5 Best Eating And Drinking Events This Weekend
Stay warm this weekend by getting social. You can meet-and-greet with chefs, hear all about crazy Christmases from John Waters, and participate in an interactive musical performance. Read on for our picks for the best eating, drinking, and merrymaking events this weekend. By Jessica Allen.
The Saveur Holiday Social lets you eat, shop, and, well, socialize. The marketplace features one-of-a-kind artisanal gifts for the foodie in your life. Speaking of foodies, you can sample holiday-inspired snacks and craft cocktails. Among the celebrity chefs who'll be on hand to teach you to mix drinks and conduct cooking demos will be Hugh Acheson, Leah Cohen, and George Mendes. Saturday, December 13, 11 am to 7 pm, $110, tickets required.
Looking for a little something different from The Nutcracker this year? Featuring Kurtis Blow as the guest MC, 12 hip hop dancers, digital scenery, a DJ, and an electric violin, The Hip Hop Nutcracker turns Tschaikovsky on his head, in the coolest possible way. The vision and choreography, by director/choreographer Jennifer Weber, took over a year to execute. Time well spent, as you'll see if you attend this performance. Saturday, December 13, 1 pm, tickets start at $10.
A 45-minute coordinated celebration of redemption, happiness, and the spirit of the season, Unsilent Night began in 1992 when Phil Kline handed out tapes of an original, four-track composition to be played on multiple boomboxes as participants walked along New York City streets. Fast forward two decades, and Unsilent Night now takes place in more than 100 cities on four continents. The procession begins under the Arch in Washington Square Park and marches, musically, to Tompkins Square Park. Saturday, December 13, 7 pm, free.
The sixth annual Winter Ball features the sweet stylings of Michael Arenella and His Dreamland Orchestra, along with friends like the Minksy Sisters (tap dancers), Nicole Renaud (a chanteuse and accordionist), and other "musical and dance novelties." Santa will be dropping by for photo ops, and the whole event takes place in a jazz era-esque ballroom in Fort Greene. Saturday, December 13, 8 pm to 1 am, $150, black tie/formal attire requested, 21 and over.
And now for something completely raunchy . . . A John Waters Christmas is as dirty, as funny, and as X-rated as you'd expect from John Waters, the so-called Pope of Trash. In this one-man show, he'll wax rhapsodic about holidays past and present, rap (yes, rap), discuss his obsession with Santa Claus, and describe in great detail his ideal gifts (as perverted as can be). You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll cringe. Sunday, December 14, 8 pm, tickets start at $45, tickets required.
