Things To Do This Week: BRIC Opening Receptions, Brooklyn Poetry Slam, Trivia, And Wine Tastings
Here’s this week’s roundup of neighborhood events taking place through Thursday. Come back Friday morning for our roundup of highlights for the weekend.
And, as always, let us know if there are any events we’re missing by submitting your listing to our BROOKLYN-WIDE CALENDAR or by emailing editor@bklyner.com.
MONDAY, MAY 18
Downsizing Informational Forum
When: Monday, May 18 from 6:30-8:30pm
Where: Ingersoll Community Center at 177 Myrtle Avenue
What: Hear from NYCHA representatives about what downsizing means for you and your family.
Dance Fitness
When: Monday, May 18 from 7-8pm
Where: Ingersoll Community Center at 177 Myrtle Avenue
What: Free and no registration or prior experience necessary.
Author Talk: Sara Novic and Jonathan Papernick
When: Monday, May 18 at 7:30pm
Where: Greenlight Bookstore at 686 Fulton Street
What: Two New York authors present their novels about the effects of war and conflict on families and identity. Nović’s debut novel Girl At War is the story of Ana, a ten-year-old in Zagreb when Croatia’s civil war begins, and the ways in which the legacy of the war haunts her even after she moves to the United States. Papernick has earned critical acclaim for his short story collections The Ascent of Eli Israel and Other Stories andThere is No Other. His new novel, The Book of Stone, is an arresting psychological thriller set in pre-9/11 Brooklyn, where an estranged son attempts to find meaning and purpose to his life as his family’s dark history is peeled back, layer by layer, against the backdrop of religious extremism.
How much: Free | $26 and $15.95 for the books
TUESDAY, MAY 19
Baby Breakfast
When: Tuesday, May 19 from 10am-12pm
Where: Habana Outpost at 757 Fulton Street
What: The courtyard of Habana Outpost is transformed into an into a toddler wonderland complete with toys, a water table and supervised art projects geared towards children 4 and under. Come meet your neighbors and watch your kids make new friends. Presented in conjunction with My Brooklyn Baby.
How much: Free, rain or shine
Toddler Time
When: Tuesday, May 19 from 10:15-11:15am
Where: Bedford Library at 496 Franklin Avenue
What: Hear stories, sing songs, play with toys and meet new friends! For Babies (18-36 months) and their caregivers.
How much: Free
Babies and Books
When: Tuesday, May 19 from 11:30-12:30pm
Where: Bedford Library at 496 Franklin Avenue
What: Come hear stories, sing songs, play with toys and meet new friends! For Babies (0-18 months) and their caregivers. Playing with your baby is more than fun, it’s one of the most important ways you can encourage early literacy and language.
Free Movie: “Foxcatcher”
When: Tuesday, May 19 at 2pm
Where: Clinton Hill LIbrary at 380 Washington Avenue
What: Rated R. Starring Mark Ruffalo & Steve Carell.
Planting Ceremony
When: Tuesday, May 19 at 4pm
Where: Clinton Hill Library at 380 Washington Avenue
What: Help Clinton Hill Library celebrate its nomination as one of the ten NYC Neighborhood Library Award Finalists. Plant flowers to brighten the neighborhood and serve as a reminder of the nomination. Create a cool Curious George pinwheel craft.
Free Yoga for Adults
When: Tuesday, May 19 from 6:30-7:45pm
Where: Clinton Hill Library at 380 Washington Avenue
What: Practice yoga with local yoga instructor, Jenine Osbon. All levels welcome. Limit of 10-12 per class.
CEC 13 Meeting
When: Tuesday, May 19 from 6:30-8:30pm
Where: PS/MS 113 at 300 Adelphi Street
What: Student of the Month, Superintendent’s report, PTA awards, and congratulations for student chess winners.
Cardio Sculpt
When: Tuesday, May 19 from 7-8pm
Where: Ingersoll Community Center at 177 Myrtle Avenue
What: Free fitness class.
BRIC FLIX: “Tough Love”
When: Tuesday, May 19 from 7-9pm
Where: BRIC House at 647 Fulton Street
What: Each screening is followed by a discussion with the filmmakers, artists, curators, and more. This moving film accompanies two parents as they navigate the often-murky waters of the foster-care system, trying to reunite with their children and prove that they deserve second chances. A co-production of ITVS. A co-presentation with the Center for Asian American Media (CAAM).
How much: Free
Fiction Book Group
When: Tuesday, May 19 at 7:30pm
Where: Greene Grape Annex at 753 Fulton Street
What: The theme for this season is Shortlisted. For May, the group discusses Anathem by Neal Stephenson, shortlisted for the 2009 Hugo Award. For ten years Fraa Erasmas, a young avout, has lived in a cloistered sanctuary for mathematicians, scientists, and philosophers, protected from the corrupting influences of the outside world. But before the week is out, both the existence he abandoned and the one he embraced will stand poised on the brink of cataclysmic change—and Erasmas will become a major player in a drama that will determine the future of his world, as he follows his destiny to the most inhospitable corners of the planet and beyond.
How much: Free | $8.99 for the book
WEDNESDAY, MAY 20
After-School Homework Help
When: Wednesday, May 20 from 3-6pm
Where: Clinton Hill Library at 380 Washington Avenue
What: Free homework help for grades K-8.
Teen Tech Time
When: Wednesday, May 20 from 4-6pm
Where: Clinton Hill Library at 380 Washington Avenue
What: Play on the Wii with neighbors.
DIY: Knitting
When: Wednesday, May 20 from 5-6pm
Where: Bedford Library at 496 Franklin Avenue
What: All ages are welcome. Please bring your own needles and yarn.
ShapeUp NYC Aerobics Class
When: Wednesday, May 20 at 6pm
Where: Bedford Library at 496 Franklin Avenue
What: Join this FREE aerobics class. Class taught by NYC Parks Department community volunteer.
Opening Reception for “The 27th Annual Contemporary Art Education Exhibition”
When: Wednesday, May 20 from 6-8pm
Where: BRIC House at 647 Fulton Street
What: This annual exhibition showcases work in a wide range of artistic media created by students taking part BRIC’s school-based residencies and after-school programs. Among the works presented, the exhibition will include films created by students, such as a documentary video produced by students at P.S. 297 Abraham Stockton, Clinton Hill that uses a compare and contrast approach to the theme of gentrification.
How much: Free
Dance Fitness
When: Wednesday, May 20 from 6:45-7:45pm
Where: Clinton Hill Library at 380 Washington Avenue
What: Free fitness class.
Opening Reception for Cecile Chong: “Time Collision”
When: Wednesday, May 20 from 7-9pm
Where: BRIC House at 647 Fulton Street
What: A Brooklyn-based multimedia artist working in painting, sculpture, and installation,Cecile Chong’s work addresses the process of cultural encounter and entanglement. Born in Ecuador to Chinese parents, her background and exposure to different cultural objects and ideas has driven her fascination with how these influences are visually acquired, represented, and interpreted. The exhibition in the Project Room of BRIC House will present over 20 of Chong’s encaustic paintings as well as guaguas (wah-wahs), her small baby-bundled sculptures made of wax. These little abstracted sculptures serve as an important icon for Chong and are figured throughout her encaustic paintings as playfully hidden little ancestors watching over the frolicking children.
How much: Free
Dance Fitness
When: Wednesday, May 20 from 7:15-8:15pm
Where: Ingersoll Community Center at 177 Myrtle Avenue
What: Free and no registration or prior experience necessary.
Author Talk: DW Gibson and Joseph O’Neill
When: Wednesday, May 20 at 7:30pm
Where: Greenlight Bookstore at 686 Fulton Street
What: In recent years, gentrification has transformed our surroundings, altering the way cities look, feel, and cost. In his extraordinary oral history The Edge Becomes the Center, DW Gibson breathes life into the complexities of gentrification that play out across the globe and highlights the attitudes and opinions of those who are directly affected here in NYC. Through interviews with individuals from all walks of life —landlords, tenants, drug dealers, politicians, artists, investment bankers, and everyone in between — the book provides an intimate snapshot of the economic, social, and cultural issues that shape gentrification.
How much: Free | $27.95 for the book
Trivia Night
When: Wednesday, May 20 from 8-11pm
Where: Putnam’s Pub at 419 Myrtle Avenue
What: Weekly trivia competition to win gift cards of $100 to Putnam’s. Beer specials all night.
How much: Free
Trivia Wednesdays
When: Wednesday, May 20 at 9pm
Where: Moot Bar at 579 Myrtle Avenue
What: Inaugural trivia night! Five rounds of 10 questions each on variety of subject matter from cereal box characters to physics. Winning team gets $50 off their bar tab.
How much: Free
THURSDAY, MAY 21
Bike Registration Event
When: Thursday, May 21 from 8:30-10:30am
Where: Southeast corner of Myrtle and Vanderbilt Avenues
What: Join the Myrtle Avenue Brooklyn Partnership and our local NYPD 88th precinct for a free bike registration event, 5/21 from 8:30am to 10:30am. We’ll be near the corner, just near the bike lane. Register your bike + stop by for morning coffee and pastries. Register your bicycle with the NYPD at this free event on Myrtle Avenue sponsored by the Myrtle Avenue Brooklyn Partnership and the 88th Precinct. Bikes registered with the department are easier to recover if stolen.
After School Homework Help
When: Thursday, May 21 at 3pm
Where: Clinton Hill Library at 380 Washington Avenue
What: Free homework help with a community volunteer for grades k-8. No pre-registration needed.
Reading is Fundamental
When: Thursday, May 21 from 3:30-4:30pm
Where: Bedford Library at 496 Franklin Avenue
What: Kids and teens can earn FREE books by borrowing and returning books with their library card.
Vertical Thursday Wine Tasting
When: Thursday, May 21 from 5:30-8pm
Where: Corkscrew Wines at 489 Myrtle Avenue
What: Free weekly wine tasting. Educational and casual tasting to explore specific grapes or a region. Discover what makes your favorite wines unique. You are the expert of what works for you, Corkscrew is here for you to discover what that is.
Falun Dafa Exercise Class
When: Thursday, May 21 at 6:30pm
Where: Bedford Library at 496 Franklin Avenue
What: Practice of meditation and slow-moving exercise. Eliminate stress, enjoy peace of mind.
Dance Fitness
When: Thursday, May 21 from 7-8pm
Where: Ingersoll Community Center at 177 Myrtle Avenue
What: Free and no registration or prior experience necessary.
Brooklyn Poetry Slam
When: Thursday, May 21 from 7-9pm
Where: BRIC House Stoop at 647 Fulton Street
What: An intergenerational showcase where Brooklyn-based poets investigate art work on display at BRIC House and their poems respond through verse. Hosted by poet/writer Mahogany L Browne with music by DJ Jive Poetic.
How much: Free
Comedy Thursdays
When: Thursday, May 21 from 7:30-10pm
Where: Splitty at 415 Myrtle Avenue
What: Greg Johnson and Larry Murphy (Bob’s Burgers) host this weekly comedy show featuring a curated night of stand-up, characters, and the unexpected.
How much: $5 cover
Function Thursdays Live Music
When: Thursday, May 21 at 9pm
Where: Putnam’s Pub at 419 Myrtle Avenue
What: Jessica Mahasin and DJs Jeff Haze/Asen James.
How much: Free
ONGOING
Fiasco Theater’s “The Two Gentlemen of Verona”
When: Through June 4
Where: Polonsky Shakespeare Center at 262 Ashland Place
What: Crackling and quick-moving, The Two Gentlemen of Verona may well have been Shakespeare’s first play. A seemingly simple tale of shifting devotions among mismatched lovers, it helped launch the enduring genre of rom-com. Yet its delightful madcap surface conceals undercurrents, as its putative hero proves a cad and a faithless friend. A beguiling, nuanced production from the theater that brought us Cymbeline, and Into the Woods to the Roundabout Theatre.
How much: $60-85 per person (use code: GENT55 for $55 tickets). Purchase online or by phone at 866-811-4111.