Costumed dogs on the Riverside Park promenade, a Halloween pickleball tournament, a 1927 silent horror comedy with live piano and a Pulitzer Prize winner hosting a night of short fiction are on the Upper West Side calendar between October 20 and 27, 2026. Here is what is happening, where and what it costs.

Riverside Park Pup Halloween Parade, Saturday, October 24

Riverside Park's annual dog costume parade steps off from Dinosaur Playground at 96th Street and marches north to Ellington in the Park at West 105th Street, from noon to 3 p.m. It is free and is organized by Summer on the Hudson, the Riverside Park Conservancy's public programs series. The rain date is Sunday, October 25. The 1 train stops at 96th Street and Broadway; walk west to Riverside Drive.

Halloween Pickleball Tournament, Sunday, October 25

The Riverside Park Conservancy is holding a Halloween-themed pickleball tournament and fundraiser at the Riverside Park pickleball courts from 1 to 3 p.m. Ticket sales and donations go to the upkeep of the courts, which the Conservancy says now have new fencing. The round robin is open to all levels, every player is guaranteed at least three matches, and no DUPR rating is needed (scores will not count toward DUPR). Players buy entry, and spectators can RSVP, through the Conservancy's Eventbrite page. The rain date is Sunday, November 1, at the same time.

Free fall classes at the 102nd Street Field House

The renovated Field House at 102nd Street in Riverside Park is running a free weekly fall class schedule through Summer on the Hudson:

  • Yoga, Wednesdays, 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. (including October 21), with instructor Meg SantaMaria, through December 16. No class November 25.
  • Mat Pilates, Thursdays, 11 a.m. to noon (including October 22), with Sweet Water Dance & Yoga, through November 19. Beginners are welcome.
  • Bodyroll, Mondays, 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. (including October 26), a dance and movement class, through December 14. No class November 23.

Bring your own mat. Enter the park at 102nd Street and Riverside Drive, go down to the promenade level and take the stairs across the promenade to the Field House. The 1 train stops at 103rd Street and Broadway.

Selected Shorts with Viet Thanh Nguyen, Wednesday, October 21

Symphony Space's Selected Shorts series holds its annual evening built around The Best American Short Stories anthology at 7 p.m. in the Peter Jay Sharp Theatre, 2537 Broadway at 95th Street. This year's guest editor, the Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Viet Thanh Nguyen (The Sympathizer), hosts. Actors will perform stories by Nathan Blum, Sigrid Nunez and Akhil Sharma. In-person tickets are $19 to $43, and a livestream ticket is $26. The show runs about 105 minutes.

The Cat and the Canary with live accompaniment, Sunday, October 25

The Silent Clowns Film Series at Symphony Space's Leonard Nimoy Thalia, 250 West 95th Street, shows The Cat and the Canary (1927) at 2:30 p.m. as its Halloween feature. The film is a whodunit played partly for laughs and one of the first Universal Pictures horror films. A 1921 short, The New Member, opens the program, and Makia Matsumura plays live accompaniment. Tickets are $12, $11 for members and $9 for seniors.

Tony Shalhoub and Josie Adams, Tuesday, October 27

Actor Tony Shalhoub and his daughter Josie Adams discuss We Thought They'd Never Leave, Shalhoub's first book, a collection of family stories, memories and recipes, with actor Rachel Brosnahan at 7 p.m. in the Peter Jay Sharp Theatre. Tickets of $43 and up include a signed copy of the book; a limited number of $25 companion tickets come without a book. A livestream ticket is $22.

The 1, 2 and 3 trains stop at 96th Street and Broadway, a block from both Symphony Space theaters. Event details and tickets are on the Riverside Park Conservancy, NYC Parks and Symphony Space websites linked below.

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