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Midtown West
Internationally renowned Carnegie Hall has incomparable acoustics that make it one of the world's best venues for music—classical as well as jazz, pop, cabaret, and folk. Since the opening-night concert on May 5, 1891, which Tchaikovsky conducted, virtually every important musician in the world has appeared in this Italian Renaissance–style building. The world's top orchestras perform in the grand and fabulously steep 2,804-seat Isaac Stern Auditorium; the 268-seat Weill Recital Hall often features young talents making their New York debuts; and the subterranean 599-seat Judy and Arthur Zankel Hall attracts big-name artists such as the Kronos Quartet and Milton Nascimento to its stylish modern space. A noted roster of family concerts is also part of Carnegie's programming.
The box office releases $10 rush tickets for some shows on the day of performance, or you can buy partial-view seating in advance at 50% off the full ticket price. Head to the second-floor Rose Museum (open by appointment) to learn more about the famous hall's history through its archival treasures.
881 7th Ave., New York, New York, 10019, USA
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Midtown West
In a magnificently restored space from 1900, The New Victory Theater presents an international roster of supremely kid-pleasing plays, music, dance, opera, puppetry, and circus performances. Through the organization's workshops and arts activities, children and their parents can also learn more about other parts of theater (writing, for instance) and kinds of performance, such as break dancing. Count on reasonable ticket prices, high-energy and high-class productions, and the opportunity for kids to chat with the artists after many performances.
209 W. 42nd St., New York, New York, 10036, USA
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Upper East Side
Rebranded as 92NY and formerly known as the 92nd Street Y, this Upper East Side cultural institution is undergoing a $200 million plan to redevelop its campus, expand its programming, and revamp and enhance performance spaces. Well-known soloists, jazz musicians, show-tune stylists, and chamber music groups perform in 92Y's freshly renovated 905-seat Kaufmann Concert Hall and in the new Arnhold Center, a dance and performance complex with an adjoining dance studio. But the programming is hardly limited to music and dance—its calendar brims with popular lectures and readings series featuring big-name film and TV stars, authors, poets, playwrights, political pundits, and media bigwigs (many events are livestreamed and archived online). The Harkness Dance Festival, film programs, arts and crafts workshops, and family-friendly events are also worth checking out.
1395 Lexington Ave., New York, New York, 10128, USA
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Part of the Brooklyn College campus, this community-based arts center offers a variety of performances at affordable prices—their roster of international dance companies is particularly impressive. Most Brooklyn Center events occur at the 2,400-plus-seat Walt Whitman Theatre, but the new Claire Tow Theatre is set to open as a more intimate performance space in early 2018.
2901 Campus Rd., Brooklyn, New York, 11210, USA
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Upper West Side
Designed by master architect Philip Johnson and considered one of the world's top theaters for dance, the David H. Koch Theater is the home of the formidable New York City Ballet ( www.nycballet.com), which has a roster of more than 90 dancers, a 62-piece orchestra, and an unmatched repertory of modern masterpieces, including landmark works by George Balanchine, Jerome Robbins, and Peter Martins. NYCB performs at the theater for 21 weeks each year, including fall, winter, and spring repertory seasons, with Thanksgiving through New Year’s devoted to the annual production of Balanchine's The Nutcracker. The theater also hosts other internationally famous dance troupes throughout the year, as well as White Light Festival performances.
20 Lincoln Center Plaza, New York, New York, 10023, USA
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Greenwich Village
Since 1997, Michael Chaut and three other magician producers have been running these weekly performances in and around Greenwich Village (they've been a permanent fixture at the Players Theatre since 2011). The acts, usually four per night, come from all over the world and often include performers you'd see in much bigger theaters and clubs on other nights. The mind reading and sleight of hand with birds, cards, balls, and handkerchiefs come at a fast pace. Although the acts are tailored to an adult audience, they're also suitable for younger viewers (aged 12 and older), particularly on special family nights.
115 MacDougal St., New York, New York, 10012, USA
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Midtown West
In 1997, Disney refurbished the elaborate 1903 art nouveau New Amsterdam Theatre, where Bob Hope, Jack Benny, Fred Astaire, and the Ziegfeld Follies once drew crowds. The Lion King ruled here for the first nine years of its run, followed by Mary Poppins. These days the theater is home to long-running Aladdin.
214 W. 42nd St., New York, New York, 10036, USA
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Belmont
The New York Botanical Garden’s Holiday Train Show is one of the city’s top seasonal attractions, especially for families. It runs from the mid-November through mid-January, and you’ll find electric trains, more than 150 miniature replicas of city landmarks (made out of twigs and bark), and magical landscapes—all housed in a conservatory, so winter weather can’t dampen your spirits.
2900 Southern Blvd., Bronx, New York, 10458, USA
Arts/Entertainment Details
Rate Includes: $23–$30
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Greenwich Village
This pristine, wood-lined theater on the NYU campus supports emerging artists, with interesting dance, music, and theater events, often in collaboration with international companies. Conferences and a speaker series featuring prominent cultural figures round out the calendar, which also includes many family-friendly events.
566 LaGuardia Pl., New York, New York, 10012, USA
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Park Slope
Marionettes have been used to enact classic children's fairy tales like Cinderella, The Jungle Book, Puss in Boots, and Little Red Riding Hood at this storefront theater since 1990. A friendly puppeteer preps the young audience on theater etiquette before each show. Afterward, theater education continues with a Q&A. Public performances are given on weekends only; call or email for reservations.
338 6th Ave., Brooklyn, New York, 11215, USA
Arts/Entertainment Details
Rate Includes: $11, Closed weekdays
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St. George
Built for vaudeville in 1928, this classic theater is still going strong nearly a century later, with a mix of classic movie screenings, stand-up comedy, educational theater performances for kids and teens, and music concerts catering to the Gen X and older crowd—or anyone who enjoys the likes of Air Supply, Dionne Warwick, Queen, or The Smithereens. Without a performance, the building's interior design still dazzles; the theater is a mix of Spanish and Italian baroque styles, with paintings and murals throughout, as well as tiled fountains.
35 Hyatt St., Staten Island, New York, 10301, USA
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Upper West Side
Although Symphony Space runs an energetic roster of classical, jazz, international, and other kinds of music, it also excels with other kinds of arts programming. On the literary front, its two halls—the Peter Jay Sharp Theatre and the Leonard Nimoy Thalia—host a celebrated roster of events including Bloomsday on Broadway, the Thalia Book Club, and the famed Selected Shorts series (stories read by prominent actors and produced as a podcast and radio show on National Public Radio). There's also a popular comedy series, Uptown Showdown, as well as Performance in HD screenings—from the National Theatre Live, Royal Shakespeare Company, and Royal Opera House—and Secret Science Club North science talks. Plays, films, and "Thalia Docs" (usually true-to-their-roots art-house screenings) round out the programming.
2537 Broadway, New York, New York, 10025, USA
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Chelsea
Vibrant original musicals for family audiences are performed by a cast of talented kids (ages 8–18). Most shows are on weekends, and children's tickets start at reasonable prices.
15 W. 28th St., New York, New York, 10001, USA
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TriBeCa
The center celebrates theater, including a clever children's series, as well as dance and concerts. But the TriBeCa PAC is primarily known for jazz. Lost Jazz Shrines and Highlights in Jazz are two of its special series, the latter marked its 50th anniversary in 2023.
199 Chambers St., New York, New York, 10007, USA
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Financial District
Brookfield Place, an upscale shopping-and-dining complex across the street from the World Trade Center, provides a showcase for an entirely free program of performing and visual arts, including occasional live music, as well as site-specific installations (with an emphasis on commissioned works), poetry readings, film screenings, and more. Events are presented within Brookfield Place's spectacular, 10-story, glass-covered Winter Garden atrium or on its outdoor plaza overlooking the Hudson (weather permitting). In winter, there's an outdoor ice-skating rink, too.
230 Vesey St., New York, New York, 10281, USA
