Movies	Music	Performance
Art	Fairs & Festivals	Food & Drink
Activities	Books	Ask The Experts

 

MOVIES

#1 summerscreen
The L’s outdoor film series returns to McCarren Park for another half-dozen nights of live music, food and drink from local vendors, and movies you haven’t seen since you wore out your VHS tape from overuse. Wednesdays beginning July 11. Summerscreen.org

#2 rooftop films
The local organization supports emerging indie-film talent with production grants and packed screenings, and branches out throughout the summer with several free screenings of local shorts and features. July 9 (New York Shorts at Coney Island), July 20 and August 3 (Shorts at Metrotech Commons), August 9 (Welcome to Pine Hill at Fort Greene Park), rooftopfilms.com

#3 syfy movies with a view
At Brooklyn Bridge Park’s outdoor film series, the spectacular Manhattan skyline view is at least as much of the appeal as the classic in the foreground. Plus, bike valet! brooklynbridgepark.org

#4 friday movie night, narrows botanical garden
Bay Ridge’s little slice of Arcadia has, you guys, a magnificently bizarre lineup for its annual movie nights: Bride of Frankenstein, The Adventures of Milo and Otis, I’m No Angel and Forbidden Planet. June 29, July 13, August 3, September 7, narrowsbg.org

#5 red hook flicks
Many of Red Hook’s finest restaurants are the food vendors at this series, which boasts hits of recent vintage “under the watch of Lady Liberty.” Tuesdays beginning July 10, Valentino Pier, redhookflicks.com

#6 filmwax at franklin park
The local film series, spotlighting Brooklyn-based independent features and their makers, who can usually be persuaded to show up for a Q&A, finds a new home this summer at the Crown Heights watering hole and cultural hub. May 21, June 18, July 16, August 20, filmwax.com

Movies | Music | Performance | Art | Fairs & Festivals | Food & Drink | Activities | Books | Ask the Experts

MUSIC

#7 make music new york
Last year’s NYC iteration of Fête de la Musique (World Music Day) claimed to feature more than 1,000 concerts—classical, jazz, avant-garde, world—at eclectic and improvised locations across the five boroughs, and promises more joyful noise this year. June 21, makemusicny.org

#8 punk island
… including this follow-up, scheduled for a few days later because Governor’s Island is only open on weekends (how can an island be “open,” one wonders?) (and yes we know Governor’s Island is technically part of Manhattan but we think Brooklyn should annex it so there), featuring seven stages, curated by ABC No Rio. June 24

#9 the brooklyn philharmonic in bed-stuy
A local DJ won the Philharmonic’s contest to “remix Beethoven,” and an adaptation of his take on the Third Symphony will be performed in a program also featuring a tribute to Lena Horne, and songs by the BK Phil’s artist-in-residence, Mos Def. June 9, bphil.org

#10 the new york philharmonic in prospect park Alan Gilbert conducts two thirds of Respighi’s Roman Trilogy, and Tchaikovsky’s scandalous Fourth Symphony. July 11, nyphil.org

#11 the met opera in brooklyn bridge park Soprano Danielle de Niese, bass-baritone John Del Carlo and tenor Dimitri Pittas, with piano accompaniment, will present a recital as part of the Met’s five-borough tour; merch table presumably manned by a tuxedo-clad David Koch. 
July 27, metoperafamily.org

#12 memorial day concert at green-wood cemetery At the cemetery’s annual concert, the talented kids of the Inter School Orchestra play a classical program surrounded by reminders of the transitory nature of youth and cruelty of time and mortality. May 28, green-wood.com

#13 the brooklyn symphony at st. ann’s church The BSO concludes their 2011-2012 program (free with suggested donation) with a program featuring two of Dvorak, Sibelius and Screaming Lord Sutch. brooklynsymphonyorchestra.com

#14 classical at pete’s candy store On alternate Thursdays this summer, your cramped local’s background music will be provided by classical performers and groups imported from all over the city to the ever-versatile back room. Petescandystore.com

#15 red hook jazz festival The Urban Meadow, the micro-greenspace that’ll be packed with a summer’s day jazz on two consecutive weekends (suggested donation is $10, kids are free), is technically in the Columbia Waterfront District, but that’s just churlish of us. June 10, June 17, facebook.com/RedHookJazzFestival

#16 party like it’s 1999: the real world of may edition
The Bell House, your reliable host of semiregular free dance and nostalgia nights, celebrates the 20th anniversary of the premiere of The Real World with a night of totally 90s hits. May 18, thebellhouseny.com

#17 paloma and bébo at cubana social
The retro-styled names are cues for what to expect at the restaurant and bar’s new Friday and Saturday dance nights, with an emphasis on jazz, Afro-Cuban and dance music. cubanasocial.com

#18 celebrate brooklyn! brooklyn bridge park dance parties
Before everyone settles at the Bandshell, Booker T. Jones and Brazilian and Zydeco acts warm the season up. May 10, 17, 24, bricartsmedia.org

#19 bam’s r&b festival
A slate of lunch-break concerts, going down at noon and featuring the likes of Fishbone and NRBQ. Don’t work in Downtown Brooklyn? There’s always jury duty… Thursdays, June 7-August 9, bam.org

#20 blues, brews and bbq on the beach at governor’s island
Five afternoons of live music near the ferry, a bit of low-key background music to go along with the many elaborate festivals that rotate through. thebeachatgovernors.com

#21 hillstock
This weekend of shows (one free, the rest—including an ACLU benefit—cheap) features 2010 Band You Need to Hear Ava Luna among many others, at DIY loft spaces all around the greater Clinton Hill area, not previously known as a hotbed of live music in general or indie pop in particular. June 22-24, neverbreakdown.com/hillstock

#22 denim & supply live at brooklyn bowl
Ralph Lauren’s line for the scruffily wealthy young person is bringing hipster bands to Williamsburg; it’s free with RSVP, like all those SXSW shows where they build up their mailing lists and you have to wait in line anyway. Man Man, on June 5, is next. brooklynbowl.com

#23 the northside festival
We’d be remiss if we didn’t advise purchase of the scandalously cheap badges for our annual music festival in North Brooklyn, but if you prefer to hedge your fun, you can check out our annual 8 Bands You Need to Hear showcases at Spike Hill free of charge, and keep your ear to the ground for outdoor shows. June 14-17, Northsidefestival.com

Movies | Performance | Art | Fairs & Festivals | Food & Drink | Activities | Books | Ask the Experts

PERFORMANCE

#24 summerstage in herbert von king park
SummerStage makes it out to Bed-Stuy park for a week of notably eclectic programming, from r&b to hip-hop and modern dance performances, as well as the stray film screening and musical theater. June 9-16, cityparksfoundation.org

#25 red hook fest
The local, community-based arts group Dance Theater Etcetera’s 19th annual to-do features music, dance and spoken-word, from established performers and local kids, under the theme “Women’s Work: Healing Our Community.” June 1 and 2, dtetc.org

#26 new voices in performance at the center for performance research
Emerging performance artists who work with analog electronics, found materials, meditation and “the sculptural potentials of the face” (considerable, doubtless), et cetera, are brought together in this installment of the CPR’s ongoing series. June 15 and 16, cprnyc.org

#27 opening night cabarets at the brick theater
Every festival at the Brick begins with a free “cabaret” previewing the season’s shows. During “Democracy,” after Memorial Day, eight candidates vie for your vote for “President of the Brick” and its programming; Game Play, the Brick’s annual survey of video gaming and performance, comes in July. bricktheater.com

#28 take ballet to the streets
The Brooklyn Ballet’s youth ensemble performs in Marine Park. There will be finger-snapping, if previous attempts to “take ballet to the streets” (or take the streets to ballet) are any precedent. June 5, brooklynballet.org

#29 twelfth night in carroll park
Because all you need for Shakespeare in the Park is Shakespeare and a park, Smith Street Stage presents the Bard’s comedy of shipwrecks, transvestism and merriment. June 27-July 1; July 3-8. Smithstreetstage.org

#30 big terrific at cameo gallery
Gabe Liedman and Max Silvestri’s weekly comedy night features drop-bys from many of your other favorite Brooklyn-based viral and rising TV stars. We’ve never been—we don’t really care for comedy, as a rule—but assume it is zany. cameony.blogspot.com

#31 get it out there: comedy by bam & ifc
The BAMCafé hosts this new monthly showcase of oddballs from here and from the teevee. bam.org

Movies | Music | Art | Fairs & Festivals | Food & Drink | Activities | Books | Ask the Experts

ART

#32 outdoor sculpture from the public art fund
“A Promise Is a Cloud,” a group show of minimalist and conceptual sculpture from four young artists, went up around MetroTech last fall and remains there through this October. This July 19, Oscar Turazon will install three landscape-inspired, site-specific pieces in Brooklyn Bridge Park, where they’ll remain through next April. publicartfund.org

#33 fifth ave storefront art walk, bay ridge
Brooklyn artists install their work in the windows of businesses up and down Bay Ridge’s main drag, in this local-prideful marriage of art and commerce. May 18-June 17, bayridgesaw.org

#34 dumbo first thursdays gallery walk
A recurring fete made even more palatable by the sitting-outside-at-Pedro’s weather, this gallery walk invites you into the neighborhood’s many art spaces to look, sip, and chat. dumbo.is/culture

#35 crest fest
There’ll be food, drink and live music at this opening reception for a show of work, by local artists, that’s “about, made with or inspired by hardware.” It’s held, naturally enough, at the Williamsburg location of Crest Hardware. June 30, cresthardwareartshow.com

#36 everything is index, nothing is history at invisible dog
This group show features work investigating how the world is represented and signified, in writing and otherwise. June 2-17, theinvisibledog.org

#37 erik hougen at kunsthalle galapagos
A solo show by the artist known for his large-scale watercolor portraits and prints, as well as urban scenes at gas and subway stations, parking garages, and men’s rooms. Opens June 7

#38 oliver ralli at 
norte maar
A retrospective of the artwork of the guitarist for Bushwick band PassKontroll, who play the opening reception’s afterparty at Tandem. June 1-24, nortemaar.org, tandembar.net

#39 charles atlas at luhring augustine
The gallery inaugurates its Bushwick space with work from the video-art pioneer. Through July 15, luhringaugustine.com

#40 klub7 at pandemic gallery
The Berlin-based art collective hits up Brooklyn with a show of chalk art, which embodies all the lawlessness of graffiti without the legal risks. Plus, chalk is fun and spontaneous! Opening and reception May 19

#41 deborah brown at the active space
The work and exhibition space showcases the Bushwick painter. June 1-July 1, 566johnsonave.com

#42 target first saturdays at the brooklyn museum
Extended viewing hours, talks, and dance parties themed around the Museum’s current exhibitions, all courtesy the greatest extended brand makeover in the history of Midwestern budget department stores. Brooklynmuseum.org

Movies | Music | Performance | Fairs & Festivals | Food & Drink | Activities | Books | Ask the Experts

FAIRS AND FESTIVALS

#43 bay ridge’s annual norwegian day parade
Do you remember the opening scene of that movie Reprise? May 20, may17paradeny.com

#44 bastille day
Are you ready for some petanque? Bar Tabac, on Smith, has organized a Francophilic street fair in years past, which is good because young Brooklynites so rarely have cause to dress up in gondolier shirts and capri pants. July 14

#45 international african arts festival
Commodore Barry Park is the venue for performances, food and crafts vendors, children’s programming, and more. June 30-July 4, iaafestival.org

#46 puerto rican day
After parading in Manhattan, many revelers must, eventually, come back home. Keep an eye out for happenings, planned and spontaneous, in Bushwick (birthplace of the greatest of all Puerto Rican Americans, Rosie Perez). 
June 24

#47 feast of our lady of mount carmel
The RC church in the heart of Northside Williamsburg can match any of its come-lately neighbors for party-promoting skillz: check their annual procession and festival features boisterous believers lugging religious statuary down the block, and an honest-to-god carnival, complete with fried food and potato-sack slide (which, when theoretically closed at night, actually proves pretty irresistible when walking back to the G train from K&M). July 5-16, olmcfeast.com

#48 carroll park community fair
The ball field is transformed into an open air market. June 2

#49 renegade craft fair
The touring DIY arts-and-crafts market-as-extravaganza camps out for a weekend in East River State Park, peddling wares and shit. June 23-24, renegadecraft.com

#50 the dekalb market
The Brooklyn Flea’s seven-day-a-week upstart neighbor is an open-air food and retail market (using repurposed shipping containers for stalls), and, thanks to its less residential location, a late-night event space: promised this summer are bike-in movie nights and roller derby. dekalbmarket.com

Movies | Music | Performance | Art | Food & Drink | Activities | Books | Ask the Experts

FOOD & DRINK

#51 nathan’s hot dog eating contest
U-S-A! U-S-A! July 4, 
nathansfamous.com

#52 food truck rally
Hey, it’s free to look (and smell, and get ideas), as the city’s gourmet food trucks converge on Grand Army Plaza every month. May 27, June 17, July 15, August 19

#53 brooklyn food conference
The activist Brooklyn Food Coalition puts on an all-day event with talks, workshops, food demos and fun stuff, centered around access and sustainability, at Brooklyn Tech High School. May 12, bkfoodconference.com

#54 foraging with “wildman” steve brill in prospect park
The well-known wild food expert and naturalist guides regular suggested-donation foraging tours (we think of them as postapocalyptic prep courses) through many of our city’s semi-manicured ecosystems. wildmanstevebrill.com

#55 homebrew meetup at beer table
On the last Monday of every month, the borough’s micro-est brewers share and compare their wares at the Park Slope beer bar. beertable.com

#56 tuesday tastings at bierkraft
A weekly showcase, from the shelves and guests from local brewers. bierkraft.com

#57 greene grape tastings
Every Friday night features a sampling from the wine store, and a pairing from their sister store, Provisions. greenegrape.com

#58 new york distilling company tours and tastings
Twice-nightly tours at the Williamsburg craft booze operation. As current US Poet Laureate said, “Any wonder we tried gin.” nydistilling.com

Movies | Music | Performance | Art | Fairs & Festivals | Activities | Books | Ask the Experts

ACTIVITIES

#59 sunset park sunset ride
The tour guides at Levys’ Unique New York lead a bike tour of Sunset Park’s tamale, taco and cerveza offerings (food not free, but exercise and local knowledge free and priceless). June 24, levysuniqueny.com

#60 amble at brooklyn botanic garden
The BBG introduces their new visitor center and summer “Urban Garden” exhibition. (Admission is also free on Tuesdays and Saturday mornings.) June 2, bbg.org

#61 fashion’s night out
Inevitably, Fashion Week’s creep into Brooklyn will continue at this post-Labor Day kickoff event, featuring music, food and drink, giveaways and lots of tantalizing luxury goods. fashionsnightout.com (September 6)

#62 craft night at nyc resistor
This Thursday-night workshop is one of several regular collaborative open houses at the very n00b-friendly hacker and techie collective. nycresistor.com

#63 fix your bike workshop at time’s up
The environmental and alternative-transportation advocacy group teaches you how to patch a flat, and other useful skills, every Wednesday night. times-up.org

#64 volunteer gardening with get dirty nyc!
The local nonprofit will help you find farms and gardens in need of extra green thumbs for special projects. They also hold workshops for the aspiring urban gardener. getdirtynyc.org

#65 paint a roof with nyc cool roofs
To save on energy use and costs, this city initiative applies a reflective coating to the roofs of local buildings. Well, “this city initiative” doesn’t—you do. nyc.gov/coolroofs

Movies | Music | Performance | Art | Fairs & Festivals | Food & Drink | Books | Ask the Experts

BOOKS

#66 franklin park reading series
Our favorite monthly literary event-held-in-a-most-commodius-bar continues apace this summer, with marquee readers Diane Williams and Patrick Somerville in June, and a “Travels and Journeys” theme in July. May 14, June 11, July 9, August 13, franklinparkbrooklyn.com

#67 literary upstart
The L’s own short fiction competition features unknown NYC writers reading their stories for a judging panel of literary luminaries, vying for publication and the love and respect of their peers. May 10, May 24, June 6, June 27 at the Wythe Hote, Literaryupstart.com

#68 lit crawl nyc
At the Brooklyn edition of this bar-crawl style reading (the Manhattan one bookends the summer, in September) local and national lit mags, MFA programs and literary organizations curate readings staggered across bars, restaurants and even a bookstore in the heart of Cobble Hill. May 19, litcrawl.org

#69 kurt andersen at bookcourt
The thinking man’s Spy cofounder reads from his new book, True Believers, a novel of the 1960s. August 1, bookcourt.com

#70 karen walker thompson at greenlight
A launch reading for the Brooklyn author’s debut novel, The Age of Miracles, a buzzed-about tale of adolescence and apocalypse. June 28, greenlightbookstore.com

#71 walter mosley at the powerhouse arena
The prolific, charismatic Mosley turns his attention to a new genre with The Gift of Fire/On the Head of a Pin, a new collection of two speculative-fiction novellas which he’ll read from and discuss. May 30, powerhousearena.com

#72 lev grossman at word
Rub Lev’s head for good luck at The Magician King’s paperback launch. May 29, wordbrooklyn.com

#73 fort greene park literary festival
The annual daylong festival pairs established local authors with kids of all ages from the free workshops held in the Park by the NYC Writers Coalition. August 18, nycwriterscoalition.org

#74 pete’s 3rd annual mini zine fest
In which local writers, illustrators and designers show off their one-of-a-kind literary objects (which you can also buy, for money). July 21, petescandystore.com

#75 24-hour read-in 
at the brooklyn 
public library’s 
central branch
Another year, another round of budget cuts threaten to curtail access to the city’s vast and immeasurably valuable library system. The Save NYC Libraries Campaign’s annual marathon reading, featuring librarians, library patrons and local authors of all genres reading from the library catalog, and sharing public space. June 9-10, urbanlibrariansunite.org

#76 the brooklyn book festival
Marty Markowitz’s pride and joy brings every writer who lives in Brooklyn, is associated with a Brooklyn publisher, is popular among Brooklynites, or has ever been over to a friend’s for dinner in Boerum Hill together at Borough Hall. Local bookstores and bars will also host “Bookend Events” in the several days prior. September 23, brooklynbookfestival.org

Movies | Music | Performance | Art | Fairs & Festivals | Food & Drink | Activities | Ask the Experts

ASK THE EXPERTS

77-81 from Katarina Hybenova, editor of BushwickDaily.com:

bushwick open studios
Celebrating its 6th year, BOS is a mega-weekend of art, music, fun and awesomness, with hundreds of artists offering sneak peeks at their works in progress. Get a printed map or a smart phone app that is being made especially for the festival, and get exploring. June 1-3, artsinbushwick.org/bos2012

holy bos
In conjunction with Bushwick Open Studios, the Bobby Redd Project Space—a former church—is hosting three nights and two days of art trucks, large-scale installations, projection mapping, aerialist performances, and a secret Sunday brunch. June 1-3, facebook.com/holybos

fireside follies reading series
The backroom reading series at Brooklyn Fire Proof brings together truly interesting writers, musicians, and visual artists. Poets Tim Donnelly and Meghan O’Rourke are among the scheduled guests. June 15, July 20, August 17, firesidefollies.wordpress.com

the onderdonk farm house
A charming, historic Dutch farmhouse surrounded by a huge garden is probably the last thing you would expect to come across between the factories on Flushing Ave. But there it is; and additionally, everything from a sculpture garden to a vintage car festival is planned for summer. onderdonkhouse.org

birddog & delinquency memorial day rooftop jam
BirdDog Productions has been organizing really awesome parties in Brooklyn for some time now. To celebrate their new concert venue, soon to open off the Morgan L stop, they’re throwing a party on a TBA rooftop, with a housewarming afterparty at the new venue. Plus food, cheap booze and kiddie pools. May 27, delinquencynyc.com

82-86 from Oriana Leckert, brooklyn-spaces.com:

city reliquary’s 8th annual bicycle fetish day
This annual Williamsburg block party is a spectacular melee packed with bikes, barbecue and bands. There’s music all day, and the street is lined with tables extolling the virtues of biking, selling homemade treats, passing out biking literature, and hawking bike accessories. There are even contests with bike-related prizes for things like Best Mutant Bike, Best Vintage, and Best Handmade. May 26, cityreliquary.org

secret project robot’s “you are here” festival
In mid-July, art duo Trouble is turning the new Secret Project Robot space into a giant transparent art maze made of wire mesh and featuring directional projections. During gallery hours—Thursday through Saturday, from 2 to 8—it’s free to come in and play around. In the evenings will be a slew of (not free) performers, including ZS JG Thirlwell, WIN WIN, Nymph, Hunter Hunt Henrickson of Liturgy, and many more. July 12-August 4, secretprojectrobot.org

join the circus day at the muse
New South Williamsburg aerial training and performance space The Muse regularly has your standard classes on silks and trapeze, but they’ll also teach you quirkier circus skills, like hand-balancing, rope tricks, and wall running. On Join the Circus day, you can sample a bit of everything, including acro partnering, circus hoops, and more, while getting acquainted with the space and all of its extremely enthusiastic (and ridiculously toned) denizens. July 14, facebook.com/TheMuseBrooklyn

showdown of the venues on the gritty b-ball court
In a move perhaps intended to thwart all expectations, the folks behind a half-dozen DIY music venues are throwing an all-day basketball tournament. The final details and location are still being hashed out, but there will be teams facing off from Silent Barn, Roulette, Shea Stadium, Flux Factory, Le Wallet, Secret ProjectRobot, and Death By Audio, with local bands between games and lots of BBQ. Can you think of anything summerier? August 5, silentbarn.org/b-ball

Brooklyn Brainery Lectures at Public Assembly
Of course you know that the Brainery offers quirk-tastic (and cheap) classes on everything from sutures to the history of zoning, but did you know about their fabulous free lecture series? Masters of Social Gastronomy is all about food (with tasty samples!); past topics include the history of fake meat and DIY candy, and June is Jell-O. The Society for the Advancement of Socal Studies, meanwhile, illuminates eccentric topics in history (with themed drink specials). June 5 is “Fun and Games in History” (inspired by the Olympics), July 3 is “Party and Bullshit in the USA,” and August 7 is “Ancient Badasses.” Brooklynbrainery.com

87-91 from Rebecca Smeyne, photographer and blogger, cofounder of myopenbar:

todd p’s acoustic unamplified bbq
Stunning locations, massive roster, and entirely non-commercial. Past locations have included the southern tip of Roosevelt Island (Matt + Kim played that one), and Fort Tilden beach (Necking played their set IN THE OCEAN). Details TBA; toddpnyc.com

rumblers car club’s kustom kills and hotrod thrills
Eye candy in the form of scores of immaculate vintage cars and their equally turned-out  rockabilly owners and groupies, under the BQE near Union Pool (which hosts related activities). rumblersnation.com

the west indian day parade
On Labor Day along Eastern Parkway, the biggest, loudest, most flesh-baring carnival this side of Rio. Attendance is in the millions. Tons of island street food too.

the afro-punk festival
After last year’s hurricane-out, the festival returns to Fort Greene’s Commodore Barry Park. Previous performers have included Bad Brains and Mos Def. August 25 and 26, afropunk.com

public pools
Especially, we hope, the newly reopened McCarren Pool starting this June. Bring a lock to store your valuables and lots of towels for padding on the brutal cement: no chairs (or practically anything but towels and reading material) allowed past the locker rooms.

92-96 from Tim Donnelly, Brokelyn.com:

bleed for the mets
Yes, you can go to Mets games for free, several times throughout the summer even, and no, it’s not because the Mets are terrible and desperate to fill the seats. The Brooklyn office of the New York Blood Center offers a pair of free Mets tickets to anyone who donates platelets during the summer. While you don’t get to pick the game, you do get to pick what kind of pouched wine you sneak in under your jorts. nybloodcenter.org

the rev. vince anderson and his love choir
This free show happens every Monday night at Union Pool all year round, but check it out in the dead of summer to really soak in the feeling of being transported to a muggy Southern revival tent, sweating out the demons and praising all the notes of musical salvation. It’s hot gospel like this that will have even you, gentle sinner, believing You Are The Miracle. facebook.com/pages/Rev-Vince-Anderson-and-his-Love-Choir

coney island mermaid parade
Coney Island just ain’t all that great of a boardwalk, now that the last remaining vestiges of its beach culture have been stomped down by cookie-cutter buildings that belong on a highway off ramp in Ohio. The Mermaid Parade is the one exception, as it’s the one day a year you can see all the old ghosts of the Coney Island that used to be come out in full, beautiful summer color to welcome the first weekend of the season. It feels like a time warp back to when Coney Island was a strange and wonderful place where you could expect curiosities around every corner. Also, turns out mermaids are quite attractive. Who knew? June 23, coneyisland.com/mermaid.shtml

roberta’s tiki disco
When the topic of Roberta’s’ monthly free garden party came up at a pizza counter one day last year, a stranger in neon wayfarers leaned over and said, “Listen: I’ve been to Carnival. I’ve been to Ibiza. I’ve been to Berlin. Tiki Disco is the craziest freaking party I’ve ever seen.” Our guardian party bro had a point: the sexy garden scene in the middle of industrial Bushwick makes for a unique kind of bacchanalia. Get there early or your only party will be the waiting-for-two-hours-in-line party. Robertaspizza.com

free movies at habana outpost
All of the outdoor movies are personal favorites during the summer, but a particular plug here for Habana Outpost’s movie night, because it’s a Sunday night, when we’re all normally beat from the weekend and watching movies anyway, and usually features Brooklyn-centric films. A hot summer night in Fort Greene watching Do the Right Thing outside with the rest of the neighborhood sounds just about perfect. Cafehabana.com

97-101 from The MyFreeConcert.com Team:

summerstage in red hook park
Summerstage is one of the best and most anticipated free summer concert series in NYC, and they’ve already announced their full lineup. Red Hook gets Das Racist and Deer Tick, among others. Summerstage.org

the house of vans
The House of Vans know how to throw it down out in Greenpoint. Last summer featured free performances by Cults, Smith Westerns, Fucked Up, Tokyo Police Club, and more, all with free alcohol. They’ve confirmed that the shows are back for another summer. Vans.com

celebrate brooklyn!
The bandshell in beautiful Prospect Park hosts this yearly staple for concertgoers. Free shows announced thus far are Jimmy Cliff on June 5, and Laura Marling on June 14. bricartsmedia.org

williamsburg park concerts
Williamsburg Park, a new outdoor location at 50 Kent Avenue near the waterfront, has announced this year’s crop of shows, including a free one with OK Go and Eugene Mirman on July 19.

seaside summer concert series
This year’s lineup has yet to be announced but expect a solid list of established acts at the Borough President’s outdoor series on Coney Island. Brooklynconcerts.com

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