Highlights of events this weekend include Diane Paulus’ immersive deconstruction of Broadway’s “Phantom of the Opera,” Wanda Sykes pulling no punches in her dramatic film debut and the 2026 New York International Children’s Film Festival.
Theater
218 West 57th St., Manhattan (Midtown)
Through July 19. Various showtimes.
Tony winner Diane Paulus chuckles at being called “Broadway’s Queen of Immersive Theater” when talking about her latest production, a reimagined immersive version of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Broadway classic “The Phantom of the Opera.”
The New York City native earned her stripes with out-of-the-box revivals of “Hair,” “Pippin,” and “The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess,” which had the theater elite in a chokehold.
“I mean,[in] my whole life as a director, I think about the audience, and I’ve always wanted to break the fourth wall,” she tells The Daily News. “I just always wanted to return theater to sort of its ritual roots where the audience was a part of it.”
For “Masquerade,” audience members are required to dress elegantly for a night at the Paris Opera House circa late 1800s. After entering the venue, ticket holders are fitted for a masquerade mask and given a glass of champagne before they’re thrust into the action.
“I just thought of this idea of reimagining the ‘Phantom of the Opera’ in an immersive setting where you could be up close and near the singers and in the world of the backstage at the Paris Opera,” Paulus shared. “I think about what I want the audience to experience, and this was one I knew [that] if we could deliver this experience like an audience has never had with one of the greatest musicals ever, this could be thrilling.”
The Artistic Director of the American Repertory Theater at Harvard University described the completed work as an “Apollo mission” that took about two years to bring to the stage. “We had no idea how to do it. We just had to get in there with a six floor building with an incredible company of actors and work it out… It’s thrilling to pull a company of people together who want to break new ground and make theater history and do something like we’ve never done before. That was exciting.”
Tickets start at $175.
Film
AMC Magic Johnson Harlem 9 —2309 Frederick Douglass Blvd, Manhattan (Harlem)
Now playing.
Emmy-winning comedian Wanda Sykes is packing a hell of a punch with her dramatic film debut in Tamika Miller’s boxing drama “Undercard.” The stand up comic, writer and actress takes on the role of a problem-prone ex boxing champ and recovering alcoholic trying to make a living training young fighters. She has her sights set on her estranged son, a hot-headed, petty drug dealer with pro boxing dreams of his own, played by “White Men Can’t Jump” revival breakout Bentley Green.
“Abbott Elementary” star William Stanford Davis, Roselyn Sánchez, Xavier Mills, Berto Colón and Estella Kahiha round out the cast of the heartwarming redemption tale about battles fought both in and out of the ring. Think “Creed” meets “Bruised” with a touch of “Moonlight” thrown into the mix. Sykes, who seems to have been holding back on dramatic work, proves she has the chops in this project.
Tickets are $17.68, discounts available.
Talk
“Studio Confidential”
Sheen Center for Thought & Culture—18 Bleecker St., Manhattan (Noho)
Through Feb. 28. Various showtimes.
Some of the most accomplished producers and engineers in modern music — with 31 collective Grammy Awards and credits on more than 7,000 recordings — have come together to offer candid insights on the craft of engineering music’s most storied recordings with this new discussion series.
Sylvia Massy, who has worked with Prince, Johnny Cash and The Mars Volta, and parametric equalizer trailblazer George Massenburg join other hitmakers such as Jimmy Douglass (The Rolling Stones, Aretha Franklin, Jay-Z), Chuck Ainlay (George Strait, Taylor Swift), Niko Bolas (Carole King, Neil Young, James Taylor), acclaimed “Wicked” engineer-mixer Frank Filipetti and Emmy Award winner production engineer of “The Godfather” soundtracks Elliot Scheiner.
Tickets start at $54.
Family
Theatre Row—410 West 42nd Str., Manhattan (Hell’s Kitchen)
Through March 15. Various showtimes.
“The Book of Mormon” star Jasmin Richardson has put her director’s hat back on for the world premiere of “The Hula Hoopin’ Queen,” which is closing out the New York City Children’s Theater’s 29th season.
The 50-minute Tia DeShazor-scripted musical is adapted from Thelma Lynne Godin’s 2014 children’s book “The Hula Hoopin’ Queen of 139th Street,” which follows a spunky young girl named Kameeka and her desire and determination to be crowned the winner of the hula-hoop competition in Harlem.
Gabriella Scott portrays the titular role in this uplifting, family-friendly work featuring Mya Bryant, Eliah Johnson, Arielle Roberts and Nia Simone Smith.
Tickets start at at $29.50 (plus fees), with Pay-What-You-Can options available.
Fashion
“Art X Fashion”
The Museum at FIT—227 West 27th St., Manhattan (Chelsea)
Through April 19. Various times.
The Fall-Winter 2026 edition of New York Fashion Week has come and gone but the art in fashion lives on with the Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology’s latest exhibit, which explores the intersection between the two creative forms.
Curated by Dr. Elizabeth Way, there are 140 garments, art pieces, accessories and textiles drawn from the college’s vast permanent collection and assembled to pose the question: “Is fashion art?”
Garments and innovations from renowned designers like Isabel and Ruben Toledo, Elsa Schiaparelli, Eric Gaskins, Rei Kawakubo, Christian Dior, Gianni Versace, Franco Moschino, Thebe Magugu and Phathu Nembilwi offer the answer and much engagement.
Free.
Dance
“A Weekend of West African Dance”
Jamaica Performing Arts Center —153-10 Jamaica Ave,, Queens (Jamaica)
Fri. Feb. 27 and Sat. Feb. 28, 8 p.m.
The Kofago Dance Ensemble and FANIKE! West African Dance Troupe returns to JCAL to celebrate Black History Month by honoring ancestral traditions through contemporary performance and keeping the high-energy genre front and center as a vital, living expression of culture. Choreographer-led workshops and post-performance discussions are also part of the weekend’s programming.
Artistic Director Courtney Ffrench referred to the New York City-based dance companies as “exceptional artistic partners whose work honors lineage while boldly advancing the form.”
Tickets start at $15.
Family
“My Grandfather is a Nihonjin“
Firehouse: DCTV’s Cinema—87 Lafayette St., Manhattan (Soho)
Sun. March 1, 1:15pm
One of the highlights of the 2026 New York International Children’s Film Festival is Celia Catunda‘s charming 2-D animated feature about a 10-year-old boy who discovers his grandfather’s past and the history of Japanese immigration to Brazil. Adapted from the acclaimed novel by Oscar Nakasato, the anime-influenced “My Grandfather Is a Nihonjin” presents a great entry point for youngsters (ages 8 and up) to experience the art of foreign film — subtitles and all — in a fun, and accessible way. Japanese-Brazilian illustrator Oscar Oiwa will also be on hand for a Q&A following the 85-minute screening.
The festival, co-founded by American Museum of Natural History specialist Alana Gishlick, offer 13 features and more than 70 short films made for minors playing every weekend through March 15.
Tickets start at $17.
If you have an upcoming weekend event you’d like to submit for consideration in an upcoming roundup, please email: nycevents@nydailynews.com with the full listing details. Consideration does not guarantee inclusion.