Weekend Planner: Best Weekend Events For Families (February 23-24)

The word of the day is magic! Join Elmo, Abby, Cookie Monster and more as your Sesame Street favorites discover the magical moments in everyday life. For all ages, children under 1 may attend without a ticket. $39 and up;  11am February 15, 10:30am, 2pm, 5:30pm; February 16, 17, 23, 24; 11am & 2:30pm; February 18; 11am; and February 21, 22. Hulu Theater, sesamestreetlive.com 

In that spirit and in conjunction with Museum Day, the Intrepid debuted an exciting new mixed-reality experience Defying Gravity: Women in Spacepowered by Microsoft. Located beneath the space shuttle Enterprise, the mixed reality experience, designed for Microsoft HoloLens and narrated by a holographic capture of engineer, physician, and former NASA astronaut, Dr. Mae Jemison, takes guests through women’s pivotal yet often unsung contributions to space exploration.Defying Gravity, created in collaboration with Microsoft and the Smithsonian, uses the space shuttle Enterpriseas an entry point to explore the U.S. space program and its journey to inclusion. The experience is open nowthrough September 21, 2019. intrepidmuseum.org

This exhibition—the first Warhol retrospective organized in the U.S. since 1989—reconsiders the work of one of the most inventive, influential, and important American artists. Building on a wealth of new materials, research and scholarship that has emerged since the artist’s untimely death in 1987, this exhibition reveals new complexities about the Warhol we think we know, and introduces a Warhol for the twenty-first century. Prices vary. Whitney Museum of American Art, whitney.org

Bring the kids to this futuristic rock musical set in the world 2211. There are no adults, technology, or running water in this world for Aurora and her friends. Meanwhile, a girl named Claire wonders if there’s anyone else out there on the planet. February 24: Fridays at 7pm, Saturdays and Sundays at 2pm and 4pm. $15 kids, $30 adults. TADA! Youth Theater, 15 W 28th St. 212-252-1619. tadatheater.com.

Stanley always has trouble falling asleep – even counting sheep doesn’t help! When he receives an invitation to visit the Kingdom of Pillowland, he sets off on an exciting adventure with his friends Finn, Quinn and you! From the company that brought you Please Bring Balloons comes a new interactive play for your youngest theatergoers based on the hit song by Laurie Berkner. $27, October 7, 2018- April 14, 2019. 20 Thomas Street
New York, NY 10017, nycchildrenstheater.org

This is one of the museum’s most popular annual seasonal exhibitions. Butterflies and moths make up a large group of insects known as the Order Lepidoptera (lep-i-DOP-ter-ah). The name—from the Greek lepido, “scale,” and ptera, “wings”—refers to a prominent feature of adult butterflies and moths, the tiny scales that cover the wings and the rest of the body. Free with admission, 8am-6pm, October 6, 2018-May 27, 2019. AMNH, amnh.org

The New York Philharmonic’s series of Very Young People’s Concerts will begin with “Allegro and Adagio,” which will explore tempo through selections from Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake, arranged for string quartet and harp. $15 starting, February 24-25. nyphil.org

A Way With Words: The Power And Art Of The Book

Children’s Museum of the Arts (CMA) is pleased to announce A Way With Words: The Power and Art of the Book, an exhibition that presents artworks which draw attention to the long and remarkable history of the book, on view from November 29, 2018 to April 29, 2019. The invention of the printing press in the 1440s launched the book into the industrial age, increasing the production and distribution of the written word, and with it, knowledge and literacy. Today, our libraries are filled with millions of books, and the digital age allows us to access literature instantly in the palm of our hand. Because the book has been produced around the globe, it has become a versatile and creative source of artistic inspiration.

Including works by Cara Barer, Doug Beube, Long-Bin Chen, Casey Curran, Brian Dettmer, Ann Hamilton, Andrew Hayes, Lisa Kokin, Guy Laramée, Mike Stilkey, and Robert The, A Way With Wordswill show the transformation of everyday books into expressions of identity, community, environmentalism, memory, and reconstructed narratives. Families will see unconventional treatments such as cutting, weaving, tearing, burning, and shredding, as artists transform books into sculptures, animation, drawings, and paintings that capture the book’s significant history and power to inform the public. Children and their families will also create their own artworks inspired by the exhibition. Free with museum admission, all day, February 19-June 9, 2019. Children’s Museum of the Arts, cmany.org 

On Essex Street and East Broadway in Seward Park, kids can check out this art installation that features photos of mom-and-pop shops, many of which have closed due to rising rents and gentrification. Free, July 1, 2018- July 31, 2019. Seward Park, untappedcities.com

Come dance, sing and hug at the all-new interactive DreamWorks Trolls The Experience coming to New York City this Fall 2018! Prices vary, October 22, 2018-May 19, 2019. 218 West 57th Street New York, NY, trollstheexperience.com