.m. to 5:45 p.m.
Check out the museum including exhibits named (appropriately enough) "They Called Me Mayer July."
Cheap Chick Info: Free!
Location Info: 5th Avenue at 92nd Street
Subway: 6 to 86th Street

History on the Hill
1 p.m.
Learn about Fort Greene's association with the Revolutionary War on this guided hike.
Cheap Chick Info: Free!
Location Info: Fort Greene Visitor Center, Fort Greene Park. Enter the park at Myrtle Avenue and Washington Park.
Subway: R,M,Q to DeKalb Ave.

Picnic in Central Park with the Lunch Club
2 p.m.
Share some goodies with new friends at this LC event!
Cheap Chick Info: Free with certain membership options, otherwise $5 in advance or $10 at the door, RSVP here: http://www.thelunchclub.com/clubhouse/calendar.php?do=viewlcevent&e=2249
Location Info: Entrance to Central Park at 59th street & Columbus Circle, right behind the big statue. Look for the big red Lunch Club sign.
Subway: A,C,1,2,3,D

Fireworks!!!
9 p.m.
What's the 4th without some fireworks? (Tho perhaps I shouldn't ask too many Brooklyn and Queens residents...)
Cheap Chick Info: Free!
Location Info: Hudson River, from 24th Street and 50th Street

A Clockwork Orange
Midnight
Those looking for something to do after the last "I *heart* New York" firework fades can take in a midnight screening of the movie.
Cheap Chick Info: $11
Location Info: IFC Center, 323 Sixth Avenue
Subway: A,C,E,F,D to West 4th Street

The Brooklyn Museum is also free on the Fourth for their First Friday program!

Don't forget that the Housing Works Bookstore's sale starts July 5th and runs all week. Save 30% off already discounted books!