Ah, spring. The days get longer, the weather starts to warm up and—in New York City, circa 2020—there are at least these 14 other reasons to get excited.
1. The spinning wheel has got to go ’round. Coney Island’s amusement parks open on April 4, which will mark an auspicious occasion: 100 years since the Wonder Wheel debuted. Over the past century, millions have sat in one of the Ferris wheel’s enclosed cages and surveyed the rides, boardwalk and ocean from up high. While you’re down in Coney, make sure to enjoy a couple of the Wonder Wheel’s cronies: the wooden Cyclone roller coaster (est. 1927) and hot-dog fave Nathan’s (est. 1916). —Andrew Rosenberg
2. Hudson Yards is getting an Edge. The City’s latest observation deck, Edge (opening March 11), will also be its highest open-air platform for taking in the vistas. Bird’s-eye views of Manhattan’s skyline may be nothing new, but looking down 1,000-plus feet through a glass floor certainly is. Yikes! —Brian Sloan
3. Our Instagram feeds will be well fed. Yayoi Kusama is coming. In May, the New York Botanical Garden will host Kusama: Cosmic Nature across its 250 acres, sprinkling neon colors, polka-dot sculptures and mirrored installations amidst its already eye-catching spring blooms. —Gillian Osswald
4. The music of the ’90s is having a moment. Two of the decade’s preeminent artists are playing big shows in NYC: Radiohead frontman Thom Yorke brings his solo electronic act to Radio City on March 30 and Hammerstein Ballroom on March 31 and April 1. Also on March 30, Pearl Jam rocks Madison Square Garden. How good will the show be? We have a feeling you’ll give it a 10. —Christina Parrella
5. We’ve got other decades covered, too. Fans of Carly Simon can anticipate a tribute to her that features Cyndi Lauper, the Indigo Girls, Michael McDonald and many more at Carnegie Hall on March 19. Other big shows include Billie Eilish at Barclays Center (March 20); Blood Orange at Radio City (March 21); Lisa Loeb at Le Poisson Rouge (March 22); Elton John at Madison Square Garden (April 6–7) and Barclays (April 10–11); The Darkness at Webster Hall (May 13); Fetty Wap at Gramercy Theatre (May 18); Madness at Hammerstein Ballroom (May 22); Kesha and Big Freedia at Pier 17 (May 28); and continued residencies from Billy Joel at MSG (March 19, April 10 and May 2) and They Might Be Giants, playing Flood, at Bowery Ballroom (April 11 and May 9). —nycgo.com staff
6. Plus, it’ll be a vintage season for wine and song. City Winery’s spacious new waterfront venue at Hudson River Park’s Pier 57 promises barrels of fun (and wine and music and views). Who can it be playing the first month? It’s singer-songwriter Colin Hay, the voice behind Men at Work (April 7–8). And nothing compares to the rest of the early lineup, which includes Sinéad O’Connor (April 13, 14 and 16) and Graham Parker (May 19 and 21). —AR
7. There will be bonnets to behold. New Yorkers never pass up an opportunity to dress up, and the Easter Parade and Bonnet Festival (April 12) is no exception. Judging by last year’s looks, we’ll see plenty of floral headpieces, spring-themed ensembles and pastel pageantry on the stroll up Fifth Avenue. —GO
8. Art is all around. If you’ve ever wondered about Jackson Pollock’s work before he adopted his drip-and-splatter technique, check out Away from the Easel: Jackson Pollock’s Mural at the Guggenheim Museum. The exhibition (opening March 28) displays a giant colorful mural Pollock painted for the entrance of Peggy Guggenheim’s Manhattan townhouse. It’s the piece’s first NYC appearance in more than 20 years. Over at The Met, the Costume Institute presents its spring exhibition, About Time: Fashion and Duration. The exhibition (opening May 7) traces the timeline of fashion from the 1870s to the present. —CP
9. A Watergate-era thriller will be a topic of conversation. 1974 was a landmark year for film, headlined by Chinatown and Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather Part II. But a less showy Coppola release of the time, The Conversation, may be more resonant than either thanks to its handling of queasy topics like surveillance, privacy and paranoia. Head to the Film Forum to catch a screening of a restored 35mm print (March 20–April 2). Gene Hackman and John Cazale star; pre-fame Cindy Williams, Harrison Ford and Teri Garr show up too. —AR
10. Broadway’s going to have Company. A new production of Stephen Sondheim’s ode to singlehood, which took London by storm, comes to New York. Its twist: the main role of bachelor Bobby becomes single lady Bobbie. Katrina Lenk (The Band’s Visit) takes the lead, with Patti LuPone (War Paint) serving up “The Ladies Who Lunch” as Joanne. —BS
11. We’ll see every side of comedy. Three funny festivals come to NYC, led by the return of the Brooklyn Comedy Festival (March 30–April 5). Its lineup befits the borough’s alt-comedy sensibilities; highlights include NPR’s Ask Me Another, hosted by Ophira Eisenberg, at the Bell House (April 1), and Jo Firestone hosting Friends of Single People at Littlefield (April 2). Chris Gethard spins his Beautiful/Anonymous podcast into Beautiful Cononymous (May 14–17), which opens with Gethard watching the movie Contact and then discussing it with a podcast caller who told him he should see it. The Satire and Humor Festival (March 27–29), at Caveat and The Magnet, focuses on those who elicit laughter through the written word, featuring favorites from The New Yorker and The Onion. Spring also brings Ali Wong’s run at the Beacon Theatre (March 29–April 4), Demetri Martin at the Bell House (April 7–8), Bill Bellamy at Carolines (April 9) and Jim Gaffigan at Radio City (April 9–11). —nycgo.com staff
12. A rebel and his bike are back. Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure returns to the big screen for a 35th anniversary celebration at the Beacon Theatre (March 25–26). Pee-Wee himself, Paul Reubens, will be on hand for a live presentation and Q&A if you want to ask him if there’s a basement in the Beacon. —BS
13. This could be the last season of baseball as we know it. Are we being a tiny bit dramatic? Probably. But the existing structure of the minor leagues is precarious, and this could be the last stand for the Staten Island Yankees. The Brooklyn Cyclones, the Mets’ New York–Penn League affiliates, may change leagues after this season. If some reports are to be believed, this may be your final chance to see pitchers bat in Mets games—the designated hitter could arrive in the National League as soon as 2021. There may be no major changes evident for the Yankees, save for adding Gerrit Cole to their rotation—but that acquisition could help end their 10-season championship drought (normal for most teams, but not the perennial contenders in the Bronx). —nycgo.com staff
14. There’s a new Strand location on the Upper West Side. It opens in March. And that’s not all the City has to offer bookworms.—nycgo.com staff