A boombox brigade trekking from Washington Square to Tompkins Square Park sounds like a scene from an ’80s musical—but no, it’s composer Phil Kline’s “Unsilent Night,” and you can join in. Kline provides 50 boomboxes of his own, but you can download the music—four related tracks that blend together—to your favorite player. Everyone hits Play at 7p.m. on the dot, and starts walking the streets. “It’s totally fun,” Kline says of the parade, now in its 21st year. “You’ll never know it was art.” This year’s parade coincides with Santacon, so don’t be surprised if you find a wayward St. Nick or two in the bunch. But there’s more here besides fun and friendliness— Kline’s score, like toy chimes floating on the cold air, brings magic to the long, dark winter nights.
Saturday at 7p.m. (line up earlier), Washington Square Park, foot of Fifth Avenue. Free; music download and info at unsilentnight.com. —Leigh Witchel
China Syndrome
The Met’s new “Ink Art” exhibit sounds like an exercise in printmaking—or a class in tattooing—but don’t let that deter you: This is a delicious dim sum of a show, one that ties in the old China with the new. Curator Maxwell Hearn cleverly placed 70 contemporary works —paintings, photos, prints, sculpture and video—in the Met’s Asian wing,where many tourists fear to tread. It’s here, among the centuries-old stone Buddhas, silken dragon robes and the newly reopened, skylit Astor Court—complete with koi pond—that you’ll find works by Ai Weiwei and 34 of his peers. Some are slyly subversive, likeWeiwei’s two-legged table; others—like a ghostly, camera obscura view of Shanghai—are unforgettable. “Somehow,” says Met director Thomas Campbell, “they remain indelibly Chinese.” Dig in!
Fifth Avenue at 82nd Street; metmuseum.org -BarbaraHoffman
Bunch of Losers
Connie Petruk, Jeremy Chatzky, David Terhune, Julian Maile, Sean Altman, Clement J. Waldmann, Eddie Zweiback, Joe McGinty and Tricia Scotti.Todd Kancar
Prince, Serge Gainsbourg, ABBA and the Cure are a far-flung bunch musically, but here’s a common thread: All have been paid tribute by the Losers Lounge, the musical confederacy that celebrates its 20th anniversary at Joe’s Pub this weekend, with a night of songs by the late Harry Nilsson. The Losers began their run during grunge’s heyday, with a Burt Bacharach tribute sparked by some pop-loving pals “thinking about how cool it would be to do a night of stuff that to some extent at that point wasaguilty pleasure,” says musical director and keyboardist Joe McGinty. It was a hit, and since then the Losers—a core band with a rotating cast of guest vocalists—have done five tributes a year. As highlights, McGinty cites two attended by the musician being feted: pop songwriter Paul Williams and country iconoclast Lee Hazlewood. “Both had the right attitude,” he says,meaning they were in tune with a revue that’s sincere in its love for the featured writers, but isn’t reverent about it. “We’re not making fun of the music, but we’re having fun with it,” says McGinty, adding that as long as the fun continues, they have no plans to quit.
$25, 425 Lafayette St., Friday at7and 9:30 p.m., Saturday at 6:30 and 9p.m., joespub.com. —Chris Erikson
Classic Couple
Off-screen lovers Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn made nine films together, and the best of them is George Cukor’s hilarious “Adam’s Rib’’ (1949). They’re a couple whose marriage is tested when lawyer Hepburn decides to defend a woman being prosecuted by husband Tracy for trying to kill her philandering husband. It’s having rare 35mm screenings Saturday at 7:15 p.m. and Monday at 1p.m. as part of the Film Society of Lincoln Center’s complete retrospective of Cukor’s films—including “Pat and Mike’’ (1952) with Tracy and Hepburn, showing at 9:30 and 3:15 p.m. on the same days.
Munroe Film Center,West 65th Street between Broadway and Amsterdam Avenue. Info: filmlinc.com. —Lou Lumenick
Dude Looks Like a Biker
You’re familiar with love in an elevator, but what about on a custom Black Hawk Down motorcycle? This year’s 34th Progressive International Motorcycle Show will feature a special appearance by Aerosmith lead singer Steven Tyler, who will be on hand to help unveil the Black Hawk Down custom motorcycle, along with Col. Danny McKnight, one of the real-life veterans portrayed in the “Black Hawk Down” book and movie. The bike will later be auctioned for veterans’ charities. “We don’t typically have world-renowned celebrities at the show,” says Tracy Harris, senior vice president of organizer Powersports Group. “Steven Tyler is also a motorcyclist, so it all makes sense.” The show will also feature Supercross legends Ricky Carmichael, Kevin Windham and Jeff Emig, as well as loads of exhibitors and special unveilings of new models from every major manufacturer.
The show takes place at the Jacob Javits Center, Friday through Sunday. Tickets are $18 to $35. motorcycleshows.com/new-york —Tim Donnelly
