7 Reasons to Get Out of the House in February

Feb 14: They Love Rock ‘n’ Roll

If you’re a fan of dance performances and that old-time rock ‘n’ roll, you’re generally out of luck when it comes to live entertainment. Ballet dancers pirouette to classical music, and modern dancers often take to hip-hop. They Called It Rock has your back. For the performance, eight dancers perform to music from artists whose tunesyou probably have on your iPod anyway: Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix, The Who, David Bowie, and Elton John. And it might be rock music, but the dance comes in all styles, including jazz, salsa, contemporary, and even a little ballroom, all exploring the influence popular music has had on society. You can see it at the Tarrytown Music Hall.
 

Feb 7,8: Preserving the Wetlands

The Capitol Theatre is celebrating the 25^th anniversary of the Wetlands Preserve. Does that sound like some kind of bucolic environmental habitat to you? Then you probably weren’t around in New York City in the 1990s. The Wetlands was actually a concert venue—and the center of the jam-band scene—that was open down on Hudson Street from 1989 to 2001. In its honor, The Capitol Theatre will host two nights of music from bands like moe, The Ringers (featuring Jimmy Herring), John Medeski (of Medeski Martin & Wood), Aaron Maxwell (of God Street Wine), Fuzz and Jen Durkin (of Deep Banana Blackout), Wayne Krantz, Michael Landau, Gary Novak, and Etienne Mbappe.
 

Feb 1 – Apr 1: Not Just a Little Teapot

Who says that tea parties have to end with childhood? The Clay Art Center hosts a celebration of all things tea with its new TeaTime exhibition. There, 70 contemporary clay artists will display their teapots and tea sets, showing how important the brew is in different cultures around the world. If you go there for Valentine’s Day, the Center will be hosting a “date night” at which couples can make teacups on the potter’s wheel and have their personal tea leaves read. Otherwise, keep an eye out for workshops, historical lectures, and other educational programs. 

Feb 15 – May 18: Video Games Killed the Radio Star

If you know the Konami code by heart and have spent countless hours playing Call of Duty: Ghosts, you’re actually an art fan. The Hudson River Museum hosts one of the first major exhibitions to focus on the form with The Art of Video Games, organized by the Smithsonian American Art Museum. (And yes, the gallery will have some games you can play.) Look for special events like a discussion with Curator Chris Melissinos (pictured), demos with industry insiders, and a dance party that features video-game remixes. Yonkers’ Alamo Drafthouse also gets into the act, screening video-game-related movies like Indie Game: The Movie (February 11), Super Mario Bros (February 18), and The Last Starfighter (February 25). Game on.