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Free events for Friday, 05/31/13
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Free Events, Free Things to Do in New York City!  Read More

Are you looking for free things to do in New York City (NYC) on May 31, 2013?

43 free events take place on Friday, May 31 in New York City. Don't miss the opportunities that only New York provides! Exciting, high quality, unique and off the beaten path free events and free things to do take place in New York today, tonight, tomorrow and each day of the year, any time of the day: whether it's a weekday or a weekend, day or night, morning or evening or afternoon, December or July, April or November! These events will take your breath away!

New York City (NYC) never ceases to amaze you with quantity and quality of its free culture and free entertainment. Check out May 31 and see for yourself. Summer or Winter, Spring or Fall! Just click on any day of the calendar above and you'll find most inspiring and entertaining free events to go to and free things to do on each day of May . Don't miss the opportunities that only New York provides!

Some events take place all year long: same day of the week, same time there are there for you to take advantage of. One of the oldest free weekly events in Manhattan is Dixieland Jazz with the Gotham Jazzmen, which happen at noon every Tuesday. Another example of an event that you can attend all year round on weekdays is Federal Reserve Bank Tour, which takes place every week day at 1 pm (but advanced reservations are required). You can take at least 13 free tours every day of the year, except the New Year Day, July 4th, and the Christmas Day. If you are classical music afficionado, you can spend whole day in New York going from one free classical concert to another. If you love theater, then New York gives you an option to attend plays and musicals free of charge, or at deep discount. You just need to have information about it. And we are here to make that information available to you.
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The quality and quantity of
free events,
free things to do
that happen in New York City
every day of the year
is truly amazing.

So don't miss the opportunities
that only New York provides:
stop wondering what to do;
start taking advantage of
free events to go to,
free things to do in NYC
today!

43 free things to do in New York City (NYC) on Friday, May 31, 2013

All events are free unless otherwise noted.
        

Concert | Lonestar, Country Group


Lonestar burst into the American consciousness with their number one hit from 2000, "Amazed," though they had been consistent scorers on the country charts since the 90s with songs like "No News" and "Come Cryin' to Me."
   New York City, NY; NYC
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7:00 am
Free

Concert | Return of the Boy Bands: New Kids on the Block / 98 Degrees / Boyz II Men


All three of these formerly hot vocal acts are attempting a comeback: NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK ("The Right Stuff") have a new CD called 10. 98 DEGREES ("The Hardest Thing") are promoting 2.0. BOYZ II MEN ("End of the Road") perform from their latest effort Twenty. Attendees are advised to arrive early.
   New York City, NY; NYC
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7:00 am
Free

Workshop | Tai Chi in the Park


Increase physical balance, strength, and mental focus. Learn the ancient Chinese martial art with expert Alex Hing. No experience is necessary. Hing also teaches Tai Chi at the China Institute and Sacred Sounds Yoga. He has practiced martial arts for over 30 years in San Francisco and New York City, including 10 years with Tai Chi grand master William C. C. Chen.
   New York City, NY; NYC
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8:30 am
Free

City Walk | All-in-One Downtown Tour


This tour utilizes your feet and the New York City Subway* to transport you from Lower Manhattan, the birthplace of New York, through Wall St and the Financial District, Greenwich Village, SoHo, Chinatown and Midtown Manhattan. There will be ample opportunities for memorable pictures. You'll get the chance to savor NY's best pizza and cannoli and other treats, learn how to play NY handball, maybe bargain with a shopkeeper in Chinatown, observe a game of street chess in Greenwich Village, people watch and window shop in SoHo, and kick back on the Highline Park. Along the way, you'll master the subway and learn about New York's Finest!
   New York City, NY; NYC
10:00 am
Free

Workshop | Catch & Release Fishing


Grab a pole and relax on the Harlem Meer while you wait for a bite from one of the many species of fish that live in its diverse aquatic ecosystem! Poles available to borrow; must release fish after catching them. Free for families and individuals; groups larger than 5 must reserve at least 2 weeks in advance. Adult with photo I.D. must accompany all children.
   New York City, NY; NYC
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10:00 am
Free

Tour | Lower Manhattan Tour


It is here, as much as anywhere, where American history started. It's where the first US Congress assembled and produced the Bill of Rights and where President George Washington took his first oath of office. It's here where the world's most important stock exchange and one of the most famous bridges stand. And it is here where an unspeakable tragedy took place and where a rebirth is underway.
   New York City, NY; NYC
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10:00 am
Free

Tour | Cathedral Tour


Explore the Cathedral's newly cleaned and restored Nave. Learn about the art, architecture and history of this great sacred space from 1892 to the present. Tour times: 11am & 1pm.
   New York City, NY; NYC
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11:00 am
$6

Workshop | Park Pétanque


Learn to play pétanque, the popular European game anchored in precision, patience, and camaraderie from members of La Boule New Yorkaise, NYC’s championship-winning club.
   New York City, NY; NYC
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11:00 am
Free

Tour | Federal Reserve Bank Tour


Learn about central banking functions that Federal Reserve System performs and see Bank's vault of international monetary gold on bedrock of Manhattan Island, five stories below street level. Learn why Federal Reserve has "Federal" in its name, while it's a private bank, not Federal at all. Congressman Ron Paul considers the Federal Reserve "both corrupt and unconstitutional" Tour times: 11:15 a.m., 12:00 p.m., 12:45 p.m., 1:30 p.m., 2:15 p.m., and 3:00 p.m.
   New York City, NY; NYC
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11:15 am
Free

Dance Performance | Christopher Williams, Douglas Dunn & Jordan Isadore, Dancers and Choreographers


Join Christopher Williams, Douglas Dunn and Jordan Isadore, dancers and choreographers, for a taste of their current research in the studio. Are there detectable traces of pedigree at play? Do they, as artists, prefer the point of perigee or apogee in relation to their predecessors? VIEWER DISCRETION ADVISED: PARTIAL NUDITY.
   New York City, NY; NYC
12:00 pm
Pay-what-you-can admission policy

Workshop | Learn Juggling in the Park


Test your coordination and dexterity with free juggling lessons in the park. All skill levels are welcome to join in the fun. Equipment is provided. Lessons are weather permitting. You'll be surprised that Alex and Jordan can often be found outside tossing pins in the snow!
   New York City, NY; NYC
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12:00 pm
Free

Concert | Lunchtime Listen: Angela Sheik


Lunchtime sounds even better now. Enjoy the ambient acoustics every last Friday of the month. Bring a bag of yummies and drink in the reverberations. Today, the soulful vocals, creative looping, autoharp, and percussion of Angela Sheik.
   New York City, NY; NYC
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12:00 pm
Free

Workshop | Yoga at the Library


Free Yoga Classes at the Library bought to you by Shape up NYC. Expert Instructors. Please bring your own mats.
   New York City, NY; NYC
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12:00 pm
Free

Tour | Grand Central and Its Neighborhood


Discover architecture and social history of Grand Central neighborhood; learn secrets of Whispering Gallery in Grand Central Terminal; gaze upon hubcaps and roadsters on side of Chrysler Building; discover favorite Midtown Manhattan hangout of Mercury, Hercules, and Minerva; learn why Pershing Square isn’t really square; visit original Lincoln Memorial by Daniel Chester French. Award-winning tour led by urban explorer, historian, and storyteller Justin Ferate.
   New York City, NY; NYC
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12:30 pm
Free

Jazz | Larry Ham, Jazz Pianist


Jazz pianist and composer Larry Ham tours and records with many of today's top jazz artists, and has performed throughout the United States, Europe, and in Japan, Russia, and West Africa.
   New York City, NY; NYC
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12:30 pm
Free

Park Walk | “Views from the Past” Tour


As you promenade through the heart of the Park, imagine yourself living in 19th Century New York City. Learn about the Park's history and how its designers, Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux, struggled to create the magnificent "Greensward" for the enjoyment of all. Tour lasts approximately one hour.
   New York City, NY; NYC
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12:30 pm
Free

Workshop | Learn Fencing in the Park


Take a stab at the modern sport of fencing with masters from Manhattan Fencing Center. No prior experience needed and equipment is provided.
   New York City, NY; NYC
1:00 pm
Free

City Walk | Greenwich Village Tour


Greenwich Village is among Manhattan's most desirable and expensive residential neighborhoods. It's history, however, betrays it's monied status. The Village, with it's quiet, shaded streets, lined with lovely brick and brownstone townhouses, was once the incubating ground of artistic, social and political movements that have helped shape US history. From the Beats to the Folk Movement, from workers rights to gay rights, the Village has often been the center of it all.
   New York City, NY; NYC
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2:00 pm
Free

City Walk | Harlem Tour


Although world famous, Harlem may be New York's best kept secret with some of the city's best architecture, food, music and people. Harlem's history is also one of the city's most dramatic, having gone through many ethnic, cultural and socioeconomic changes over the past roughly 400 years, which have resulted in a diverse array of places of worship, theaters, homes and eating establishments.
   New York City, NY; NYC
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2:00 pm
Free

Film | Jane Campion's Oscar Nominee Bright Star (2009): Poet's Romance


With Abbie Cornish, Paul Schneider, Ben Whishaw. Nineteenth century poet John Keats and the girl next door, Fanny Brawne, started out as unlikely lovers who were totally at odds with each other. However, when Brawne offers to help Keats nurse his seriously ill brother, the two soon became involved in an unstoppable romance that only his untimely death at age 25 could bring to a shattering end. 119 Minutes.
   New York City, NY; NYC
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2:00 pm
Free

Theater | Shakespeare's Pericles, a College Production


The New Ensemble Workshop presents thirteen actors of the class of 2013 in the cast of Othello, directed by Kai-Hsiang Tu.
   New York City, NY; NYC
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3:00 pm
Free

Concert | Irish Music with Cady Finlayson and Vita Tanga


Cady Finlayson offers a spirited fiddle show with a global twist, blending traditional Irish tunes with world rhythms and American folk music. She has performed in 33 states at venues including Carnegie Hall, Cleveland's State Theatre, Town Hall, and the Great Irish Fair. Her latest CD, ""Irish Coffee"" received a nomination for ""Best Celtic CD of 2007"" by the NAR lifestyle Awards. Cady performs both with her full band and as a duo with French guitarist Vita Tanga. Vita Tanga, guitar, has performed and recorded on 4 continents, from Radio City Music Hall in New York to Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris - his hometown. Vita is a sought-after composer in the World/Urban music and film-scoring scene, as well as music producer and founder of band liquids." Presented by 706 Music
   New York City, NY; NYC
3:30 pm
Free

Opening Reception | Story: Visualized, a Faculty Show


An exhibition of works by a dozen professional visual storytellers from the faculty of the new MFA Visual Narrative Department.
   New York City, NY; NYC
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4:30 pm
Free

City Walk | The High Line Sunset Tour


The area around the High Line Park was a vital business district of New York City, supplying fresh fruits, French Cheeses and Russian caviar as well as fresh meats to City markets. The hustle and bustle of the streets induced the City to elevate the railroad trains delivering goods to the commercial buildings. When interstate truck traffic made the railway outdated, it fell into ruin, only to be regenerated as a park. Reservations Required RESERVE NOW
   New York City, NY; NYC
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5:00 pm
Free

Park Walk | Central Park Sunset Tour


Join Free Tours by Foot as they stroll through the park and tell the epic story of New York's green oasis. Once described as the lungs of the city, Central Park brings a breath of fresh air to New York's crowded urban terrain. What started out as the rocky and desolate northern fringes of a rapidly expanding city is today amongst the world's most famous and beloved public parks. Originally intended to bring people of all walks of life together -- a people's park -- Central Park lives up to it's original designs. With over 843 acres of meadows, hills, ball fields and bodies of water, it's impossible not to find something to enjoy in Central Park.
   New York City, NY; NYC
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5:30 pm
Free

Film | Documentary: Jordan Stone's Irwin & Fran (2012)


A documentary about the Professor Irwin Corey and his wife Fran of over 70 years who live in New York City. Irwin is a famous comedian, political satirist and entertainer who's been in show business since 1938. He has also appeared on Broadway, in Hollywood films and television since the 1940's. 90 min. Q&A to follow screening. Also showing: Sub (NY Premiere) Jossie Malis Alvarez, 15 min, Spain - An African immigrant with communication problems faces the bureaucratic difficulties of a strange society in original version in this fiction verite film.
   New York City, NY; NYC
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6:00 pm
$10 suggested admission

Opening Reception | The 10th Anniversary Uptown Arts Stroll, with Tony Winner Lin-Manuel Miranda


In honor the Stroll's original founders: The Manhattan Times, an award-winning bilingual community newspaper serving Washington Heights and Inwood; Community Board 12, an independent City Agency, committed to improving City services in its Northern Manhattan district; Mike Fitelson, an award-winning photographer, former editor of the Manhattan Times and current Executive Director of United Palace for Cultural Arts and for her artistic excellence: Quiara Alegría Hudes, a Pulitzer Prize winner, best known for writing the Tony Award-winning musical In The Heights and Water by the Spoonful. Celebrate the honorees, pick up your Stroll Guidebook, and see preview performances of upcoming Stroll events.
   New York City, NY; NYC
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6:00 pm
Free

Book Discussion | Book Group: The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes


The Friday Night Book Group meets in the Cafe to discuss this month's selection.
   New York City, NY; NYC
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7:00 pm
Free

Performance | Comedy Rush: Standup


Featuring standup comedians who have been on Comedy Central, NBC, MTV and YOUTUBE. Comedians of all types! Black, white, lady, gay, asian, even Canadian.
   New York City, NY; NYC
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7:00 pm
No cover

Author Reading | Jeremy Scahill reads from his book Dirty Wars: The World Is a Battlefield


In Scahill's newest book, he takes us inside America's new covert wars. The foot soldiers in these battles operate globally and inside the United States with orders from the White House to do whatever is necessary to hunt down, capture, or kill individuals designated by the president as enemies.
   New York City, NY; NYC
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7:00 pm
Free

Author Reading | Karen Green reads from her book Bough Down


Karen Green has created a profoundly beautiful and intensely moving lament. In this unusual narrative constructed of crystalline fragments of prose interspersed with miniature collages, Green conjures the urgency and inscrutability of a world shaped by love and loss.
   New York City, NY; NYC
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7:00 pm
Free

Film | Michael Powell & Emeric Pressburger's I Know Where I’m Going! (1945): British Love Story


Stars Wendy Hiller, Roger Livesey, Pamela Brown. A wartime romance between a fiery young woman and a naval officer on shore leave. 88 min.
   New York City, NY; NYC
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7:00 pm
Free

Other | Open Studios Weekend


Visit with visual artists and writers who have been working in this repurposed office space since October.
   New York City, NY; NYC
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7:00 pm
Free

Theater | Outdoor Theater: Anton Chekhov's The Seagull


New York Classical Theatre presents the romantic and artistic conflicts between four characters: the famous middlebrow story writer Boris Trigorin, the ingenue Nina, the fading actress Irina Arkadina, and her son the symbolist playwright Konstantin Tréplev.
   New York City, NY; NYC
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7:00 pm
Free

Other | Sunset Singing Circle


Raise your voice and join singer/guitarist Terre Roche as the sun sets over the River for enchanted evenings of folk songs, rounds and chants. Novice and experienced singers of all ages are welcome. Bring a favorite song.
   New York City, NY; NYC
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7:00 pm
Free

Discussion | The Lonely Island discuss their CD The Wack Album


The Lonely Island—three nerds who met in junior high school—are stopping by to talk about the inspiration behind Wack Wednesdays, a series of new music they began releasing every Wednesday in May, leading up to the June 11 debut of "The Wack Album." Catch Andy Samberg, Jorma Taccone, and Akiva Schaffer for a conversation about the new album that features an impressive list of collaborators, from Adam Levine and Justin Timberlake to Solange and Lady Gaga.
   New York City, NY; NYC
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7:00 pm
Free

Concert | Ensemble Linea performs new music from France


Program: Tristan Murail: treize couleurs du soleil couchant (1978) Flute, clarinet, piano, violin, cello Bruno Mantovani: d'un rêve parti (2000) Flute, clarinet, piano, violin, viola, cello Georges Aperghis: Rasch World premiere. For bass clarinet and viola Philippe Hurel: Pour Luigi (1994) Flute, clarinet, piano, violin, cello Raphaël Cendo: Rokh I (2010) - US premiere. For flute, violin, cello, piano Featuring composer Raphaël Cendo. At 7:00 PM, there will be a pre-concert talk with Mr. Cendo and Jean Philippe Wurtz, Artistic Director of Ensemble Linea. Ensemble Linea: Maiko Matsuoka, violin; Jessica Rona, viola; Johannes Burghoff, cello; Anna d'Errico, piano; Keiko Murakami, flute; Andrea Nagy, clarinet; Jean-Philippe Wurtz, conductor
   New York City, NY; NYC
8:00 pm
Free

Theater | Shakespeare's King John, a College Production


The New Ensemble Workshop presents thirteen actors of the class of 2013 in the cast of KING JOHN, directed by Mark Sitko.
   New York City, NY; NYC
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8:00 pm
Free

Screening | The 2nd Annual People's Film Festival


SHORTS BLOCK: Chivalry Is Dead (NY Premiere) Khristi Adams, 2013, 26 min, USA - A documentary that explores perceptions of the evolving and debatable expression of 'chivalry.' It explores various interpretations of chivalry and seek to redefine "chivalry" for a post millennial society. True Artist (US Premiere) Jonghee Kim, 2013, 10 min, USA - A young college student that is majoring in film has no confidence. One day he realizes his true identity as an artist after hearing his classmate's harsh criticisms in this fiction film. Broken (World Premiere) Maggie Farley, 2013, 11 min, USA - One night in a bar, a dark truth is revealed, and three peoples' lives are changed in this fiction film.
   New York City, NY; NYC
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8:00 pm
$10 suggested admission

Theater | Shakespeare Under the Stars: The Comedy of Errors, with Jesse Tyler Ferguson


This new production concerns two sets of identical twins who were separated as children and now live as master-servant pairs in rival neighboring cities. When one pair crosses the border to find the other, so begins an exquisitely enjoyable mess of mistaken identity, wrongful imprisonment, questionable flirting and general mayhem. Directed by Daniel Sullivan.
   New York City, NY; NYC
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8:30 pm
Free

Film | Documentary: Joshua Dylan Mellars' Heavens Mirror: A Portuguese Voyage (2011)


This documentary is director Joshua Dylan Mellars' love song to Fado music. It goes deep into the spell of this hauntingly beautiful Portuguese folk music and its salient emotion--longing or "saudade." Fado, Portuguese for fate, is a two-centuries-old music whose influences were carried by sailors to Lisbon from Africa, Brazil and the Arab world. 70 min.
   New York City, NY; NYC
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8:45 pm
$10 suggested admission

Jazz | Buyu Ambroise & The Blues in Red Band, Jazz Saxophone Band


Haitian-born jazz saxophonist Buyu Ambroise imports the infectious rhythms of his home country’s traditional konpa music into improvisation-heavy American-style jazz à la John Coltrane and Wayne Shorter. The result is an exhilarating blend of complex Haitian polyrhythms, experimental jazz harmonies, groove-inducing bass lines, and earworm brass solos.
   New York City, NY; NYC
9:00 pm
No cover, no...

Film | Documentary: Patrice Johnson's Hill and Gully (2008)


An urban Cinderella narrative feature set during 2008, the election year of Barack Obama. It centers around the lives of three generations of African-American females of the same household-an unhappy single mother who works as a waitress at the Hill and Gully Caribbean Restaurant; her agoraphobic mother, and her angry ten-year-old daughter, who become transformed through the efforts of a psychiatrist who challenges them to speak their deepest wishes. 113 min.
   New York City, NY; NYC
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10:00 pm
$10 suggested admission
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Musical | A Heart-Warming Musical

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Classical Music | Piano Works by Robert Schumann

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Concert | Rock Concert at NYC's Renowned Jazz Club

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