The Smart Set is a weekly feature, compiled and posted by Lauren Cerand, that usually appears Mondays at 12:30 pm, and highlights the best of the week to come. Special favor is given to New York’s independent booksellers and venues, and low-cost and free events. Please send details to Ms. Cerand at lauren [at] maudnewton.com by the Thursday prior to publication. Due to the volume of submissions, events cannot be considered unless the date appears in the subject line of your message.
MON FEB 9: “Dance New Amsterdam (DNA) is pleased to present a collaborative arts event, Isadora Goes Downtown: the woman. the inspiration. the legacy. On Monday, February 9 DNA invites art lovers to embrace Isadora at a dynamic threefold event that will include: the official opening of a mixed-media visual art exhibit linking Isadora Duncan to Lori Belilove, exploring the women, the inspiration, and the rich historical legacy of Isadora Duncan dance; a slide show of works by Sabrina Jones, author/illustrator of Isadora Duncan: A Graphic Biography; and a live performance by Lori Belilove joined by young Duncan dancers the Beliloveables.” 7PM, FREE. And, “With plenty of friends, but little money, Susy Branch and her friend Nick Lansing devise a clever scheme to live beyond their means. They’ll marry and live off the wedding presents, while they help one another trade up to suitable millionaires. The plan works perfectly — until they fall in love.” Glimpses of the Moon is a Jazz Age musical based on the novel by Edith Wharton, now playing at the Oak Room of the Algonquin Hotel. Noted, “FREE TICKET (Buy 3 tickets and your 4th is free!), Use code: FREEMOON; FREE MARTINI MONDAYS. (Enjoy free Absolut cocktails before the show!)”
TUE FEB 10: “Housing Works presents a reading and musical performance with the historian Philip Dray (Capitol Men: The Epic Story of Reconstruction Through the Lives of the First Black Congressmen) and the musician Mary Kate O’Neil. Singer-songwriter With her work previously hailed by critics as ‘deeply authentic and original’ (Rolling Stone) and ‘pure magic’ (Filter), Underground reaffirms O’Neil’s talent for heartfelt, bittersweet songwriting.” 7PM, “Admission is free, donated books are welcome and encouraged.”
WED FEB 11: The Beatrice series (I would propose, as Lord Byron suggested, “The reader is requested to adopt the Italian pronunciation of Beatrice, sounding all the syllables.â€) presents novelists Karan Mahajan (Family Planning) and Diana Spechler (Who By Fire) at the Mercantile Library Center for Fiction. 7PM, FREE.
THU FEB 12 & FRI FEB 13: At The Kitchen, “Kalup Linzy is known for his absurdly humorous drag-performance-based videos in which he repurposes the narrative style of daytime television soaps in order to explore complicated relationships between race, class, gender, sexuality, and popular culture. For these evenings, he debuts a new, solo theatrical work exploring related themes, in which he plays piano, sings, and is accompanied by video projections that feature his ever-expanding cast of riotous characters.” Highly recommended. 8PM, $10 tickets.
SAT FEB 14: Freebird says, “To celebrate the one year anniversary of our post-apocalpytic book club, we will be showing some short films that will tug at any romantic heart: animated instuctions on how to survive a fallout, a Mississippi PSA about Armaggedon-proof bookmobiles, and a rare Richard Lester comedy about post-Nuclear Britain.” 7:30PM, FREE.
SUN FEB 15: As part of KGB Sunday Night Fiction, Jonathan Baumbach reads from YOU or The Invention of Memory, which you have about a week left to request a copy of for free via The New You Project [Full disclosure, as always: I am Jonathan’s publicist]. 7PM, FREE.