Free Highlights: Things to Do in NYC, April 2025

Chess, abstract art, sake tastings, Rupaul's Drag Race, and more in New York City

“A strong spine of chess runs through New York City,” writes Oliver Roeder. Boards and players can be spotted across every borough, and this April I call attention to a casual chess club in Midwood, Brooklyn that meets three times per week. Photo: Igor Schutz

One category of events I try to consider in every monthly list is gaming. It’s a challenge because all games are not for all people, and my own experiences have a way of biasing the lists. And personally, I’ve been playing a lot of chess lately.

I brought this up recently over while out with my friend S., who started telling me about his days in a high school chess club. I had known him for many years but never knew this. I suddenly geeked out. Can you help me figure out this puzzle? What’s your standard opening? My online rating is abysmal, but a theme I come back to often popped up: whatever your hobby, there is a place in NYC to nurture it. We both wanted to visit the Chess Forum, a storied chess shop in Greenwich Village, and made plans to do so a few weeks later. When the time came, we squeezed into rickety chairs on opposite sides of a well-worn chess set at the far end of a narrow playing space. My friend then trounced me repeatedly while La Bohème reverberated across crumbling walls, at least making my losses feel somewhat epic.

Chess is but one game that can be played around the city. There are spaces for Scrabble, mahjong, and Super Smash Bros., just to name a few, and the full April Blankman List includes a Yu-Gi-Oh! card game tournament and social tabletop gaming for those in the LGBTQ+ community and their allies.

Below I call out some highlights from this month’s list of things to do in NYC, including a chess club under “Meet New People” and the tabletop gaming event under “All the Letters of the Rainbow.” A few events unique to this post are also included, along with many that have nothing at all to do with gaming!

Disclaimer: Before going anywhere, please confirm the date, time, location, cost, and description using the listed website. Any event is at risk of being rescheduled, relocated, sold out, at capacity, or canceled. Costs are rounded to the nearest dollar and may change. I try to vet quality and describe accurately, but I may misjudge. All views are my own.

Wining & Dining

I’ve written before about how this Blankman List project has widened my view on food events around the city in a way that I was previously blind to. Now I’m on the lookout for everything from happy hours to cooking classes. This April, as part of that research, I was delighted to find that the Ukrainian Museum in the East Village was hosting a workshop on how to bake traditional Ukrainian Easter breads.

• Saturday, April 5: Ukrainian Traditional Easter Baking

  • Workshop on baking traditional Easter breads and learning about Ukrainian Easter traditions; 10 am–1 pm

  • $31

  • The Ukrainian Museum

  • 222 E 6th St (East Village, Manhattan)

• Thursday, April 10: Finding Edna Lewis: Screening and Conversation

  • Screening of Finding Edna Lewis, a documentary about the Virginia chef who refined the American view of Southern cooking, followed by a conversation some of the film’s creatives; 6–9 pm

  • $30 (includes light bites and museum access)

  • Museum of Food and Drink

  • 55 Water St, 2nd floor (Dumbo, Brooklyn)

• Thursday, April 10: The Joy of Sake 2025

  • The world’s largest sake tasting outside of Japan, including a wide variety of sake styles and sakes not otherwise available in the US; 6:30–9:30 pm

  • $130

  • Metropolitan Pavilion

  • 125 W 18th St (Chelsea, Manhattan)

• Every Friday: Happy Hour at Oldies

  • Discounted drinks at a casual, old-school Japanese cocktail bar; 3–7 pm

  • Free entry; happy hour menu drinks are $6–$14

  • Oldies

  • 269 36th St (Industry City, Brooklyn)

The Music of NYC

I often have a section like these in my round-ups, and it’s always the hardest for me to choose. Music has just gotta be my favorite form of artistic expression, and the diversity of it available is among my favorite parts of living in New York City. Case in point: some options this April include a reconstruction of a lost Bach composition and a museum exhibition on the history of metal and hardcore music in The Bronx.

• Thursday, April 3: The Sheen Center Presents: Alfredo Rodriguez

  • Concert by Cuban pianist Alfredo Rodriguez, who blends jazz with Latin music styles such as salsa, reggaeton, and Latin pop; 7 pm (6 pm doors)

  • $45–$65 (use code “Blankman” for $10 off)

  • Sheen Center for Thought & Culture, Loreto Theater

  • 18 Bleecker St (NoHo, Manhattan)

• Sunday, April 13: The Sebastians with Chatham Baroque: Markus Passion

  • Reconstruction of Bach’s lost Markus Passion featuring actor Joseph Marcell (Royal Shakespeare Company, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air); 4 pm (3:30 pm doors)

  • $10–$60 (seniors $5 off)

  • Corpus Christi Catholic Church

  • 529 W 121st St (Morningside Heights, Manhattan)

• Saturday, April 19: RNB Nights at Lot45

  • All-night dance party featuring R&B music from DJ Mike Nasty and others; 10 pm–4 am

  • $10

  • Lot45

  • 411 Troutman St (Bushwick, Brooklyn)

• Thursday, April 24: Uptown Rumble Exhibit Opening

  • Opening celebration for Uptown Rumble: Heavy Music in The Bronx, an exhibition of rock, metal, and hardcore music in The Bronx; 6–8 pm

  • Free

  • Museum of Bronx History

  • 3266 Bainbridge Ave (Norwood, The Bronx)

NPS removed the “T” from “LGBT” on the Stonewall National Monument’s website, but the Ts ain’t goin’ nowhere. Case in point: as of this writing, Lexi Love remains a contestant on Rupaul’s Drag Race, which has a viewing party every Friday at Rockbar, a few blocks from the monument. Photo: FULBERT

All the Letters of the Rainbow

The removal of “T” from LGBT on the Stonewall National Monument’s website shook me to my core. It’s cruel bigotry. New York City will no doubt change over time, as all cities do. But I can at least argue my case to those who are part of the LGBTQIA2S+ community that no matter what closed-mindedness infects the National Park Service, this city still has a place for you.

• Tuesday, April 8: Second Tuesday Lecture Series at The Center

  • Long-running lecture series focused around the history, arts, and culture of the LGBTQ+ community; 7 pm (6:30 pm doors)

  • $10 suggested donation

  • The Center: The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center

  • 208 W 13th St (West Village, Manhattan)

• Wednesday, April 9: Tabletop Role Playing Games at Brooklyn Pride Center

  • Evening of one-off social tabletop game playing for players of all skill levels in a space welcoming to those in the LGTBQ+ community; 6–10 pm; once per month

  • Free

  • Brooklyn Pride Center – Crown Heights

  • 1561 Bedford Ave (Crown Heights, Brooklyn)

• Tuesday, April 22–Sunday, April 27: A.I.M by Kyle Abraham

  • Dance works performed by A.I.M by Kyle Abraham, a contemporary dance company rooted in Black and queer history and culture

  • $52–$72

  • The Joyce Theater

  • 175 8th Ave (Chelsea, Manhattan)

• Every Friday: Rupaul’s Drag Race Viewing Party

  • Drag queens Temple Grandé and Coma White host a live viewing of Rupaul’s Drag Race at an LGBTQ+-friendly bar; 8 pm

  • Free entry

  • Rockbar NYC

  • 185 Christopher St (West Village, Manhattan)

Meet New People

Some of the events in my monthly lists are better suited to meeting new people than others, but I am always trying to look out for the extroverted and entrepreneurial among you. Many lists include events like dating mixers or professional meet-ups that are explicitly geared towards meeting new people. This April, I highlight The Feels NY, a dating mixer structured as an 80-minute facilitated mindfulness experience, along with a hardware-focused happy hour hosted by the 3D manufacturing company Makelab.

• Wednesday, April 2: The Feels NY, Edition 49

  • Singles mixer event developed to promote more “thoughtful dating”; 6:30–9:30 pm

  • $97–$107 (includes drinks + light bites; use promo code “Blankman” for 20% off)

  • Loft in Chinatown

  • 120 Walker St, 5th floor (Lower Manhattan)

• Wednesday, April 2: Deep Tech Week Happy Hour @ Makelab

  • Professional meet-up focused on people building and designing hardware and physical tech products across NYC; 6:30–9:30 pm

  • Free

  • Makelab | 3D Manufacturing Services

  • 325 Gold St (Downtown Brooklyn)

• Saturday, April 12: Cameras and Coffee: Community Meet-Up + Junk Journaling

  • Social meet-up for photography enthusiasts, organized as a junk journaling creative session; 11 am–12 pm

  • Free (does not include museum entry or coffee)

  • International Center of Photography

  • 84 Ludlow St (Lower East Side, Manhattan)

• Wednesdays, Sundays & Mondays: Chess Club for Adults

  • Casual chess club for adults of all skill levels; 1–4:45 pm

  • Free

  • Midwood Library

  • 975 E 16th St (Midwood, Brooklyn)

My friend Jessie once transformed herself into a Piet Mondrian painting for a theater makeup class. A modest retrospective of Mondrian’s works are on display at the Guggenheim through April 20. Photo: Jessie Goldsmith

Artistically Speaking

Every month, the art scene of New York City intimidates me a little. There is so much art here. I’m thankful for resources like Art Hap and, more recently, Showrunner, that help to distill down what literally hundreds of galleries and museums are up to. One show I’d recommend right now to art lovers of all stripes is the Piet Mondrian retrospective at the Guggenheim through April 20, showcasing works from the Dutch artist best known for his Composition grid paintings.

• Saturday, April 19: DibujoAhora! DrawNow! with Ada Pilar Cruz on Ericka Beckman: Power of the Spin

  • Spanish and English bilingual drawing workshop connected to the exhibition Ericka Beckman: Power of the Spin; 11 am–12:30 pm

  • Free

  • The Drawing Center

  • 35 Wooster St (SoHo, Manhattan)

• Through Sunday, April 20: Collection in Focus – Piet Mondrian: Ever Further

  • Exhibition of paintings and works chronicling the evolution of famed Dutch-born abstract artist Piet Mondrian

  • $30 general / $19 student/senior

  • Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum

  • 1071 5th Ave (Upper East Side, Manhattan)

• Through Sunday, April 20: We Are Chinatown: A Portrait of Our Community Rising Through Labor and Love

  • Exhibition by Brooklyn-based artist Amanda Phingbodhipakkiya featuring a large tapestry and other works inspired by the Chinatown community

  • Free

  • Pearl River Mart

  • 452 Broadway (SoHo, Manhattan)

• Every Thursday: Art and AgriCulture

  • Art workshop based around exploring culture in agriculture; 6:30–7:30 pm; every Thursday

  • Free

  • The Greenhouse Education Center at Denny Farrell Riverbank State Park

  • 679 Riverside Dr (Upper Manhattan)

A Trip to the Theater

Some lists are better than others, but every month I strive to present the full range of theater available in NYC, from small, independent works to big, Broadway musicals. A few highlights this April include Saving Grace, a play performed in a literal living room and Pirates! The Penzance Musical, a New Orleans-based re-imagining of Gilbert and Sullivan’s The Pirates of Penzance.

• Tuesday, April 1–Sunday, April 20: Fight Night

  • Off-Broadway play charting the story of a failed amateur boxer whose training “slips in favor of girls and booze”

  • $32

  • 59E59 Theaters

  • 59 E 59th St (Upper East Side, Manhattan)

• Previews begin Friday, April 4: Pirates! The Penzance Musical

  • Broadway musical reimagining of the Gilbert and Sullivan comic opera The Pirates of Penzance set in New Orleans

  • $72–$328

  • Todd Haimes Theatre

  • 227 W 42nd St (Times Square, Manhattan)

• Saturday, April 12: Saving Grace: A Play

  • Independently produced play performed in a private living room that presents a voyeuristic look at the messes we make in search of happiness; 5:30 pm (5 pm doors)

  • $15

  • Private loft/apartment

  • Ticket holders to receive address before performance date (Bushwick, Brooklyn)

• Thursday, April 17: Star Trek Entirely from Memory

  • A theater company’s attempt to recreate a Star Trek episode “without the aid of scripts, rehearsals, or sobriety”; 8–10 pm (7:30 pm doors)

  • $12–$14

  • Littlefield

  • 635 Sackett St (Gowanus, Brooklyn)