Wait, it’s fall already? No. Noooooooo! How could that be? Why, God, why have you forsaken us?!? The sun, the Olympics, the lazy Sundays—and lazy Fridays and Saturdays and sometimes Thursdays—we were so into summer! Okay, deep breath. Fall could actually be kinda…cool. We’ve got Patrick Wilson on Broadway and The Wire’s Omar in movie theaters. Plus, there’s a huge (and hugely hyped) food festival that’s already making us hungry; political dramas from Soderbergh, Van Sant and Stone; and tons more to see, do and taste from today until the holiday season (which is, like, a week from now). And the best part? Very few of the creative minds involved are taking the easy way out. Risk and chance are the themes this season. Don’t be afraid (we’ve handicapped The odds for you). Just get ready. Up yours, summer—we’ve moved on.
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ART
- Photo opportunity Three museum shows make up a primer on the rise of the camera as a serious artistic tool.
- A room of one’s ownNot content with just a show at MoMA, Lucy McKenzie is redesigning the gallery space itself.
- The odds What headlines will the press use to describe “Andres Serrano: Shit”?
BOOKS
- Watch your language Three riveting foreign books are finally available in English.
- Missive impossible Novelist Michael Kimball reinvents the suicide note.
- Pretty scary Kelly Link may be afraid of the dark, but pigeonholes don't freak her out.
- The odds How many people will care about Savannah Knoop’s book about becoming JT LeRoy?
CLASSICAL
- Bring the noise! This season, superstar soprano Renée Fleming claims the city as her own, rocking the Met and appearing on the side of a bus near you.
- Feel the Bern Leonard Bernstein was this city. A new fest proves he was a whole lot more, too.
- The Odds Will Columbia frat boys actually like Xenakis’ Oresteia?
CLUBS
- If you book it, they will come...The team behind the techrotastic Minimoo parties is counting on a slew of top DJs to bring the crowds to the first ever Minitek fest.
- Long live the King! NYC's rulin' house-music label solidifies its reign with a 15th-anniversary celebration.
- The odds Will the messianic DJ pose ever die?
COMEDY
- Seriously funny A trio of comics mine the dark side for laughs.
- Mock star Fancy a typical comedy festival? Go someplace else.
- Anything goes Ars Nova’s first festival defies definition.
- The odds Will Jamie Kennedy’s documentary make you feel bad for him?
DANCE
EAT OUT
- A matter of taste The first annual Wine & Food Festival is about to get cooking all over town. Will New Yorkers be satisfied with a Miami Beach import?
- Wine & Food Fest The game
- Industrial revolution Food manufacturers edge their way back to Brooklyn—with a modern artisanal twist.
- Open season Where you’ll be eating this fall (and where you wouldn’t be caught dead).
FILM
- Tough Break The Wire’s meanest thug tries to make it beyond the box.
- Smile for the camera Happy-Go-Lucky star Sally Hawkins turns in an Oscar-worthy role, playing the most unusual character: a content one.
- Nuclear options Family meltdowns heat up the fall.
- Political Discourse Three upcoming portraits of famous figureheads bend the rules.
- The odds How much will the new Bond theme song suck?
MUSIC
- Retro Perspective Soul visionary Raphael Saadiq revisits classic black pop on his new album, The Way I See It.
- M-I-C-K-E-Y M-U-S-I-C From deep inside the Disney castle comes the tunes that are guaranteed to have you humming—or drive you crazy—this fall.
- Opposites attract Are you always at the same old shows, with the same people and the same sound? Stop it.
- The odds Can the new TV on the Radio album spark a change in hipster facial hair?
THEATER
- Watched man Patrick Wilson leads the acting heavyweights—plus one infamous newbie—in All My Sons on Broadway.
- Vice Squad Experimental theater outfit Radiohole is growing up, but not too much—the group is still getting wasted and naked onstage.
- Brave new worlds Craig Lucas isn’t content to stay in his place.
- British intelligenceThe British are mental for Billy Elliot, but will Broadway audiences get the thick accents?
- The odds Will Brian d’Arcy James get beyond the Gumby jokes?
