Ten curated Scope NYC picks for Friday, October 30, 2026.
Haunted Heights brings music, Halloween crafts and hands-on science—including lava-lamp making and close-up looks at brains—to Morningside Park’s North Lawn from 3 to 6 p.m.
Jonathan Toubin’s Haunted Hop fills Knockdown Center with live bands, DJs, 16mm horror films, performance and installations. Main all-night tickets are sold out; organizers have limited 1–4 a.m. late-entry tickets for ages 21+.
Pedro Giraudo’s nine-piece Sinfonietta brings a 7 p.m. set to the Jazz Gallery, drawing on jazz, tango, classical music and Afro-Cuban and Afro-Peruvian sounds.
Daniel Gwirtzman Dance Company’s evening-length FRICTION puts AI, human connection and technological tension into an intermission-free dance program at Ailey.
Reel Rock 20 brings the climbing-film series to Symphony Space at 7 p.m., with new stories from the world of rock climbing.
At UrbanGlass, Grain uses choreography, sand-filled costumes and a live sound score to explore the material’s human and ecological history, then invites the audience into a conversation.
Les Savy Fav bring their volatile, long-running art-punk show to Music Hall of Williamsburg for an 8 p.m. set.
Too Many Zooz bring their brass-driven street-band energy to Brooklyn Bowl with Thundersmack at 8 p.m.
Abrons presents Shadow of the Unhinged at 8 p.m. The Cantonese play follows a rebel in a psychiatric ward and includes Chinese and English subtitles.
The Bell House hosts hABBAween, an 8 p.m. Halloween night built around ABBA’s dance-floor catalog.