August 2013 events calendar for New York City

Film Forum’s Son of Summer Festival of Fantasy, Horror and Science Fiction

The venerable downtown movie house is reviving its cinematic salute to creepy, geeky fare for the first time in 17 years. Expect a few new prints and celeb appearances (both TBA at press time) at the four-week series, which includes showings of Alien, Evil Dead 2, Ghostbusters, Starship Troopers, Plan 9 from Outer Space!, a 3-D presentation of The Creature from the Black Lagoon and many more wide-ranging titles. 212-727-8110, filmforum.org. Various times; $12.50, seniors (Mon–Fri before 5pm) and members $7 per screening.

Harlem Week

This annual uptown celebration began in the ’70s as Harlem Day, but the name is misleading—Harlem Week includes more than a month of performances, films, fashion and sports events in July and August. The centerpiece is the two-day street fair on the third weekend of August, which brings live music, art, activities for kids and educational booths to Harlem's W 135th St. Visit harlemweek.com for the full schedule.

US Open

To the tennis fan, the US Open is better than Christmas. The enthusiastic (but not barbaric) crowd, the delightful getups, the impressive feats of grace and athleticism unfolding under a wide-open summertime sky, all that sporty grunting… There is nothing quite like it. The big questions this year: Will top-ranked Serbian player Novak Djokovic’s bad ankle lead to his demise? Will number-two Andy Murray rise to the top? Can Serena Williams replicate last year’s victory? Is Feliciano López too handsome, or just handsome enough? usopen.org. $60 and up.

Electric Zoo

The outdoor EDM megabash celebrates its fifth anniversary on Randalls Island this Labor Day weekend. And the onslaught of DJs, artists and beat makers is as diverse as ever, touching on stadium-sized trance techno (Tiësto), aggro-dubstep (Excision), Burning Man vibes (Bassnectar), dancehall (Diplo) and the sounds of more than 140 other acts. Nab tickets now—lest you miss showing off those furry boots one last time before summer ends. madeevent.com/ElectricZoo. Gates open at 11am; three-day pass $329, three-day VIP Experience pass $649, three-day Platinum Experience pass $1,199.

Rumble on the River

• Critics choice
• Free

Over the years, this outdoor boxing event has evolved into a quasi-spiritual, international public beatdown. This summer’s fight features Muay Thai, an ancient Thai precision-fighting style known as “The Art of Eight Limbs” because it utilizes all body parts that have the ability to whackÑpicture MMA, but without all that awkward “ground work.” For one night only, Pier 84 will host a free match featuring local amateur practitioners of the sport.

Summer Streets

• Critics choice
• Free

From Park Ave at 72nd St to Centre St at Brooklyn Bridge; visit nyc.gov/summerstreets for details. For this three-Saturday event, nearly seven miles of NYC turfÑfrom the Brooklyn Bridge all the way to Central ParkÑwill be cleared of vehicles, creating a pedestrian paradise complete with food and entertainment. This edition’s offerings are still being finalized, but previous years have included free bike rentals, a rock-climbing wall, a zip line and picnics along the route. Be sure to keep your eyes peeled for outdoor art installations.

Shakespeare in the Park

This annual festival, which begins in June, presents the Bard's greats performed in open air at the Delacorte Theater in Central Park. Created by the late Joseph Papp and presented by the Public, Shakespeare in the Park has endured not just because it's a night of free theater in New York's backyard, but because it's a night of great performances by some of the most talented actors of our day, including Meryl Streep, Kevin Kline, Al Pacino, Oliver Platt, Blythe Danner, Philip Seymour Hoffman, George C. Scott and Denzel Washington.

New York International Fringe Festival

Each August, New York straps itself in for this annual theater megafest, in which scrappy performers and troupes from around the world descend on the city, raw talent (or lack thereof) in tow. Choosing between the nearly 200 shows on offer is a game of theatrical Russian roulette: You never know which alternamusical, one-woman confessional or puppet ballet will be the next underground hit, and which will be a self-indulgent flop. But hey—it’s cheap! 866-468-7619, fringenyc.org. $18, advance $15; discount passes available for multiple shows.

Romeo and Juliet

• Price band: 4/4

Shakespeare’s timeless romantic tragedy returns for a contemporary stage revival, starring Hollywood pretty boy Orlando Bloom. It marks the Broadway debut of the Lord of the Rings and Pirates of the Caribbean star, who will play Montague to Tony nominee Condola Rashad’s Capulet. In David Leveaux’s modernized staging, the star-crossed lovers are divided by racial tensions (didn’t West Side Story already cover that…?), though they’ll still employ the Bard’s original language. It’s the play’s first time on the Great White Way in 36 years, so get those hankies ready.

SummerStage

For more than 25 years now, the City Parks Foundation has filled summers in the park with just about every sound under the sun. This New York institution has an ear for music of every type—M.I.A., Television, and Amadou & Mariam have all played in recent years, as have Zap Mama, Nortec Collective and Neko Case. Many of the shows are free, with a handful of benefits covering for them.

Celebrate Brooklyn!

• Price band: 1/4
• Critics choice

Non-profit community arts organization BRIC launched this series of outdoor performances to revitalize Prospect Park, and now the festival is Brooklyn’s premier summer culture offering. It includes music, dance, film and spoken word acts, and has showcased the likes of Philip Glass, TV on the Radio and the Buena Vista Social Club. A $3 donation is requested and there’s an admission charge for some shows.

Washington Square Outdoor Art Exhibit

• Critics choice
• Free

More than eight decades ago, New York artists Jackson Pollock and Willem de Kooning propped up a few of their paintings in Washington Square Park and called it a show. A lot has changed since then: Now, more than 100 artists and artisans—including painters, sculptors, jewelers and glassblowers—exhibit their wares at the Washington Square Park Outdoor Art Exhibit.

"American Modern: Hopper to O'Keeffe"

• Price band: 2/4
• Critics choice

Despite having its head turned by the 20th-century European avant-garde, MoMA has always kept a place in its heart for domestic works. In fact, Edward Hopper’s House by the Railroad, included in this exhibition, was the first painting in the museum’s collection. Check out moody pieces from 1915 to 1950 that illustrate the major themes and styles of the period: the rise of cities and industry (John Marin’s abstract watercolors of lower Manhattan), rural scenes (the haunting Christina’s World by Andrew Wyeth), still-life and portraiture.