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Free and cheap things to do (12/7 to 12/9) in NYC. Cultural events in art, music, film, dance, theater, design, architecture, walking tours, food, and cool fun! Plus a smattering of holiday festivities.

1. Design – Art of the Book exhibit. Fri 12/7 & Sat 12/8. 11am to 6pm FREE

2. Music/Fun – Losers Lounge pay tribute to Stevie Wonder 7pm and 9:30pm Fri 12/7. $25.

3. Art/Music/Drinks/Holiday – Asia Society Holiday Celebration. Museum tours, Leotinis, Tea Tasting. Fri 12/7; 6 to 8pm. FREE

4. Music/Art/Drink/Holiday — Brooklyn Magazine Design Launch Holiday Party. Fri 12/7. 8 to 11pm. FREE

5. Film –TropFest Roughcut Film Symposium: the world’s largest short film festival. Fri 12/7. 10am to 4:30pm. $35.

6. Film – Screening of Amos Poe’s Alphabet City (1984): (whatever happened to the cute Vincent Spano?) Fri 12/7 at 7pm $8,

7. Tour/Architecture – Grand Central Tour, Sat 12/8 at 11am $20.

8. Dance – Movement Research Festival Fall 2012. Fri 12/7 & Sat 12/8 at 8pm. $12.

9. Art/Installation – the event of a thread by Ann Hamilton (see post). All weekend 12 to 7pm; Sat 12/8 FREE, other days $12.

10. Film & Festivities – Griswold Family Christmas: screenings of Elf, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation and Gremlins plus festivities: Fri 12/7 & Sat 12/8 $25 check here for tickets and showtimes.

11. Art/Music/Food – Gowanus Nite Market, Artists, Music, Food. Sat 12/8, 7pm to midnight FREE

12. Art/Talk – African-American Artists and Conceptualism: Panel discussion with Naima Keith and Fred Wilson. Sat 12/8 at 2pm Pay what you wish

13. Art – Rosemarie Trockel: A Cosmos at the New Museum. All Weekend. $14 Thursday nights FREE

14. Comedy/Performance – Mike Birbiglia: Working It Out. Sun 12/9 at 10pm. $15

15. Theater – Speaking in Tongues by Andrew Bovell. “Where one story ends, another begins. The same events are retold from different perspectives. Characters reappear, others disappear.” Fri 12/7 & Sat 12/8 at 8pm. Sun 12/9 at 2pm. $18

Check back for updates throughout the weekend. Enjoy!

UPDATES:

Music – Fri 12/7: Join Real Estate, RCRD LBL and MINI USA at a secret location in Williamsburg, Brooklyn at 5:30. FREE

Film – Fri 12/7: Brooklyn Film & Arts Festival screening Brooklyn documentaries. 6:45. FREE
Music – Sun 12/9: 39th Annual Merry Tuba Christmas – hundreds of tuba players play holiday favorites. 3:30pm FREE