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Inside New York City Contents
Art
Museums & Exhibits
Theatre
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Horses
Through January 4, 2009
Open daily 10:00am-5:45pm
The American Museum of Natural History
Central Park West @ 81st
212-769-5100
www.amnh.org
Throughout history horses have played an important role in daily life, serving as early means of transportation and contributing greatly in military, sports and leisure activities. Today, in the 21st century, despite our focus on man-made technology, horses continue to be a part of our lives from rural farms to urban cities.
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The Horse, an exhibit at The American Museum of Natural History, explores the significant role of this majestic creature throughout history, its evolution and domestication. The exhibit is curated by the American Museum of Natural History in conjunction with the Canadian Museum of Civilization, Chicago's Feld Museum and the San Diego Natural History Museum. For the duration of the exhibit, seven life size fiber glass horses each painted by a different artist have been placed along the museum's expansive perimeter as a whimsical introduction.
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Drawn By New York
September 19 to January 7
New York Historical Society
170 Central Park West @ 77th
212-873-3400
www.nyhistory.org
Although not as well known as MoMA, The Guggenheim, the "Met" and other museums of New York City, the New York Historical Society is an invaluable treasure trove of paintings, objects and historical documents that tell the story of art and life in New York City from the earliest settlers through the present. Most of its holdings, numbering 60,000, are held either in storage or on display at the Henry Luce III Center for the Study of American Culture. Throughout the year items are drawn from this collection to mount exhibits that highlight a specific person, period or event that played a prominent role in New York City's history.
Drawn By New York: Six Centuries of Drawings and Watercolor, currently on display, gathers 190 watercolors and drawings from the society's 8,000 works. Ranging from maps and drawings prepared by Dutch settlers to Hudson River artists, such as Thomas Cole, and from the bird drawings of renowned illustrator James Audubon, to works by John Singer Sargent and Louis Comfort Tiffany. In August of 2009 the exhibit will travel to Vassar College and later, in November, to the Taft Museum in Cincinnati.
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Drawing Babar: Early Drafts and Watercolors
September 19 - January 4
Tues - Thurs 10:30am - 5:00pm
Sat & Sun 11:00am - 6:00pm
The Morgan Library & Museum
225 Madison Avenue @ 36th
212-685-0008
www.themorgan.org
Starships and aliens may fill the pages and screens of children's books and movies in recent years, but few children's characters have proven so endearing from generation to generation as Babar the little elephant. This exhibit is a rare opportunity to see the early drawings and studies, plus finished watercolors by Jean de Brunhoff and his son Laurent de Brunhoff. The complete watercolor series of "Histoire de Babar" and "Babar et ce Coquir d'Author", acquired by The Morgan in 2004, are the focal point of the exhibit. In addition, the library holds copies of first editions of the earliest Babar books.
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The Dead Sea Scrolls: Mysteries of the Ancient World
September 19 - January 4
Call before going as the museum will be closed on all Jewish Holidays
The Jewish Museum
Fifth Avenue @ 92nd Street
212-423-3200
www.thejewishmuseum.org
The discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls in 1947 is considered by many archeologists to be one of the greatest discoveries of the 20th Century. Their content sheds light on early Judaism and Christianity. In addition to the six scrolls, three of which have never been displayed anywhere, the exhibit incorporates other artifacts uncovered east of Jerusalem in the same area as the scrolls. Since the first discovery, hundreds of scrolls have been found in neighboring caves. Today, they are collectively called the Dead Sea Scrolls.
The scrolls reveal much about religion in the time of the Maccabean revolt and the reign of King Herod, a period in religious history during which many disputed the interpretations of the scriptures and what was to be proper religious practice. They also shed light on early Christianity.
Included in the exhibit are six Dead Sea Scrolls. Some of the scrolls contain a part of one of the earliest copies of the Hebrew Bible in existence, the Book of Jeremiah, dating back to to 225-175 BC. Three of the six scrolls have never been exhibited, while the three others have never before been seen in New York.
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A Tale of Two Cities
Open-ended run
Al Hirschfeld Theater
302 West 46th Street
212-239-6200
A true sign of classic literature is its ability to sustain the test of time. As proof that little remains more classic than the writings of Charles Dickens and the demands for liberty, equality and justice declared by the French revolution, Broadway has welcomed what it hopes will become its next long-running musical, A Tale of Two Cities. The full-scale musical, based on the famed historical novel, is produced by Barbra Russell and Ron Sharpe ('Les Miz' alumnae) and applies a libretto and music by first-timer Jill Santorielo. Set in Paris and London, the story follows the lives of two lovers whose relationships are compromised by the cast system and inhumanities against which the revolutionaries fought so fiercely.
Early reviews are mixed, but if you love Dickens and Broadway fanfare, you may want to give it a try and judge for yourself. Critics are saying that the casts' vocal abilities are outstanding, rendering what is perhaps one of the most vocally talented casts ever assembled for the Broadway stage.
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Billy Elliott
Open-ended run
Imperial Theater
249 West 45th Street
212-239-6200
Broadway welcomes the long-awaited hit musical from London, Billy Elliott. A cast of talented young dancers take the stage in this thought provoking story of a boy from a working-class family who defies his family's hopes for him to become a boxer. Instead he pursues his own deep desires to become a dancer. Ultimately we find ourselves uplifted by the triumph of doing what you love and loving what you do. Among the three dancers selected to play the role of Billy Elliot after a year-long talent search, is 13-year old and New York native Trent Kowalik. Trent, who excels in ballet, tap and Irish step dancing, began dancing at the age of three. The musical score was written by Sir Elton John, who has commented "the story of Billy Elliot is not unlike my own."
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All My Sons
October 16 through January 11
Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre
236 West 45th Street
212-239-6200
Set in post World War II America this story of one family's encounter with war, conflict and greed assembles a talented cast, which includes John Lithgow and Diane Weist, and introduces Katie Holmes to the Broadway stage. Focusing on society, social and patriotic consciousness and the American dream, the play's atypical look at the American dream and its negative consequences caused Miller to be called before the House Un-American Activities during the Red Scare of the mid-fifties.
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A Man For All Seasons
October 7 - December 7
American Airlines Theatre
227 West 47th Street
212-719-1300
There are three sure ways to predict success on Broadway - casting Frank Langella, selecting Doug Hughes to direct and asking Catherine Zuber to design costumes. In this season's limited engagement of Roundabout's A Man For All Seasons, all three have been achieved. Frank Langela portrays English Chancellor Sir Thomas More, a man of commitment whose conscience ultimately leads him to defy King Henry and bring about his own death by execution. The story is set in the tumultuous time of politics, power and religion in England that resulted in the separation of government and religion. A bold move by a monarch who changed the church forever.
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Frank Langella
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