🌸 nyc weekend guide: cherry blossoms edition
plus, NYC's first VHS tape fair comes to Brooklyn
🌼 Spring is in full bloom, and with the season comes a new crop of weekend outings.
You can visit the Brooklyn Botanic Garden for CherryWatch 2025 as they track their legendary cherry blossoms (peek at Magnolia Plaza and Daffodil Hill too), while Museum of the Moving Image kicks off See It Big: Stunts!—a thrilling dive into cinema’s most jaw-dropping feats, from Buster Keaton to Jackie Chan. Film buffs can also catch The Code at Roxy Cinema (with a Q&A by Adam Friedland on Friday) or savor the iconic Deneuve-Téchiné French cinema retrospective.
Music and comedy take center stage too: Bartees Strange brings his genre-defying sound to Music Hall of Williamsburg on Saturday, and on Sunday, analog lovers can geek out at Bushwick’s NYC Tape Fair, a VHS/cassette treasure hunt at Selva.
Also on Sunday: don’t miss House of Yes’ Earth Love Fest 2025—a free, all-ages eco-party with live music, climate activism, and immersive art.
From cherry blossoms to stunt reels, vinyl tapes to sustainable raves, this weekend’s got something for every vibe.
Friday, April 25
🌸 CherryWatch 2025
Brooklyn Botanic Garden has launched CherryWatch 2025, its interactive blossom tracker, offering daily updates on the stunning progression of over 150 cherry trees—from first buds to full bloom—in its world-renowned collection, regarded as one of the finest outside Japan. Visitors can experience the fleeting beauty of cherry blossom season with Hanami Nights and Weekends in Bloom, featuring live music, dance, and Japanese-inspired food and drink, while exploring BBG’s vibrant spring displays, including Magnolia Plaza, Daffodil Hill, Bluebell Wood, and the Cranford Rose Garden. Later in the season, the new iris collection on Fawcett Terrace and the lush Osborne Garden will dazzle with wisteria, peonies, and more. Plan your visit here.
🍿 See It Big: Stunts!
Beginning on Friday and going through June 15, See It Big: Stunts! at the Museum of the Moving Image celebrates the jaw-dropping artistry of movie stunt work with a globe-spanning selection of films showcasing impossible feats—from Buster Keaton’s silent-era daredevilry to Jackie Chan’s acrobatics and modern action spectacles from Thailand and Indonesia. Don’t miss these "how-did-they-do-that?" moments on the big screen.
🎭 The Code comes to Roxy Cinema
Director Eugene Kotlyarenko’s The Code comes to Roxy Cinema this weekend. Catch this absurd high-concept comedy about a paranoid couple (Dasha Nekrasova & Peter Vack) reviving their relationship through surveillance. Plus, join director Eugene Kotlyarenko for a special Q&A hosted by comedian Adam Friedland on Friday.
Saturday, April 26
🎤 Bartees Strange at the Music Hall of Williamsburg
Raw, honest, and genre-bending, Bartees Strange is a force to be reckoned with. Experience his electrifying performance at the Music Hall of Williamsburg on Saturday at 7 PM. From hard rock screams to hip-hop swagger, he owns it all.
🎬 Deneuve & Téchiné
This spring, explore the legendary collaboration between Catherine Deneuve and director André Téchiné at L'Alliance New York. Their seven films together redefined French cinema. From Hôtel des Amériques to 1990s masterpieces My Favorite Season and Thieves, their partnership pushed Deneuve to daring new depths while sharpening Téchiné’s signature emotional intensity. A rare showcase of artistic alchemy.
Sunday, April 27
🌎 Earth Love Fest 2025
Brooklyn’s House of Yes presents Earth Love Fest 2025, its 6th annual free, all-ages celebration blending eco-action, creativity, and dance-party magic with indoor/outdoor festivities. Featuring a vibrant mix of artists, performers, climate experts, and sustainable designers, the festival includes a Soul Summit Music headline set, a live performance by Hila The Earth, and immersive experiences from partners like DJs for Climate Action and Zero Waste Daniel. In collaboration with Oceanic Global, Materials for the Arts, and GrowNYC, the event inspires sustainable living before transitioning into the 21+ Earth Love After Party at House of Yes. RSVP now to groove, get inspired, and fall in love with the planet.
📼 NYC Tape Fair
Dive into the analog revival at the NYC Tape Fair, the first event of its kind in decades. Celebrating all things VHS and cassettes, this free, all-ages gathering will feature rare, vintage, and new tapes from vendors like Found Footage Festival (showcasing forgotten archival gems), Captured Record Shop, Night Owl Video, and more, with live VCR screenings and mixtapes spinning all day. Located at Bushwick’s Selva, a community hub for music and art, the fair also offers bites from The Bunker café. Whether you're a physical media collector or just nostalgic for the tactile magic of tapes, don’t miss this one-of-a-kind fair.
