The last week of October in Greenwich Village brings a free pumpkin carving afternoon in a community garden, the final salsa night of the season in Washington Square Park, two violin recitals on Barrow Street, a one-man musical about New York City schools at the Cherry Lane Theatre and two gallery shows in their final weeks. Here is what is happening in the neighborhood from Saturday, October 24, through Saturday, October 31, 2026, with times, places and costs checked at each organizer's own listing.

Sunday: carve a pumpkin at LaGuardia Corner Garden

LaGuardia Corner Community Garden, at 511 LaGuardia Place, hosts a free Halloween pumpkin session on Sunday, October 25, from 2 to 5 p.m. Visitors can carve or paint a pumpkin, and the garden supplies both the pumpkins and the tools. The event is listed on the NYC Parks calendar and is organized by the garden itself. It is a short walk from the West 4th Street station (A, B, C, D, E, F and M trains) and from the Bleecker Street stop on the 6.

Monday through Friday: School Pictures at the Cherry Lane

The Cherry Lane Theatre, at 38 Commerce Street in the West Village, is presenting School Pictures, a one-hour musical written and performed by Milo Cramer and directed by Morgan Green, a longtime collaborator. The show follows a set of New York City students: Faith, who hates reading; Jane, who has lost her flashcards; and Javier, who sees no reason to study because of climate change. Through them it looks at parenting, inequality and the hard parts of puberty in the city's public school system, with humor. The production returns to New York after a sold-out run at Playwrights Horizons.

Performances this week are Monday, October 26; Wednesday, October 28; Thursday, October 29; and Friday, October 30, all at 7 p.m., plus Sunday, November 1, at 3 p.m. The run continues through November 29. Tickets are sold through the Cherry Lane's website. The nearest subway is Christopher Street/Stonewall on the 1 train.

Wednesday: the season's last Salsa Social in Washington Square Park

Salsa Social, a free weekly dance night that has run in Garibaldi Plaza in Washington Square Park every Wednesday since May 6, wraps up its 2026 season on Wednesday, October 28, from 6 to 9 p.m. The evening is led by the dance group Mi Salsa Dura Baile and opens with a free lesson, followed by an open dance floor. Garibaldi Plaza is inside the park, a short walk from the West 4th Street station.

Thursday and Friday: violin nights at Greenwich House Music School

Greenwich House Music School, at 46 Barrow Street, has two violin recitals at the end of the week.

  • Thursday, October 29, 7 p.m.: violinist Malachi Provenzano plays Beethoven's Violin Sonata No. 9 in A major, Op. 47, the final movement of Stravinsky's Violin Concerto in D, the first two movements of Bach's Violin Sonata No. 2 in A minor, BWV 1003, and The Louisiana Blues Strut by Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson. The listing gives a suggested donation of $15.
  • Friday, October 30, 7 p.m.: violinist Eric Grossman performs with cellist Cecilia Grossman and pianist Lida Grossman in a program of music by Niccolò Paganini, Pablo de Sarasate, Fritz Kreisler and others. Tickets are listed at $25, with registration details still to be posted on Greenwich House's site.

The music school is a few minutes' walk from the Christopher Street/Stonewall station on the 1 and from West 4th Street.

Through October 30: Ryan Flores ceramics on Jones Street

The Jane Hartsook Gallery at Greenwich House Pottery, at 16 Jones Street, is showing The Watchers, a set of new ceramic works by Ryan Flores built around the still life. The exhibition opened in September and closes on Friday, October 30, so this is the last week to see it. The gallery is part of Greenwich House Pottery, which also runs classes, an artist membership studio and a residency program from its Jones Street building.

Wednesday through Saturday: Josiah McElheny at The Kitchen

The Kitchen, the experimental art and performance space founded in 1971, is working from a temporary satellite space at Westbeth Artists Housing, 163B Bank Street, 4th Floor Loft. Its current exhibition, Josiah McElheny: Instrument Object, runs through November 8. In sculpture, painting, installation and drawing made between 2014 and 2026, none of it shown in New York City before, McElheny turns the work of ten musicians and composers into visual form. The list includes Pauline Oliveros, Lucia Dlugoszewski, Julius Eastman, John Cage, Milford Graves, David Grubbs, Big Mama Thornton, Joe McPhee, Wes Montgomery and Sun Ra. Some pieces move, hum with motor gears or light up as visitors walk through the loft.

Gallery hours are Wednesday through Saturday, noon to 6 p.m., and admission is free. The Kitchen says it is about a ten-minute walk from both the 14th Street A, C, E and L station and the 14th Street 1, 2 and 3 station, and about five minutes on foot from the M20 bus stop at Eighth Avenue and Bleecker Street.

Plan your week

Most of these events are free: the pumpkin carving, the salsa night and both gallery shows. The Greenwich House recitals ask for a $15 suggested donation on Thursday and $25 on Friday, and School Pictures is ticketed through the Cherry Lane Theatre. Check each listing before you go, since outdoor events in parks can change with the weather.

Sources