May Events For Myth Lovers
Reinhold Timm’s Cadmus Slaying the Dragon is in the public domain.
Virtual Events
On May 3 learn about the civilizing influence of women in African folklore.
On May 4, learn about Ayobola Kekere-Ekun’s work, which includes quilled pictures of one eyed women and women with people hidden beneath their shirts.
From May 4-June 8, you can take a class about death with Morbid Anatomy founder Joanna Ebenstein. Lean how our ancestors understood death, with an eye towards commonalities, and how these ideas live on today in religion, psychology, and the occult.
On May 9, participate in a group discussion about the ancient Greek sorceress Circe, including how you connect to what she represents.
On May 10, learn about Neolithic and Bronze Age megaliths and monuments such as enigmatic rings of giant standing stones and remarkable chambered tombs in the virtual talk “From Stonehenge to Carnac.” In person or virtual.
On Mondays from May 16 through June 6, learn the symbols, cultural context, and uses of games played over 1000 years ago.
From May 25 through June 15, mythologist Dr. John Bucher will give a 4 part lecture series about the hidden meanings and mythology of the symbols that surround us, ranging from coffee cups to classical art.
On May 31, learn about the Beltane fires, the may-pole, the Morris dance, the Robin Hood games, the Midsummer bonfires, and what the coming of summer and of a solstice meant to pre-modern British people.
Gustav Klimt’s painting The Kiss is in the public domain.
New York City Events
On May 6, cheer the Bavarian gods of beer at Zum Schneider’s Maifest in Bushwick.
On May 14, you can see the Japan Parade along Central Park west, including performances by the cast of Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon, Japanese Folk Dance of NY, Anime NYC, and more.
On May 14, Jennifer Egan will speak in Brooklyn about her new book Candy House, which is about a new technology that enables people to export all their memories and upload them to an online repository, where (if their owner so chooses) others can view them too, along with the accompanying thoughts and feeling.
From May 18 to 22, you can see the art fair Frieze New York, which includes fantasy-driven exhibits such as a picture of a foot with a gigantic moldy toe.
On May 21 and 22, you can watch a free dance performance that portrays the Trojan War from the perspective of the many women portrayed in Homer’s Iliad.
Watch a New York City Ballet show, including Midsummer Night’s Dream in June.
Central Park Summerstage kicks off on June 4 with a concert by Aurora, who sings like “There’s a reason why hell’s so hot.”
Free Sbakespeare in the Park begins on June 17 this summer and will feature productions of Richard III and As You Like It.
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
On May 27-30, you can go to the feminist science fiction and fantasy convention Wiscon either in person or online. Guests of honor include Zen Cho, Yoon Ha Lee, Rebecca Roanhorse, and Sheree Renée Thomas; the latter two will attend.
World Events
On July 1, 2, and 3 the mythic fiction author Natalie Haynes, the indie duo Smoke Fairies, circus people, and many others will perform at Timber, an artist’s festival that takes place somewhere in the woods in the U.K.
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.
