Things to Do in NYC: April 2024 Highlights
Highlights from the Blankman List in farewell of Kimberly Akimbo
I have waxed poetic in previous posts about the Broadway musical Kimberly Akimbo. Once, I even shared a painting I made of the show. This is a musical that has touched me and grown to be among my all-time favorites. Sadly, April 28 marks the end of its Broadway run, so for this month’s free list of highlights, I connect a variety of events to Kimberly Akimbo. All of these events are drawn from my larger April 2024 Blankman List, which includes plenty of other things to do in New York City.
What Is Kimberly Akimbo?
For the unfamiliar, Kimberly Akimbo was the 2023 Tony Winner for best musical. The show centers around 16-year-old Kimberly Levaco, who has a fictional genetic disorder causing her to age 4–5 times faster than normal. She is a high school teenager trapped in a 70-year-old woman’s body (and played by the brilliant and practically ageless Victoria Clark).
When I first saw it—during the literal first preview on October 12, 2022—I wasn’t sure yet what to think of it. But the story sat with me and brought me unexpected moments of joy or heartbreak in the months that followed. I saw myself most notably in Kimberly’s awkward love interest, Seth, who obsesses over anagrams and is the source of the show’s title. He anagrams “Kimberly Levaco” into “cleverly akimbo,” an apt description for the way that she braves life in the face of certain, imminent death. (This is a far cry from my excitement when I discovered in high school that I could anagram my name into “lick hard, barn man.”)
This is musical theater, however, and it is the music that elevates it from good play to great musical. The Kimberly album topped my 2023 Spotify Wrapped, with lyrical fragments, melodies, and sometimes entire songs burying themselves into my brain as I walked to the subway or sat at my computer.
Composer Jeanine Tesori and lyricist David Lindsay-Abaire have put together a score with lyrical virtuosity: (“Your disease is a tough one, that’s for sure. Getting older is my affliction. Getting older is your cure.”) and a musical range that, at least for me, took many listens to pick apart. The songs pouring out of Kimberly’s heart range from spot-on Joni Mitchell (“Now”) to contemporary classical (“Our Disease”). For hearing the music, I especially recommend the cast’s 20-minute Tiny Desk concert.
As a send-off to one of my favorite works of art in the city, I offer new works of art and a range of events that may not be Kimberly Akimbo, but are connected, at least a little. In many cases, the events are connected along some very broad themes, so fear not; there is no expectation that you saw (or, for that matter, liked) the show. There is still, hopefully, an event for you.
Events: Language and Wordplay
A lot of the show’s clever dialogue and lyrics—especially those of Kimberly’s love interest Seth Weetis—are based around anagrams and wordplay. There are lots of ways to scratch that lexicological itch in New York City without having to see a musical about it.
Every Wednesday: Word Game Wednesdays
Social word-based gameplay like Scrabble or Boggle for all levels; 6–7:30 pm
Free
Stavros Niarchos Foundation Library
455 5th Ave (Bryant Park, Manhattan)
Thursday, April 4–Sunday, April 7: 64th Annual ABAA New York International Antiquarian Book Fair
World’s leading book fair including rare books, maps, prints, and ephemera; hours range between 12–9 pm, depending on day
Entry is $32–$75 general (depending on which days) / $10 students
Park Avenue Armory
643 Park Ave (Lenox Hill, Manhattan)
Thursday, April 18: Wordhack
Monthly evening of performance and talks exploring the intersection of language and technology; 7–10 pm
$15
Wonderville
1186 Broadway (Bushwick, Brooklyn)
Tuesday, April 23: East Village Wordsmiths Literary Salon
Salon for writers of prose, poetry, memoir, or song to perform original works; 8–9:30 pm; once per month
Free
Book Club Bar
197 E 3rd St (East Village, Manhattan)
Events: Woman Musicians
Not only is it a woman who is central to the story and singing throughout, the show itself is composed by Jeanine Tesori, a woman composer. This was at one time a major rarity on Broadway, though the tides are at long last starting to turn. As of this writing, Hadestown, The Notebook, and Six all join Kimberly Akimbo on Broadway in having woman or nonbinary composers, and both Suffs and Hell’s Kitchen are set to start previews by the end of March.
Sunday, April 7: Daisy Castro
Violin-based “Gypsy jazz” (Daisy Castro videos); 10 pm–12 am
$20 suggested
Barbès
376 9th St (Park Slope, Brooklyn)
Wednesday, April 10: Lalah Hathaway
Neo soul performance by the award-winning daughter of Donny Hathaway; 6 pm (5 pm doors)
$60–$90 (full food and drink menu available)
City Winery
25 11th Ave (Chelsea, Manhattan)
Wednesday, April 17: Aja Monet
Surrealist blues poetry and music (Aja Monet video); 7 pm; part of Carnegie Hall Citywide
Free
Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture
515 Malcolm X Blvd (Harlem, Manhattan)
Saturday, April 27: Katie Von Schleicher • Thanya Iyer
Indie rock in an intimate concert setting (Katie Von Schleicher website); 8 pm (7:30 pm doors)
$12 suggested
The Owl Music Parlor
497 Rogers Ave (Prospect Lefferts Gardens, Brooklyn)
Events: Life and Death
If I had to try and pinpoint Kimberly Akimbo’s single most dominant theme, it’s this: life and death. Living life in the face of death. The fragility and magnificence of life coupled with the inevitability of death.
Thursday, April 11–Friday, April 12: Dreaming & Dying
2023 Singaporean experimental fantasy drama film directed by Nelson Yeo; 6 pm
$18 general / $15 students/seniors
Venue depends on day
Apr 11: MoMA, 11 W 53rd St (Midtown, Manhattan); Apr 12: Lincoln Center, 165 W 65th St (Lincoln Square, Manhattan)
Friday, April 12–Sunday, April 14: Dawn of the Dead (1978)
Screening of 1978 zombie horror film directed by George A. Romero; start times range from 6 pm–9:30 pm
$21
Alamo Drafthouse
Various dates and times at all three locations in Downtown Brooklyn (445 Albee Square W), Staten Island (2636 Hylan Blvd), and Lower Manhattan (28 Liberty St)
Saturday, April 13: A Divine Hope: Dante’s Journey from Inferno to Paradise
British vocal ensemble Stile Antico sings prayers and texts from the Dante Alighieri’s epic poem La Comedia (Divine Comedy); 8 pm
$26–$50
Church of St. Mary the Virgin
145 W 46th St (Times Square, Manhattan)
Sunday, April 30: 9/11 Memorial & Museum 5K
Annual 5-kilometer run/walk along a path inspired by the one first responders took on 9/11; 8 am
$55–$85 (free for students)
9/11 Memorial and Museum
180 Greenwich St (Financial District, Manhattan)
Events: Cast and Crew
The Broadway show may be over, but its participants need not stop expressing themselves. My admiration for the show comes primarily from the text—the book by David Lindsay-Abaire and the score by Jeanine Tesori. But my joy of experiencing the show comes from the performers on stage and the many, many crew members behind the scenes, all making sure that the show goes on.
Wednesday, April 3–Saturday, April 13: The Writing on the Stall
Off-Broadway one-woman play named after bathroom stall graffiti; directed by Kimberly Akimbo cast member A.J. Holmes; 9 pm
$47
SoHo Playhouse
15 Vandam St (SoHo, Manhattan)
Tuesday, April 9: Zodiac Signs: Broadway Edition
Cabaret performance of songs that represent Broadway show characters and their Zodiac signs; includes Kimberly Akimbo cast member Michael Iskander; 9:30 pm (9 pm doors)
$29–$68+, plus $25 food and beverage minimum
54 Below
254 W 54th St Cellar (Hell’s Kitchen, Manhattan)
Thursday, April 18–Saturday, April 20: Big Fish
University performance of 2013 Broadway musical based on the novel by Daniel Wallace and film directed by Tim Burton; includes Kimberly Akimbo cast member Sabrina Shah
$7–$17 (cost is estimated based on comparable shows; tickets on sale Apr 2)
BMCC Tribeca Performing Arts Center
199 Chambers St (Tribeca, Manhattan)
All month long: Water for Elephants
Broadway musical based on the critically acclaimed bestselling novel; directed by Kimberly Akimbo director Jessica Stone; start times between 2 & 8 pm; opens Mar 21
$59–$299
Imperial Theatre
249 W 45th St (Times Square, Manhattan)
Events: Disability
One major theme of the show is how Kimberly and her family and peers confront her disability. While I hesitate to call the show one about disability, it is a pervasive theme, and I can see why people living with disability might see themselves in this story.
Tuesday, April 2: EPIC Miscast! Spring Cabaret
Cabaret put on by neurodiverse theater company EPIC Players where showtunes are performed with a genre-bending twist; 6 & 8 pm (doors open 30 minutes prior)
$43–$73, plus 2 drink or 1 food item minimum
The Public Theater
425 Lafayette St (Astor Place, Manhattan)
Wednesday, April 3–Thursday, April 4: A Different Man
2023 film about an aspiring actor with severe facial disfigurement; start times between 7 & 8:30 pm
$18 general / $15 students/seniors
Venue depends on day
Apr 3: MoMA, 11 W 53rd St (Midtown, Manhattan); Apr 4: Lincoln Center, 165 W 65th St (Lincoln Square, Manhattan)
Tuesday, April 9: Correction of Muscle and Heart Disease by Gene Editing
Lecture on the correction of genetic disorders of muscle (speaker is Dr. Eric N. Olson); 5–8 pm
Free
The Great Hall of Shepard Hall, The City College of New York
160 Convent Ave (Hamilton Heights, Manhattan)
Starting Friday, April 12: Francesc Tosquelles: Avant-Garde Psychiatry and the Birth of Art Brut
Exhibition on Catalan psychiatrist Francesc Tosquelles and artists who were among his patients or in an “institutional psychotherapy” community; 11:30 am–6 pm
Free
American Folk Art Museum
2 Lincoln Square (Lincoln Square, Manhattan)
Events: New Jersey
The show is set in New Jersey, at times a crucial part of the plot. While I restrict the Blankman List to events within the five boroughs of New York City, there are still plenty of ways to honor and experience our next-door neighbor.
Wednesday, April 3: New York Rangers vs. New Jersey Devils
Regular season NHL [National Hockey League] game; 7 pm (6 pm doors)
$160–$642+
Madison Square Garden
4 Pennsylvania Plaza (Midtown South, Manhattan)
Multiple dates between Wednesday, April 3 and Wednesday, April 24: Janeane Garofalo and others
Stand-up comedy hosted by New Jersey-born comedian Janeane Garofalo; 7:30 or 8 pm, depending on day
$28–$65
Eastville Comedy Club
487 Atlantic Ave (Prospect Heights, Brooklyn)
Friday, April 12: Alex Julia / Still Please / Sacred Monsters + more
Indie rock concert with all female- and nonbinary-led bands, produced by New Jersey-based singer Alex Julia; 6 pm
$11
Pianos: Showroom
158 Ludlow St (Lower East Side, Manhattan)
Monday, April 15: Guitar Master Series: Pete McCann
Jazz quintet performance led by New Jersey-based guitarist Pete McCann; sets at 7 & 8:30 pm
$30 (advance) / $35 (at door)
Zinc Bar
82 W 3rd St (NoHo, Manhattan)