Sip Bellinis at Bar Madonna, get artsy at Frieze and other NYC events this week
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Each week, Alexa is rounding up the buzziest fashion drops, hotel openings, restaurant debuts and celeb-studded cultural happenings in NYC.
It’s our curated guide to the very best things to see, shop, taste and experience around the city.
What’s making our luxury list this week?
The NY Art Book Fair throws a block party in Chelsea, while collectors clamor over preview tickets to the Frieze New York art fair and Eddie Redmayne dazzles in “Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club.”
MEOW MIX: ‘Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club’
Eddie Redmayne is latest in a illustrious line of actors to inhabit the role of the salacious Emcee in “Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club,” now playing at the August Wilson Theatre.
Billed as the hottest show of the season, the star-studded cast includes Gayle Rankin as the toast of Mayfair — Sally Bowles — and two-time Tony Award-winner Bebe Neuwirth as Fräulein Schneider.
The venue also plays a starring role.
The show’s creative team (led by Tony Award-nominee and Evening Standard Award-winner Tom Scutt) transformed the theatre into an in-the-round auditorium, complete with customized spaces that guests can meander and explore during the pre-show entertainment, with the option to enjoy a drink (or dine) in the process.
Food will be cleared before the performance begins, but the audience can continue imbibing throughout the just-under-three-hour long extravaganza. Tickets are going fast, but there’s also a lottery at LuckySeat. 245 W. 52nd St.; KitKat.Club
THE BIG CHILL: Frieze Art Fair blows into town
The 12th edition of the Frieze New York art fair kicks off next week, taking over The Shed at Hudson Yards from May 1 to 5 (tickets from $76 for adults).
More than half of the 60 participants (from over 25 countries) are New-York based; all are showing a cross-section of the most sought-after names in contemporary art today.
In addition to the expected heavy-hitters, the fair includes a section dedicated to young galleries showing solo presentations by emerging or under-appreciated artists.
Antsy for a first look?
A dedicated online viewing room is open now.
The fair will also offer off-site programming and special events across the city (and beyond), including the High Line, Rockefeller Center, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Whitney, the Brooklyn Museum, the Muse of Modern Art and Storm King Art Center. 545 W. 30th St.; Frieze.com
CIAO, BELLA: Bar Madonna debuts in Williamsburg
Alums from the Modern, Carbone and One Fifth are the creative minds behind Bar Madonna, a new Italian-American cocktail bar in Brooklyn.
While it has nothing to do with the Material Girl (Madonna is the surname of one of the managing partners), Bar Madonna does speak to the singer’s roots with “familiar yet novel takes on Italian American staples,” including four draft cocktails (the requisite Bellini is top of the list) oxtail croquettes, a smashed meatball parm and Calabrese wings.
Design aficionados take note: The minimal yet moody 1,000 square-foot space was designed by Catarina Guimarães’ of Studio Guia and features an original painting by KidSuper. 367 Metropolitan Ave.; BarMadonna
PAGE TURNER: NY Art Book Fair
More than 300 exhibitors from 31 countries are descendeding on West Chelsea this weekend for the annual NY Art Book Fair, billed as the “leading international event for the distribution of artists’ books.”
Beyond browsing, visitors to this year’s fair can indulge in an open-to-all block party, offering food, music and a “book signing that devolves into a live wrestling match” on Saturday (it’s on 22nd Street between 10th and 11th Avenues), along with performances on the fair’s rooftop and special exhibitions at the Printed Matter bookstore, just a few blocks away.
Admission to the fair is $5 on Friday and Saturday, and free on Sunday (between 11:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m.; advance registration required). 548 W. 22nd St.; PMABF
SILVER LININGS: Christofle’s La Collection Vintage
Christofle is making a selection of carefully sourced and restored archival pieces available to buy in the United States for the first time, both online and at its Bleecker Street shop.
Two years ago in Paris, the almost 200-year-old storied silver brand introduced La Collection Vintage — a selection of exceptional treasures tracked down by the company’s vintage team — representing all categories, from flatware and tabletop accessories to decorative objects.
After being restored, each is packaged in a Christofle box stamped with the Vintage coat of arms and a QR code for buyers to learn more about the history of the collection.
Up next: a still-in-development program where collectors can trade in their own vintage Christofle pieces to be assessed, restored and given new life. 396 Bleecker St.; Christofle
