This and That: Events, Parties, and Things To Do in NYC in July 2025 (with Free Events!)
Get ready for a jam-packed July in NYC filled with high-energy parties, mesmerizing art exhibitions, legendary fireworks, and two opportunities to see Rita Ora live in NYC. These are the best events in NYC for July 2025.
FREE EVENT: FAINA: The Shape of Vitality & Drevo
FAINA: The Shape of Vitality & Drevo. Image: Provided.
What’s happening: The Ukrainian Institute of America presents a stirring dual exhibition by Victoria Yakusha, one of Ukraine’s most visionary cultural voices. Through a living retrospective and a new body of sculptural steel engravings, Yakusha invites visitors to explore design as ancestral memory and quiet resistance. The Shape of Vitality traces a decade of emotional, biomorphic form-making, while Drevo reclaims domestic ritual through engraved steel panels inspired by the Tree of Life. Together, they offer a meditative encounter with presence, power, and cultural endurance.
Why go: This is more than design—it’s legacy, devotion, and reclamation. A rare U.S. showcase from a Dezeen Top 50 Woman in Design, Yakusha’s practice bridges contemporary minimalism with deep Ukrainian craft traditions. The works on view honor generations of women, tell stories through material, and remind us how form can hold history. Drevo is especially poignant: hand-engraved in steel, each piece carries the name of a Ukrainian woman, preserving protective symbols once painted on village homes. The pieces are situated in the extraordinary architecture of the Ukrainian Institute.
What's involved: Furniture, sculpture, steel engravings, ancestral symbolism, and cultural memory in an extraordinary architectural space.
Now until Thursday, July 10, 2025 from 12:00 PM until 6:00 PM daily at Ukrainian Institute of America, 2 E 79th Street, New York, NY 10075. Information here.
444 Party at Le Bain & The Rooftop
The Rooftop. Image: Standard Hotels.
What’s happening: Le Bain’s legendary rooftop throws open its doors for the most liberating celebration of summer—444 on the 4th, a twelve-hour sound odyssey from sundown to sunrise. Sip cocktails under a fiery sky, watch fireworks burst above the Hudson, and dance through dusk as Manhattan blinks to life behind you. Come for the view, stay for the community: it’s a ritual of joy, rhythm, and sweat.
Why go: Because nowhere does Independence Day like Le Bain. From sunset grooves to late-night heat, 444 gathers a devoted crowd of dancers, artists, and nightlife romantics for an unforgettable rooftop immersion. With sets by Sights & Sounds by day and Zillion & Friends after dark, this year’s lineup offers pure elevation—set against the backdrop of skyline, water, and night.
What’s involved: 12 hours of rooftop dancing, two DJ collectives, sunset views, and fireworks
Friday July 4, 2025 from 4:00 PM until 4:00 AM at Le Bain & The Rooftop, The Standard, High Line, 848 Washington Street, New York, NY 10014. Table reservations here.
FREE EVENT: Macy’s 4th of July Fireworks
What’s happening: The 49th Macy’s Fireworks show returns with more than 80,000 pyrotechnic shells lighting up NYC’s skyline. The city is offering 100,000 free tickets for front-row views from Brooklyn Bridge Park and The Seaport. Expect synchronized projection mapping, skyline bursts, and a sea of red, white, and blue.
Why go: One of America’s largest Independence Day celebrations is bigger than ever—and this year’s show includes stunning effects on the Brooklyn Bridge and citywide road closures to prioritize walkers and wheelchair users. It’s New York’s favorite kind of civic spectacle: massive, free, and unforgettable.
What’s involved: Fireworks, East River skyline views.
Friday, July 4th, 2025 from 8:00 PM until 10:00 PM at Brooklyn Bridge Park and The Seaport, Pier 16–17. Information and tickets here.
27th Annual International Keyboard Institute and Festival
Jerome Rose. Image: Kaufman Music Center.
What’s happening:The city's most intimate and ambitious piano gathering returns for a week of concerts and masterclasses at Kaufman Music Center. From Beethoven’s “Pathétique” to Stravinsky’s Firebird, each evening spotlights virtuoso pianists like Llewellyn Sanchez-Werner, Jerome Rose, Pablo Rossi, and Martín García García on the Merkin Hall stage.
Why go: Whether you're a student or simply enchanted by piano, this is an unparalleled chance to hear major works interpreted by masters in a focused, world-class setting. Sit in on daylong lessons or come just for the nightly drama of Liszt and Rachmaninoff.
What’s involved: Masterclasses, nightly concerts, elite pianists.
Monday, July 7th through Saturday, July 12, 2025, concerts nightly at 8:00 PM at Merkin Hall, Kaufman Music Center, 129 W 67th Street, NYC. Information and tickets here.
JAPAN CUTS: Festival of New Japanese Film
Japan Cuts 2025. Image: Japan Cuts.
What’s happening: Japan Society hosts the 18th edition of North America’s largest Japanese film festival, with 30+ screenings across eleven days. Highlights include avant-garde animations like ChaO, a rare 35mm revival of License to Live, and in-person appearances from director Kiyoshi Kurosawa and actress Yuumi Kawai. The event is powered by GU.
Why go: From art-house debuts to futuristic fairytales, this is the most direct, thrilling bridge between contemporary Japan and NYC cinephiles. Expect red carpets, sake, premieres, and a cultural exchange rooted in bold visual storytelling and fearless filmmaking.
What’s involved: Film screenings, red carpet talks, closing shochu party
Thursday July 10 through Sunday July 20, 2025 at Japan Society, 333 E 47th Street, New York, NY 10017. Tickets and full lineup here.
FIFA x Big Art Festival: A Night on Wall Street
FIFA x Big Art Festival: A Night on Wall Street. Image: FIFA.
What’s happening: FIFA celebrates its inaugural Club World Cup in NYC with a glittering black-tie gala at Casa Cipriani featuring Rita Ora and an immersive show directed by Raffaele Riccio. This exclusive evening bridges global football, luxury, and culture.
Why go: Hosted by FIFA—the world’s governing body for international football—the gala honors the first-ever U.S. edition of the FIFA Club World Cup, a tournament uniting champion clubs from every continent. Expect football royalty, world-class dining, and Rita Ora live in one of the most opulent settings in Lower Manhattan.
What’s involved: Cocktail reception, gala dinner and performances.
Dress code: Black tie.
Thursday July 10, 2025 at Cipriani Wall Street from 7:00PM onward. Information and tickets by phone: (+48 726 235 622) or here.
FREE EVENT: The Hill in New York: Wimbledon at Brooklyn Bridge Park
The Hill in New York. iMAGE: Mike Lawrence via AELTC.
What’s happening: Wimbledon, the world’s oldest and most prestigious tennis tournament, recreates its famous garden viewing experience in NYC for the fourth year running. Fans can gather for a weekend of live screenings of the Wimbledon finals in a riverside English garden-style setting at Brooklyn Bridge Park—complete with strawberries and cream, classic matches, and a Friday night concert headlined by Rita Ora.
Why go: For tennis lovers, this is the next best thing to Centre Court. For everyone else, it’s a dreamlike three-day riverside experience—lawn chairs, English florals, and world-class matches broadcast live from London.
What’s involved: Opening night concert on Friday; daytime match screenings and Saturday and Sunday.
Friday July 11th to Sunday July 13, 2025 at Empire Fulton Ferry, Brooklyn Bridge Park. Free with ballot entry. Information and tickets here.
Punch Room Ginza at The New York EDITION
Tokyo Punch Room Ginza. iMAGE: The Tokyo Edition Ginza.
What’s happening: Tokyo’s Punch Room Ginza lands at The New York EDITION for one exclusive night of refined cocktail service, where Japanese precision meets moody Madison Square Park glamour. Expect seasonally infused punches served with ceremony.
Why go: Punch Room Ginza is celebrated for its elegant, Japanese-influenced cocktail rituals, served in moody, intimate lounges inspired by London’s original Punch Room. This NYC edition offers a rare chance to sip refined punches made with seasonal ingredients and meticulous technique, all without leaving Manhattan.
What’s involved: High-end cocktails, stylish Tokyo–NYC crossover, DJ.
Friday July 18, 2025 at The Lobby Bar, The New York EDITION, 5 Madison Ave, NY 10010. Information here.
