1. The marvelous Franklin Park Reading Series kicks off their seventh season with an evening of short fiction from lit luminaries Marie-Helene Bertino, Amber Sparks, Greg Gerke, May-Lan Tan, and Rahawa Haile. (Monday, FREE)
2. It’s another killer Night Train with Wyatt Cenac at Littlefield, one of the most consistently terrific comedy evenings, tonight featuring Kurt Braunohler, Claudia Cogan, Kevin Avery, Hari Kondabolu, and more. (Monday, $5)
3. Show your lyrical stylings at BRIC’s Brooklyn Poetry Slam at Fort Greene’s BRIC House, hosted by Mahogany L. Browne and featuring award-winning performance poet Eboni Hogan, with music by DJ Jive Poetic. (Tuesday, FREE)
4. The Society for the Advancement of Social Studies has a perfect new year’s theme for this month’s show: the history of the future. The evening’s lectures at The Bedford in Williamsburg include “Visions of the Future at the World’s Fairs,” “The Failure of The Future Kitchen,” and “The History of the Future of Work.” (Tuesday, FREE)
5. What’s better than an evening of Brooklyn comedy? An evening of Brooklyn comedy with free food, obvs. Boerum Hill dive Hank’s Saloon presents Devour Hour, with jokesters including Justin Williams, Emily Winter and Courtney Maginnis, plus free empanadas. (Wednesday, FREE)
6. If you’d rather drink away your Wednesday, get yourself to Bed-Stuy’s Glorietta Baldy for Beerded Ladies’ Beer Geek Trivia, featuring sudsy prizes, tap specials, and a tasty selection of brews from Greenpoint Beer & Ale Co. (Wednesday, FREE)
7. Opera on Tap has been touting the magic of opera in alternative spaces for an incredible 10 years. Come to Freddy’s in Park Slope to congratulate them on going strong for a whole decade, and you’ll be treated to a raucous night of opera, beer, raffles, live-band karaoke, and more vibrato than you can shake a stick at. (Thursday, FREE)
8. For a queer night of artfulness, head to Bizarre in Bushwick for Sasha Velour’s Nightgowns, featuring glamorous alt-drag performances by Delighted Tobehere, Olive d’Nightlife, Lola St Lords, and Sasha herself. (Thursday, $10)
9. The Exponential Festival is Brooklyn’s newest theatrical smorgasbord, with plays presented over the next two weeks at Bushwick Starr, Brick Theater, Cloud City and Silent Barn. Tonight choose between offerings from Banana Bag & Bodice, Title:Point, and more. (Friday, varies)
10. Experience world music in a very intimate setting at Bushwick’s Bunna Café, which will host Addis Ababa performance troupe Fendika, featuring dancers, singers, and traditional Ethiopian instruments including kebero drums, masenko, and krar. (Friday, $10)
Want more? Check out our full events calendar and add your own events too!