HERE Arts Center to Host Happy Hours @ HERE Series This August

HERE Arts Center will host a series of happy hour events this August, offering free admission, discounted drinks, and a rotating lineup of performances and pop-up vendors at its Lower Manhattan lobby bar. The series is overseen by Co-Directors Jesse Cameron Alick, Annalisa Dias, and Lanxing Fu.

Philip Santos Schaffer at HERE's DIVE Gala

HERE's inaugural Happy Hour on Thursday, August 6th from 5pm-7pm will feature live music from local singer-songwriter Philip Santos Schaffer (HERE's Director of Marketing and External Affairs). Philip's musical work has been seen at HERE and Joe's Pub, and their musical projects have been developed with The Assembly and University Settlement. Join Philip and Phriends for a curated evening of covers, and originals spanning such topics as temporality, climate apocalypse, the evils of Ronald Reagan, and the joys of exploring gender. $5 wine and $7 beers will be available at the lobby bar. Admission is FREE and open to everyone, and attendees are welcome to drop in at any time.

On Tuesday, August 11th from 5-7pm, Happy Hours @ HERE will feature trivia! With an eclectic mix of categories across arts and culture, this is an opportunity for the slightly more esoterically minded to thrive (no sports categories). Come with a team, or join one and make your new best friends! Admission is open and free, and drinks will be discounted.

The final Happy Hour in the series will take place on Friday, August 21st, from 3-5pm. Join Chef Ira of chop//serve, a developing food and hospitality project offering intentional, personable, and unique dining experiences across the greater New York metro area. HERE's 8/21 Happy Hour will also feature jewelry and garment vendor Nastypatty, creating statement pieces for statement people.

The Happy Hours @ HERE series will culminate in HERE's Season Kick-Off party on Saturday, September 19th from 3-6pm celebrating the launch of HERE's 33rd season. 2026-27 artists and HERE community members will gather to toast the year ahead and preview what's coming with complimentary food and drink and special pop-up performances.

HERE's lobby will be open during regular business hours all summer offering free wifi and serving as a living room for the neighborhood's funkiest, most offbeat, most genuinely avant-garde community.

About HERE Arts Center

Since 1993, HERE Arts Center has been one of New York's most prolific arts organizations. Today, it stands at the forefront of the city's cultural scene, producing and presenting daring, new, multidisciplinary performance experiences. From its home in Lower Manhattan, HERE builds an inclusive community that nurtures artists of all backgrounds as they disrupt conventional expectations to create innovative performances in theatre, dance, music, puppetry, media, and visual art. By providing these genre-blending artists with an adaptive, flexible home for developing and producing their work, HERE shares a range of perspectives reflective of the complexity of the city. HERE welcomes curious audiences to witness groundbreaking performances, responsive to the world in which we live, at free and affordable prices.

Under the leadership of Co-Directors Jesse Cameron Alick, Annalisa Dias, and Lanxing Fu, HERE continues to evolve as a home for artists and audiences alike. Appointed by the Board in 2024, the Co-Directors collaboratively lead the artistic and executive functions of the organization, shaping its vision, programming, and community engagement. HERE strives to create an equitable, diverse, and inclusive home in which all people have fair access to the resources they need to realize their visions. HERE acknowledges structural inequities that exclude individuals and communities from opportunities based on race, gender, disability, sexual orientation, class, age, and geography, and seeks to counter those inequities in its work. Through mindful actions on sustainability and regenerative practices, HERE works toward climate justice, and a safe, livable planet for present and future artmakers and audiences. www.here.org

The Happy Hours @ HERE series is set to lead into HERE's Season Kick-Off party, marking the launch of the organization's 33rd season with food, drink, and pop-up performances for artists and community members.

Photo Credit: Marcus Middleton

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