December 2022 Events for Myth Lovers
Honoré Daumier’s 19th century lithograph David et Goliath is available under the Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication.
Virtual Events
On December 2, attend a lecture presented by a psychologist about the myth of Oedipus.
On December 5, learn about how myth moves across visual and verbal art and exposes the parasitic relationship between new world mythology and the history of American colonialism.
On December 7, learn about the myth of Perseus through the painting of the British Pre-Raphaelite Sir Edward Burne-Jones.
On December 8, watch a live stream from Mexico about Teotihuacan, the largest city in the American continent around the year 500 AD. Thousands of people went there to witness sacred rituals in honor of the Mesoamerican gods.
On December 8, attend an online concert and tarot reading by the goth-folk musical duo Charming Disaster. Inspired by the macabre humor of Edward Gorey and Tim Burton, the murder ballads of the Americana tradition, and the dramatic flair of the cabaret, they write songs that tell stories about death, crime, myth, magic, folklore, science, and the occult.
On December 20, learn about the history of Christmas, including aspects of it which descend directly from ancient pagan festivals.
On December 23, learn how in British mythology, the Holly and the Oak are kings of the forest for half of the year. According to the story, they fight at the summer and winter solstices for power over the world for half a year, until they war again for supremacy.
Whenever you want, listen to the free audiobook sample of The Book of Gothel by Mary McMyne, a retelling of Rapunzel from the witch’s perspective.
Gustav Klimt’s painting The Kiss is in the public domain.
New York City Events
From now until January 8, you can watch a light show that includes magical creatures on Staten Island or the Queens County Farm.
On different days from November 19 - Jan 16, go on a 1.5 mile walk through the New York Botanical Garden that will be lit with “whimsical” installations, including a Cathedral of Light tunnel, a Fire Garden on Lily Pool Terrace, and a Field of Light. Then watch carvers transform ice into sculptures.
Every night in December other than the 24th and 25th, you can take a bus tour from Union Square to see the Christmas light installations in Dyker Heights. You will see Santa.
On most days in December, go to the Greek revival parlor room of the Merchant’s House Museum to see how people celebrated Christmas in the 19th century. Drink a cup of “Smoking Bishop” (mulled wine) and enjoy a performance of “A Visit from St. Nicholas” by an actor dressed up as Charles Dickens.
On most days in December, you can see the Nutcracker at the New York City Ballet, including a tree that expands from 12 to 41 feet, a gargantuan Mother Ginger, and of course the sinister and deranged Sugarplum fairy.
On Thursday December 1, meet Santa, sing carols, watch ice carving and see lighted trees floating down a river. What will you be drinking to see such sights? Hot cocoa!
On Thursday December 8, the Rizzolo Bookstore will have a holiday party that includes a long lineup of authors, including Kenneth C. Davis, who has written about mythology.
On Mondays from November 13-December 11, you can watch free concerts of Broadways shows such as Wicked and Once on This Island at the Columbus Circle Shopping Center.
On December 17, watch an outdoor holiday reading of O. Henry’s The Gift of the Magi at the Queens County Farm.
From November 25 until December 31, you can hang out with Santa and his friends at an immersive experience involving his booze at his secret speakeasy (he’s not as good as people say). Then go to Hudson Yards shopping center for their winterscape, light exhibition and other holiday events.
On any Saturday this month, watch an immersive, theatrical experience highlighting the stories of each moon goddess through circus based acts and multisensory interactive installation.
On various dates throughout the month you can have an immersive experience based on Harry Potter in the magical forest of Westchester.
On various dates throughout the month you can watch Cocktail Magique by Company IV, a vaudeville-esque show that includes art forms ranging from burlesque to opera, magic acts involving drinks, and more. The show unfolds around the audience, who can take part in the culinary fun.
On any day other than Monday or Tuesday, you can pretend to have a more interesting life by participating in an interactive experience that puts you in the center of a Stranger Things story.
Participate in the immersive theater experience Sleep No More, which portrays Shakespeare’s classic Scottish tragedy through the lens of suspenseful film noir. Tickets are available any night other than Tuesday.
Go to Gotham City, where top scientists are missing and Batman and Batgirl need new recruits. Gather intelligence, dodge lasers and communicate with some Gotham City characters in an interactive experience.
Any day you want you can go to Beetle House, a restaurant that takes inspiration from Tim Burton, Alfred Hitchcock, Bram Stoker, Washington Irving, Edgar Allen Poe and many more. The menu includes, Blood Bags, Hautned Lemonade, Bio-Exorcism’s, among other things. Dining in only, which adds a new COVID element to the scare show.
Check out the dragons, kings, pirate ships, Merlin’s flying machines and other spectacles at the new Legoland in Goshen, New York.
Get Butter Beer at the new Harry Potter-themed store and bar at 935 Broadway near the Flatiron Building.
Miss going to the movies? Watch a socially distanced one outside with your friends at Sidewalk Cinema on Thames Street in Brooklyn.
Check out the images of buddhas, bodhisattvas, tantric deities, protectors and more at the Rubin Museum’s Tibetan Buddhist Shrine Room.
U.S. Events
"Myth.Slide1.16" by c.a.francese is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
From June 23 through January 8, there will be a multimedia art exhibit in Nashville that retells the story of The Odyssey..
World Events
From November 11-13, MCM Comic Con Birmingham 2022 takes place in the United Kingdom.
Recurring Virtual Events
Every year in the secret realm of Bunnyville, magical creatures from around the world gather for their annual summit. This is supposed to be a time to reconnect with old and new friends, but this year someone (or some creature!) has stolen the Easter Bunny’s magical golden egg! Kids and adults can both enjoy this enchanted game featuring creatures like fairies, dragons, mermaids, and of course the Easter Bunny!
If you would rather be in France right now, view a selection of thematically-themed works from the Louvre online, including the ones in the Sully Wing, which includes major works of Greek and Egyptian art such as the Venus de Milo.
Take an online course with Stanford research scholar Adrienne Mayor in which you will “uncover the natural origins of stories about dragons. . .; ponder whether the Amazon horsewomen-archers of myth existed; consider the dilemmas of using poison weapons in myth and ancient historical times; and marvel at robots and other science fiction tales from the time of Homer.” $120.
Take an online mini-course about Rome, seeing how it exists not only in brick and mortar, but also in the realm of ideas, and through the eyes of locals and visitors. Topics will include Rome’s urban and architectural development, as well as its representation in maps and artworks from across the city’s exceptionally long lifetime. $99.
The NY Mythology Group, which is associated with the Joseph Campbell Foundation, holds presentations and discussions about mythology related topics ranging from the Greek goddess Hecate to Carl Jung. Their events usually take place on Tuesday evenings at 8 pm EDT, and have been online since the pandemic started.
BSFW, or Brooklyn Speculative Fiction Writers, meetings take place mostly online currently, but pre-pandemic were in the homes of writers mostly in Brooklyn but also on occasion Manhattan or Queens. Check out their calendar on meetup to attend their numerous writing workshops, social gatherings, meetings with editors/agents/authors, book clubs, and more. The group includes many published writers and has its own audio fiction magazine, Kaleidocast. If you post about your fetish for Olympian gods on their Facebook group feed, they (probably) won’t judge.
EREWHON BOOKS, a publisher focusing on novel-length works of speculative fiction: science fiction, fantasy, and related genres, holds readings usually on the second Thursday each month virtually for now and in a pre-apocalypse world at its high ceilinged office of many windows in Manhattan.
Fantastic Fiction at KGB is a monthly speculative-fiction reading series held on the third Wednesday of every month virtually for now, and in a pre-apocalypse world at KGB Bar in Manhattan. Ellen Datlow and Matthew Kressel host the event. As one might expect from a communism-themed bar, admission is free.
The NYC Greek Myth & Classical Lit Meetup meets every third Thursday of the month at the Cloister Cafe in the East Village to discuss the work of mostly long dead authors (e.g. Aristophanes, Dante.) The group has existed for more than a decade, so the long-term participants have already earned their unofficial classics PhD’s, and we already know that anybody who would do this for fun is as hip as a person can get.
Marcantonio Raimondi’s “A Bacchanal”. CC01.0 Public domain.
