Weekend Planner: April 27-29

Contributor: Meghan
Gearino

I know we say it all the time, but this weekend we mean it with
yell-it-from-our-walk-ups fervor. IT IS GREAT TO LIVE IN NEW YORK! Need evidence? The
list below—which sports an eclectic batch of family festivals celebrating
cherry blossoms, kindie music (that’s kid plus indie) and the Tribeca Film
Festival—should keep you busy. —

FRIDAY

Witness history as the space shuttle Enterprise swoops over NYC for the
very last time. Look for it tomorrow morning around the Statue of Liberty and
The Intrepid, where the craft will temporarily reside come summertime.

FRIDAY-SATURDAY

Help Princess Dodgeball stop a band of bullies from terrorizing her school when The New York
Children’s Theater Festival presents Scheme
of the Super Bullies, best for ages six and up.

FRIDAY-SUNDAY

A special 35-minute show just for your toddler—the New Victory Theater’s
interactive Plop! is based on Ursula
Dubosarsky’s popular picture book about two problem-solving rabbits.

Discovery Times Square opens their doors for Terracotta Warriors this weekend. Kids
of all ages can peruse life-size ancient artifacts and Chinese warriors at this
new exhibit.

SATURDAY-SUNDAY

Shining a spotlight on bullies in the midst of a student election, TADA! Youth
Theater’s new musical, Up To You, has
an important message for ages five and up (but is also a lot of fun!). Friday
sold out quickly, so be sure to get your tickets in advance. Plus, don’t miss the free anti-bullying forum on Sunday, May 6 moderated by Miss New York Kaitlin Monte – a great dialogue for parents and children to attend together.

With the cherry blossom
trees in full bloom, the Brooklyn Botanic Garden will host its
one-of-a-kind Sakura Matsuri Festival full of folk dancing, traditional Taiko
drumming, a tea ceremony and martial arts show.

CMOM’s Art of Chinese
Landscape Painting workshop lets ages five and up create a nature-inspired
watercolor wonder.

Celebrate Arbor Day in
Prospect Park with a two-day festival boasting tree-themed games and arts &
crafts.

At Chelsea Piers’ Golf
Fest and Open House, hole-in-one fams can test out the latest and greatest golf equipment,
learn from the pros and enjoy refreshments in the Kids’ Corner.

SATURDAY

Embrace healthy choices at the West Side Y’s Healthy Kids Day. You can attend adult and youth
CPR classes, play group sports, float in family swim lessons or learn a new
recipe during snack-making sessions.

Meet legendary baby
photographer Anne Geddes at Destination Maternity’s flagship store this Saturday. She’ll be
showcasing her newest project; a magazine entitled My Pregnancy: A Woman’s Story.

In honor of Jazz
Appreciation Month, the American Museum of Natural History will
host their New Orleans : Culture Remixed
Festival for families. Celebrate jazz music and Cajun culture through DIY
masks, Creole language lessons and plenty of music.

Looking to party in Brooklyn? The Fifth Avenue Family Festival, sponsored by
Puppetry Arts, promises puppet-making, face painting, rides, food and a moon
bounce. Rain or shine.

Save the animals (and their habitats) by
participating in the Wildlife Conservation Society’s Run for the Wild at the
Bronx Zoo. After the race, families should stick around for food, music and
complimentary zoo admission.

Harlem’s Thomas
Jefferson Park brings back an annual favorite: Street Games Day. Parents and kids can
double-dutch, yo-yo and hula hoop.

The 17th Annual Big Swim
Meet & Benefit at Asphalt Green is your child’s chance to compete in free, age-appropriate
swim meets among great company—Olympic swimmers! The evening benefit raises
money for Asphalt Green’s Waterproofing Program.

The final weekend of the
Tribeca Film Festival is upon us. Celebrate by zig-zagging through the Family Street Fair
(read: bubble garden!) or taking in the thrills and stunts of BMX riders at the
ESPN Sports Day.

SUNDAY

The Kindiefest Family Music Festival
at Littlefield in Park Slope is your family’s chance to catch a slew of your
favorite musical acts under one roof. Just a taste: Bari Koral Family Rock Band
and Big Bang Boom will perform.

Have a recess of a
weekend
with the popular musical trio Recess Monkey, who will be performing at 92YTribeca
from their newest circus-themed CD, In
Tents.

In the latest
installment of the Meet the Music series from The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln
Center, don’t miss Claude Debussy Meets
Sherlock Key. Ages six and up will love this mysterious performance set to
live music.

For even more events and
activities this weekend and beyond, check out our Family Calendar.

And if you haven’t
already, click here to
register for our free weekly newsletter which features our favorite events to
enjoy every weekend in the city and beyond.

Super Soccer Stars

Soccer Stars is New York&rsquo;s most popular youth educational soccer program! With 24 years of experience under our cleats, we have positively impacted over one million kids in our local community by putting the FUN in FUNdamentals in our weekly classes and camps. At Soccer Stars, we use the soccer ball as a vehicle to help children not only improve their soccer skills, but develop self-confidence and physical literacy, improve gross motor skills, build teamwork, and hone socialization skills. Our highly trained coaches and early childhood experts lead an age-specific curriculum with a low kid-to-coach ratio so every child gets individual attention and can grow at their own pace. Kids ages 1-12+ can join our seasonal programs, including Parent &amp; Me, FUNdamentals, Development Training, and Travel Soccer. Join us at one of over 80 locations in neighborhoods across across Westchester County, Connecticut and New York, available 7 days-a-week: Connecticut: <ul> <li>Cos Cob</li> <li>Greenwich</li> <li>Port Chester</li> </ul> &nbsp; Westchester: <ul> <li>Briarcliff</li> <li>Eastchester</li> <li>Mt. Kisco</li> <li>New Rochelle</li> <li>Ridgefield</li> <li>Scarsdale</li> <li>White Plains</li> </ul> &nbsp; New York City: <ul> <li>Bronx</li> <li>Inwood</li> <li>Upper West Side</li> <li>Upper East Side</li> </ul> &nbsp; Can&rsquo;t find a class or location that fits your schedule? Soccer Stars also offers private classes for small groups or individual training. Let our coaches come to you with a completely customizable program, anytime, anywhere. Birthday parties are also available!&nbsp;

Athletic Association of Yorkville Youths

Serving the families and children of NYC for over 50 years with high-quality recreational activities that foster life-lessons which empower young people to succeed beyond sports. Our programs encourage positive attitudes and growth through teamwork and sportsmanship, attendance, fair play, respect, hard work, integrity and fun. Your child can participate in clinics and leagues in such sports as baseball, basketball, flag-football, lacrosse, soccer, hockey, wrestling, track, and tennis. We also offer weekly dodgeball tournaments, drama and musical theater workshops, and after school programs.

New York Society of Play Summer Camp and Classes

Summer Game Camp There are many who do not feel safe sending their children back out into the world with summer camp, this year. To serve those parents and keep the children connected and stimulated during this challenging time, we are offering NYSP Digital Summer Camp. The name of the game with NYSP Summer Camp is community. We have made a large effort to make our camp feel like a living space, with features including &ndash; - Role-Playing games familiar and new, led by our master storytellers! - Enriching electives such as Chess, World Building, Character Acting, Crafts, Drawing, and more! - Discussion and media screening rooms during lunch! - A digital campus! - Moderated chat hours! &nbsp; Join us for a summer of games, friends, and more! Mon - Fri 10am - 2:30pm &nbsp; Roleplay Expeditions: Dungeons &amp; Dragons No experience is required to join one of our Dungeons &amp; Dragons games. Our game masters have pre-made character sheets, so you'll be able to start playing the game right away! We adapt the rules of traditional Dungeons &amp; Dragons to make them more approachable to children of various ages. Battle in dungeons, search for relics, and make new friends in our one-of-a-kind Dungeons &amp; Dragons workshop!&nbsp; &nbsp; Public games meet once per week, with different groups every time. Private games meet 1 to 2 times per week with the same group of kids. Since the players and the storyteller in the group are consistent, this enables us to tell epic tales of adventure together! &nbsp; Dungeons &amp; Dragons Junior No experience is required to join one of our drop-in Dungeons &amp; Dragons games. Our Dungeons &amp; Dragons Jr. game provides a D&amp;D storytelling experience without character sheets. Battle in dungeons, search for relics, and make new friends in our one-of-a-kind Dungeons &amp; Dragons workshop! A great way to introduce young children to D&amp;D so they can eventually move onto the main game.