A Baker’s Dozen Items On My Fall Agenda

Tables at ABT's 2025 Fall Gala

The sun is taking its sweet time to rise, the ballet and opera are back on stage, and seasonal menus were updated overnight. I completed my master’s last fall semester, so this is my first “free” fall in a while. Instead of transferring assignments and their due dates from syllabi to my planner, I’m penciling in these activities to celebrate the season:

1. NYC Ballet

The New York City Ballet kicked the season off with my favorite Balanchine ballet, Jewels. It’s been a while since they’ve performed all three acts—“Emeralds,” “Rubies,” and “Diamonds”—together. I’ve had a poster of (and signed by) Maria Kowroski as the “Tall Girl” in Rubies hanging in my room since I was maybe six years old, so I literally think about it every day and night. I luckily managed to snag $30 for 30® tickets for both opening night and the following Thursday. Later in the season, the Fall Fashion Gala is always on my radar, as is any farewell performance—this fall, for Adrian Danchig-Waring.

Playbill from September 2026

2. Salem

My youngest sister and I attempted to book an October weekend trip to Salem, but our Airbnb canceled on us. How rude! We already have train tickets to Boston, so as long as we find some other place to stay, we’re still hoping to explore the area. We’re aware it will be hectic, but we can’t help wanting to be in the middle of all the festivities to people-watch. Considering I won’t be able to party on Halloween this year (I’m running my first full marathon on November 1!), I might need to book a second post-Halloween trip to process it all.

Witches in my neighborhood

3. Nighttime Light Trail

There are so many places to do this every fall, from the Hudson Valley’s Great Jack O’Lantern Blaze to New York Botanical Garden’s The Nightmare Before Christmas Light Trail. The Harry Potter: A Forbidden Forest Experience and Roger Williams Park Zoo’s Jack-O-Lantern Spectacular are also enticing. It just occurred to me how fun it could be to run through one of these. I’ll have to see if any of them host an after-dark race.

The Nightmare Before Christmas decorations

4. Wine Run

Speaking of races, I’ve been wanting to do a wine run for the past few years, ideally through a gorgeous vineyard. I haven’t been to many, as someone who can’t drive, so I’ll have to convince a friend to join me. This dream of mine could come true at Sakonnet Vineyard in Little Compton, Rhode Island, where a quick 5K is apparently followed by dinner, wine, and music. I also found the Wineglass Race Series in Corning, New York, up in the Finger Lakes region. I’m obsessed with their Pinot Half Marathon medal! I have one last race, the Staten Island Half on October 11, before my marathon, so I’ll have to see what I can comfortably squeeze in.

A vineyard in Saint-Émilion, France

5. Lyndhurst Mansion

Another Halloween-specific thing I’ve been meaning to do is to visit Lyndhurst Mansion. They have so many “Halloween Season Events” to choose from! It looks like their “Masquerade of the Red Death” party is sold out, but I’m actually more intrigued by their immersive theater rendition of Edgar Allan Poe’s The Masque of the Red Death. I’m hoping (and sure) it will be step up from the two recitations of “The Raven” in Gilmore Girls.

From FX's Grotesquerie: The Feast immersive dining event

6. Pumpkin Spice

I already had my first PSL at Paris Baguette last week—technically their Pumpkin Streusel Latte. The cinnamon streusel topping was a nice touch. I also tried Magnolia Bakery’s Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes with Biscoff®. I love cookie butter, but I thought the filling overpowered the pumpkin spice flavor. My next pumpkin spice item will likely be Van Leeuwen’s Pumpkin Spice & Vanilla Fro-Yo. I am patiently waiting for my mother to return from a trip to make her signature pumpkin soup again, but perhaps I should try my own iteration. I want to perfect a classic pumpkin pie, too, maybe using the same crust I used for a summer Strawberry Rhubarb Custard pie. Oh, and pumpkin bars, which I’ve already tried several recipes for over the past few years! They’re a favorite at Friendsgiving dinners.

Pumpkin Streusel Latte from Paris Baguette

7. Other Seasonal Delicacies

There’s so much more to fall than just pumpkin spice! Maple might be my number-one favorite flavor, especially when I’m in Canada. I just picked up some local maple syrup and other goodies made by Wood Homestead from the Union Square Greenmarket. One of my bucket-list items is to go on a Maple Creemee tour in Vermont, but, again, I will need a companion who can drive for that… unless the Trail is on a runnable route. Apple picking always sounds fun, but that’s another activity I’d prefer with a car. I’ve actually found some of my favorite varieties at my local farmers’ market. Winesap, Macoun, Crimson Crisp, and Evercrisp are my personal recommendations. I'm curious to try these in cider form if I can find them anywhere. Or, is that something else I should experiment making myself?

Apples from the farmers' market

8. ABT

Circling back to ballet, I am also looking forward to American Ballet Theatre’s Fall Season. There were three principal promotions this past summer, one of which I got to witness in person! All three are certainly worth seeing, but I’ll primarily have my eye on Takumi Miyake, one of their new soloists. Compared to their Summer Seasons at the Metropolitan Opera House, I’m not particularly crazy about their fall repertoire, but I will try to attend at least one show from each program. While last year’s Fall Gala honoring Misty Copeland will be unmatched from a dancer of color’s perspective, this year’s might be comparable to any fans of Cynthia Erivo. Having recently seen her perform Dracula solo in the West End, I may have to go honor her, too.

ABT's 2025 Fall Gala Honoring Misty Copeland

9. Jazz

I was an avid jazzhead pre-COVID but have shied away from the scene since. I've only checked out select events in the last five years, but after seeing Samara Joy put on a fabulous (free!) set at Central Park's SummerStage a few weeks ago, I'm feeling the itch to step back into it. There are so many new venues I have yet to see, with The Pocket and Close Up at the top of my list (the former of which was started by a former manager of mine!). Robert Glasper's "Robtober" residency at Blue Note is a fall staple in the industry. BRIC Jazz Fest will challenge the idea that the genre is for older audiences by emulsifying it with more up-to-date, even futuristic, sounds.

Keyon Harrold performing at Blue Note

10. Museums

As a recent museology grad and now pro (pinch me!), visiting museums is a pretty regular outing for me. However, I still learn something new from every visit, even if it is at a museum or exhibition I’ve already seen. I’ll list a few upcoming exhibitions I’m eagerly anticipating, in order of their opening date: John Quidor: New York Stories at The New York Historical, Kent Monkman: Officer and Laughing Girl at The Frick Collection; Ragtime: Cakewalk in Pianoland at The Morgan Library and Museum; and NYC Glam: The 60s – 80s at the Nassau County Museum of Art.

From LOUVRE COUTURE - Art and Fashion: Statement Pieces

11. Horses

I started learning to ride in 2020 and was quite consistent with lessons until last year. I was a regular volunteer at GallopNYC until they abruptly closed one of their locations in my neighborhood. I'm now reading The Tale of the Horse: A History of India on Horseback to get back in the saddle mentally and plan to physically get back in the saddle after my marathon. I am looking for a new barn for lessons, but I might resume the journey with a few relaxing hacks to take in New York and New England’s renowned fall foliage.

Post-lesson hack in Pawling, NY

12. To Read

We’re heading into the final quarter of the year, and I am, yet again, behind on my annual reading goal of 36 books. In addition to The Tale of the Horse, I am wrapping up Lucy Maud Montgomery’s The Blythes Are Quoted, the sequel to her classic Anne of Green Gables series. While I am not an official member of any book clubs, I will read Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream ahead of ABT’s Pop-Up Book Club discussion on how the company converts the play into ballet form in Frederick Ashton’s The Dream. I will also be cramming Ovid’s Metamorphoses in hopes of hearing Jhumpa Lahiri, the author I look up to most, deliver a lecture at Princeton University on her process of translating the work for a new publication releasing in May 2027.

A recent read

13. To Watch

Gilmore Girls is always a favorite of mine for fall, but unfortunately, I already binged it this summer. I also just finished Pretty Little Liars for the second time this year, so I need a break from A. I just restarted Gossip Girl, influenced by spending more days in my office on the Upper East Side. For October, I am coming up with a calendar of Halloween-themed movies for each day of the month. Finally, I plan to recover from running the marathon by watching the fourth season of The Gilded Age in bed.

Pretty Little Liars in bed with a cat

Do you have any special plans this fall?