Lincoln Center. Photo: Nicole Freezer Rubens

The Lunar New Year starts at midnight tonight. The Year of the Rooster is being celebrating around the city. And our Feng Shui Masterclasses will help you harness its power. Valerie Smaldone has the scoop on two important theatrical events for social justice and climate change happening this Monday night. And there’s a virtual fitness program that will help strengthen your bones. Head to Flatiron and check out the sunflower field in honor of Ukraine. Our roving photographer captures the iconic Lincoln Center this week. And our Broadway Babe has unearthed some wonderfully nostalgic YouTube video finds.

Harness the Year of the Rabbit

This will be an amazing session with Debra Duneier. And by the way, if you missed the first session on “Harnessing the Year of the Rabbit,” it was fabulous. We learned what our animal signs are based on the year you were born, and forecasts of how your animal sign will play out this year with the Rabbit. Plus we learned tips for starting the year off with new energy. (Note: The video recording of the first session is now available.) GET THE DETAILS. 

Year of the Rabbit Celebrations

The Lunar new year kicks off on January 22 with two weeks of celebrations around the city. A few highlights are the New York Firecracker Ceremony, the Chinatown Parade, the New York Philharmonic celebration, and dance performances with the Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company. The Year of the Rabbit is a symbol of luck and happiness.

Jan. 22. New Year Firecracker Ceremony & Cultural Festival

Sunday | 11:00am – 3:30pm. Get details.

Feb. 12. Chinatown Lunar New Year Parade & Festival

Sunday| 1:00pm. Parade route: Mott & Canal to Chatham Square to East Broadway towards the Manhattan Bridge, completing on Eldridge and Forsyth Streets towards Grand Street next to Sara D. Roosevelt Park. Get details.

Jan. 29. Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company Celebrates the Lunar New Year

A spectacular production of dazzling props, colorful costumes, mesmerizing music, fantastic acrobatics and lively dance by top notch performers telling the story of the origin of the Chinese Lunar New Year.  In this legend, a group of villagers, working, dancing and praying together, defeated an a terrifying monster of the ages.   Get the details.

Jan. 31. New York Philharmonic Lunar New Year Celebration

Celebrate the Lunar New Year — and welcome the Year of the Rabbit — with the New York Philharmonic. Violinist Ning Feng joins the Orchestra in an arrangement of Bernstein’s West Side Story Suite, erhu virtuoso Yiwen Lu takes center stage in Qigang Chen’s La Joie de la souffrance, while vocalists Gong Linna and Hasibagen are spotlighted in Tan Dun’s Heart Sutra. Long Yu returns to conduct the concert, which also features Li Huanzhi’s Spring Festival Overture. Get the details.

Jan. 22. Day of Unity for Ukraine

Show your support and head to the Flatiron Building where you will see a new installation featuring 333 sunflowers. This field of sunflowers, Ukraine’s national flower representing peace, is set up at the Flatiron Plaza on 23rd Street between Fifth Avenue and Broadway, right across from Madison Square Park. Take photos and post to social media to raise awareness of the need for donations. Here is a list of vetted organizations.

Broadway Babe’s Picks

Our Broadway Babe, Randie Levine-Miller, is at it again, unearthing some wonderfully nostalgic YouTube video finds, including: The Hollywood Palace with Fred Astaire and Ethel Merman; The Friars Club Roast of Johnny Carson; the Kennedy Center Honors Barbra Streisand; and Gwen Verdon, along with Lee Roy Reams in “The American Dance Machine“.

Jan. 24. Osteoporosis Strength Training Class with Joan Pagano

Join Joan Pagano, our Three Tomatoes fitness guru, for a LIVE class on Tuesday January 24 at NOON ET. This is the perfect opportunity to target major muscles using a variety of at-home equipment – stretch bands, loops, and free weights. Have fun while boosting your muscle tone and bone density. GET THE DETAILS.

Roving in Lincoln Center

Our roving photographer, Nicole Freezer Rubens has captured some of the beauty of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, world renowned for so many aspects. She writes:

My favorite is the public art that graces the 16.3 acre complex. Strolling around the plazas in front of the Metropolitan Opera House permanent and temporary installations abound. The most recent addition is a collaboration between the Public Art Fund and The Studio Museum who selected a large scale boldly colored Nina Chanel Abney mural mounted on the exterior of David Geffen Hall for all to see. Another recent installation is a 13 foot tall sculpture by George Condo, titled Constellation of Voices. The striking bright gold head greets you as you enter the opera house.

In contrast to these newer works is a timeless selection of classic pieces that have come of age along with Lincoln Center. There is an Alexander Calder and my favorite; Reclining Figure by Henry Moore from 1965. It is perched in the reflecting pool, doubling the drama of the figure and it takes my breath away every time. This masterpiece has been the guardian of Lincoln Center since this cultural universe was completed in 1969. The figure has seen and heard countless operas, ballets, philharmonics, Juilliard students and the din of all of the tourists and New Yorkers who meander through.

Nicole Freezer Rubens is the author of “The Long Pause and the Short Breath.” Follower her on Instagram@nfrconsult