Shake your groove thing

Button your buttons, shine your shoes! There’s culture all around, and it’s pretty fun too. Our Arts Editor Kyra Bloom brings it all to you. 

Tonight

• Grupo Quisqueyano is sponsoring an Afrobeats Dance Workshop tonight at 6 pm in Barnard Hall, Studio 1.  The event is in honor of the beginning of Black History Month and will be taught by Afro-Cuban dance teacher Rebecca Bliss.

Thursday

• Pussy Riot, the Russian feminist punk collective of which three members were imprisoned for their protest against the oppressive government, has a reading at Barnes and Noble in the East Village.  To raise money for the group, the Feminist Press published an e-book entitled Pussy Riot!: A Punk Prayer for Freedom, and members will be reading excerpts from their contributions to the book.

Ongoing

• “Seismic Shifts: 10 Visionaries in Contemporary Art and Architecture” recently opened at the National Academy Museum and School of Fine Arts.  Featuring works by artists such as Nick Cave, Bill Viola, Thornton Dial, Kate Orff, and others, this event is free with CUID.
• Opening this week, Birds in the Art of Japan presents works in various media from medieval times to the present.  At the Metropolitan Museum, this exhibition displays paintings juxtaposed with examples of modern and contemporary tiles, ceramics, lacquerware, and bamboo art.
• The Museum of Jewish Heritage presents “Emma Lazarus: Poet of Exile,” a look at the Sephardic Jewish author who wrote the poem on the Statue of Liberty and gave a voice to generations of newcomers to America.
• The Classic Stage Company presents Passion, the 1994 Tony Award-winning musical by Stephen Sondheim with book by James Lapine.  Go experience what is often considered as Sondheim’s deepest and most powerful piece. Less expensive tickets are available by rushing the show the day of the performance.
• Last week, Bock and Harnick’s Fiorello! opened at City Center.  The musical is based on the life of Fiorello LaGuardia, one of New York City’s most influential mayors.  The show’s catchy melodies envelop the audience and make the story of LaGuardia’s life far more interesting than it probably was in actuality.

Tearing up the floor via Shutterstock