Laverne Cox, Beth Leavel & More in NYC'S Summer 2025 Top Concerts & Cabaret
Check out our top cabaret, comedy, jazz and more for Summer 2025 in New York
By: Rebecca Kaplan Jun. 30, 2025
Summer has just begun, and our calendar is already filled with events we can’t wait to watch. We’ve put together eight of the concerts we’re most looking forward to with something for everyone at a range of budget points ranging original RENT co-stars Adam Pascal and Anthony Rapp to interactive French opera, jazz and comedy to a Deaf production of Waitress at Lincoln Center Plaza.
Adam Pascal and Anthony Rapp: CELEBRATING FRIENDSHIP AND HISTORY at 54 Below
Tues. July 1 to Sun. July 6 @ 7 pm
Adam Pascal and Anthony Rapp, original stars of RENT, return to 54 Below by popular demand in their hit duo show, this time with some brand new exciting songs added!
In this special 11-performance engagement, Adam and Anthony bring their friendship and history together for an unforgettable and celebratory night of music, stories and fun.
Expect songs from various projects throughout their careers, music that has influenced their lives, and of course a few of the iconic hits from where it all began- meeting at RENT.
I saw this show last year, and it was nonstop fun.
Tickets: Tickets start at $117.50. There is a $25 Food & Beverage Minimum.
Catherine Russell at Damrosch Park
Fri. July 11 @ 6:30 pm
Free show; reservations available here.
When you take one of the greatest jazz vocalists of this generation and put her on stage with one of the world's premiere big bands, you get a night you'll never forget! Trumpeter and bandleader Danny Jonokuchi's 17-piece band is one of the most popular dance ensembles on the jazz scene, conjuring up the height of Savoy Ballroom swing.
GRAMMY winner and three-time nominee jazz vocalist Catherine Russell is a native New Yorker born into musical royalty. Her father, Luis Russell, was a legendary pianist, bandleader, and Louis Armstrong’s longtime music director. During this special night, Catherine Russell will perform historic Louis Armstrong big band arrangements, newly restored by Jonokuchi, in partnership with the Louis Armstrong House Museum. You’ll hear songs performed live for the first time since the 1940s! Arrive early for a warm-up DJ session and lesson from our dance instructor and you'll be ready to swing out on The Dance Floor.
Tickets: There are two ways to access this free event:
1. General Admission, first-come first-served. Just show up!
2. Fast Track opening the Monday before the event at noon for all. Or, become a Member and get a Fast Track pass for priority entry all summer long.
Versailles in Printemps - The Affair of the Poisons at Printemps New York
Mon. July 21 @ 7 pm
Death of Classical, a group offering boutique site-specific concerts with a nod towards modern classical, presents the Versailles Royal Opera Orchestra, legends of French Opera, in their New York début, part of their first ever tour of the United States, for two evenings of extravagant music-making, Versailles in New York. (The second evening is Weds. July 23: info is available on the DOC website here.) DOC puts on some of the most unique, inventive and memorable concerts I've ever seen; you can't go wrong with their shows.
This one-of-a-kind, immersive after-hours experience, conceived and directed by Death of Classical Founder and Artistic Director Andrew Ousley, will take place throughout the exquisite new retail and hospitality concept Printemps New York at One Wall Street. The evening will explore a pivotal historic moment in Louis XIV's court, a tale of palace intrigue laced with poison and steeped in superstition and witchcraft, from a Black Mass to a murder plot involving Louis' favorite mistress.
Centered around a performance by the Versailles Royal Opera Orchestra, audience members will wander through the different spaces, encountering interactive performances while enjoying complimentary food curated by Printemps New York, wine selections from the acclaimed Bouchaine Vineyards, and more.
Attendees are strongly encouraged to embrace the spirit of the show, so don your finest Court attire and your frilliest Rococo frippery, and let's party like it's 1699.
Tickets: Tickets are at $187.50. That may seem a bit steep but it includes complimentary food curated by Printemps New York, wine selections from the acclaimed Bouchaine Vineyards, and more.
Waitress: The Musical In American Sign Language by Deaf Broadway at The Dance Floor at Josie Robertson Plaza (Lincoln Center Plaza)
Weds. July 23 @ 8 pm
Free show; reservations available here.
In just five short years, Deaf Broadway has become synonymous with authentically Deaf musical theater. The organization was founded during the 2020 pandemic in response to artistic director Garrett Zuercher's experience with the state of Deaf access to performances of lyrically complex musicals, which too often water down the nuance of the original work’s language and intentions. Taking up the gauntlet, he and his team began producing American Sign Language interfaces of popular musicals. Eventually, the company began staging the prerecorded audio performance of the musical, presented live by a trained Deaf cast acting their individual parts in ASL. Following their productions of RENT and Once on This Island, this remarkable company returns to Lincoln Center with a live staging of the Broadway smash Waitress by Sara Bareilles and Jessie Nelson—offering a more equitable shared evening for hearing and Deaf audiences alike, showcasing a full Deaf Broadway cast performing the music through ASL with direction by Sandra Mae Frank.
Tickets: There are two ways to access this free event:
1. General Admission, first-come first-served. Just show up!
2. Fast Track opening the Monday before the event at noon for all. Or, become a Member and get a Fast Track pass for priority entry all summer long.
Laverne Cox: Gurrl How Did I Get Here? at City Winery
Mon. July 28 @ 8 pm
Trailblazing performer Laverne Cox invites you on an unforgettable journey through the twists and turns of her life and groundbreaking career with humor, heart, and a few fabulous wardrobe changes. Laverne shares raw stories of love, loss, trauma, triumph and everything in between. From moments that broke her to those that made her, Laverne charts a path of resilience, reinvention, and radical self love. She’s learned a little, laughed a lot, and she’s ready to spill the tea.
Tickets: Tickets start at $45. There is a $25 food & beverage minimum.
Beth Leavel Sings Sondheim at 54 Below
Thurs. July 31 to Sun. August 3 @ 7 pm
Tony Award® winner Beth Leavel is back to light up the stage at 54 Below with a brand new show celebrating the great Stephen Sondheim!
Beth just finished a triumphant run in Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends on Broadway. You know Beth and her show-stopping belt from such beloved Broadway hits as The Prom and The Drowsy Chaperone. After several sold out 54 Below engagements, Beth is delighted, terrified, and thrilled to now bring Sondheim’s brilliance to 54 Below. Let the storytelling begin.
Leavel is a powerful singer and masterful interpreter of Sondheim's work, with the deft comedic skill and emotional depth needed to nail his songs. Read BWW writer Ricky Pope’s review of the show here.
Tickets: Tickets start at $84.50. There is a $25 Food & Beverage Minimum.
Julie Benko: MY FANNY VALENTINE at Birdland
Mon. August 4 @ 7 pm
Step into the golden age of American song as Broadway sensation Julie Benko (Funny Girl, Harmony) returns to Birdland for a one-night-only celebration of the timeless music of Richard Rodgers. With new arrangements by pianist Jason Yeager, Benko brings fresh interpretations to beloved songs from Rodgers’ legendary partnerships with Lorenz Hart, Oscar Hammerstein II, and beyond. Don’t miss this unforgettable evening of sophisticated swing, heartfelt storytelling, and musical artistry at its finest—“a lovely night” indeed!
Benko is a masterful jazz singer and true comedic talent with a phenomenal band helmed by her husband. Read a review of her annual Mardi Gras show here.
Tickets: Tickets are $45.76 with a $20 minimum on food or drinks per person.
Youngmi Mayer: HAIRY BUTTHOLE at Joe's Pub
Weds. August 13 @ 7 pm & Thurs. August 14 @ 9:30 pm
Hairy Butthole is a one-person show featuring Youngmi Mayer, one of the comics featured on Vulture's list of “Comedians You Should and Will Know” in 2024, based on the Korean saying "If you laugh while crying, hair will grow out of your butthole." The show follows highlights of her life based loosely on her memoir, I'm Laughing Because I'm Crying. It is a sad comedy show designed to make the audience laugh and cry at the same time.
This performance is part of the Joe’s Pub Vanguard Residency curated by Margaret Cho.
Tickets: Tickets are $30 (inclusive of advance phone/web service fee; door price). There is a 2 drink or 1 food item minimum, per person, during every show at Joe's Pub.
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