Switch N’ Play puts a high premium on joy, so it isn’t surprising that A Night At Switch N’ Play—the slice-of-performance-life documentary about the group, making its New York premiere at NewFest this Saturday—is such a joyful watch. The film, from director Cody Stickels and producer Chelsea Moore, provides a window into the beloved drag and burlesque collective at work. Over the course of a single evening at Branded Saloon, the Prospect Heights bar Switch N’ Play calls home, we are invited to watch seven queer performers flourishing, almost in real time. And it’s a treat. More →

Pitchfork’s Octfest headed indoors to Maspeth’sKnockdown Center last Saturday after a rainy weekend on Governor’s Island last year. Ten bands headlined by indie powerhouses Mogwai and Parquet Courts shared the venue with over 50 brewers and food vendor Mission Chinese Food. The festival had good luck with the weather this year as over 3,100 attendees filled Knockdown’s expansive interior and rolling backyard. More →

Most coffee shops don’t have a usable bed in them, or allow entire motor vehicles inside, but it’s safe to say Etiquette isn’t your ordinary coffee shop. Vincent Marino, part of Four Happy Men Hospitality and one of Etiquette’s owners, is hesitant to even call the south Williamsburg space a coffee shop. More →

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Brita Filter knows a thing or two about being in costume. The NYC-based drag queen, whose real name is Jesse Havea, has years of experience in theater. Havea grew up as a child performer, went on to book national tours with a theater company and eventually studied acting at the American Musical and Dramatic Academy. After booking a production of Cinderella (where he played one of the evil step-sisters in drag), Havea knew he wanted to pursue drag full time, and thus Brita Filter was born. More →

It was late on Monday when Allie X called me from a hotel room in Hawaii. She was packing; I could hear the zippers going, quick between her sentences. The up-and-coming pop artist played Boston’s House of Blues on Thursday, and she’ll be in New York tonight, Tuesday, opening for Charli XCX at Terminal 5. But she had to make a brief trip out West first, to headline Honolulu Pride.  More →

The Michelin Guide released its list of Bib Gourmands last Monday and just released this year’s long-awaited list of starred restaurants for New York City and Westchester. The 76 restaurants that received coveted Michelin stars are identified as “establishments serving exceptional cuisine rich in flavor and infused with the personality of a talented chef,” according to the Michelin website. The 133 Bib Gourmands, on the other hand, offer “an affordable and remarkable dining experience.” This year, New York got 29 new additions to the Bib Gourmand list and 10 shiny new stars. We’ve narrowed down the newly recommended spots to the ones in the Bedford + Bowery domain, with notable stars going to James Murphy of LCD Soundsystem’s Williamsburg wine bar and an undersung East Village spot. Click around our map, above, to read more about the eight new Bib Gourmands and the five new Michelin-star restaurants near you. 

The co-founder of the oft-debated Artichoke Pizza (you either love it or you hate it) is bringing more untraditional pies to the East Village. The second location of the Detroit-style pizza concept, Lions & Tigers & Squares, soft-opened on Friday and is expected to be fully operational by the end of this week. More →

Tell Me Who I Am is one of the most disturbing documentaries about family dysfunction since Capturing the Friedmans— all the more so because it unfolds like a psychological thriller. But there’s something about the film’s big reveal that won’t be readily apparent to viewers who haven’t read the extraordinary book that preceded it. (This article contains spoilers and is written for those who’ve already watched the film.) More →

With the Tompkins Square Halloween Dog Parade coming up Sunday and prizes at stake, should the costumed canines of the East Village be tested for performance-enhancing drugs? It’s not just their chilled-out owners: Pets are increasingly under the influence of CBD. More →

“When I smoke meth, I feel nothing when I kill.” The irony is thick as a man paid to execute drug users exhales a cloud of shabu smoke in The Nightcrawlers. The National Geographic documentary, which last week won a special jury prize for courageous filmmaking at the Hamptons International Film Festival and next month will play at DOC NYC, is named after the photojournalists who’ve documented thousands of extrajudicial killings in the Philippines, said to be ordered by police at the encouragement of strongman president Roberto Duterte. The film, directed by Alexander A. Mora, follows these photographers while also riding along with the masked vigilantes who brazenly gun down users and pushers in the streets of Manila. More →