Yeah, Mom is the one who calls all the time, but the truth is, Dad wants to spend time with you, too! Here are my Top 5 picks for things to do with Dad this Father’s Day, Sunday, June 16th, 2013. And as always with Cheap Date Philadelphia, my ideas cost $15 or less per person. After all, you should be able to hang out with your dad at least once a year without having to ask if he can spot you a $20 when the bill comes, right?
Philly is full of great odd-ball movie events where you get to see cool flicks in non-traditional settings. The $3 Monday Movies at the Trocadero, and the free Secret Cinema series are two of my favorites, and now the MST3K-style Mega Bad Movie Night at the Academy of Natural Sciences has also made the list! This museum-based event, which only happens a few times each year, screens “awesomely awful” movies, like Bigfoot, Sharktopus and Mega Piranha. The flicks are spectacularly campy with ridiculous plot leaps and antiquated special effects, which makes great comic fodder for the Academy’s own experts who contribute Mystery Science Theater 3000-style commentary during the screening. The $15 ticket includes the movie, free food and drink, and museum admission, so make the most of your ticket by arriving when doors open at 6:30, and checking out the exhibits at the Academy. Massive dinosaur skeletons, wildlife dioramas and a butterfly garden…
Every Wednesday until August 29th, from 5-8pm, the Penn Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology hosts a live music series in its verdant courtyard garden as part of its Summer Nights Music Series. Located at 3260 South Street, at the intersection of Spruce and 33rd, the lush and stately museum garden will make you feel like you have been transported away from the city to another time and place – making it the perfect setting for the diverse musical acts featured by the series which come from all over the globe. For a mere $5, you get entry to the garden concert, as well as the museum’s intriguing Maya 2012 exhibit! Beverages (alcoholic and non) and light snacks are available from the Pepper Mill Cafe’s garden bar. Here’s the lineup for the rest of the Wednesdays this summer: July 25 Magdaliz and Her Trio Crisol - A Latin ensemble dedicated to the interpretation of folk and traditional music from all over Latin America and…
Museums make great dates. And the Philadelphia Museum of Art is world-class. But at $16 a head, it’s sadly out of range for this cheap dater. And though the museum kindly offers pay-what-you-wish admission on the first Sunday of every month, those days are predictably crowded – not necessarily the laid-back atmosphere you’re looking for on a date. What most people don’t realize, however, is that the Art Museum is not just the big building on the hill; it also includes the Ruth and Raymond G. Perelman Building just across the street. With a stunning art deco facade outside, and sleek modern exhibit spaces inside, the Perelman is plenty impressive in it’s own right. The Perelman has showcased many of the museum’s collections, sometimes for the first time, yet it’s hardly ever mobbed. And because it is a smaller space, you can see everything in one visit without feeling overwhelmed,…
On the first Friday of every month, Philadelphia’s art galleries stay open late and welcome everyone — from casual passerby to serious collectors — to come in and peruse their current curations. The aptly dubbed “First Friday” has been happening, rain or shine, since 1991, and has become one of the city’s most visible and popular events. Although historically focused on the 40+ galleries between Front and Vine and Market and 3rd streets in Old City, First Friday open houses are now hosted by galleries all over the city, from Space 1026 in Chinatown to the Projects Gallery in Northern Liberties to Highwire in Fishtown. The best thing about this expansion is that, even though every First Friday shares the same core elements, depending on who’s showing what where, you can have a radically different experience every single time. How cheap we talkin’: FREE! Why this will impress your date: Because you can show you…
The Philadelphia Institute for Contemporary Art (“ICA”), located at 118 South 36th street on Penn’s campus in University City, is a nationally recognized museum dedicated to exhibiting innovative painting, art, and sculpture by contemporary (i.e., living) artists. Founded in 1963, the museum gave Andy Warhol his first museum exhibition, and continues to have a reputation for identifying emerging bright stars in the art world. The ICA is closed Mondays and Tuesdays, but stays open until 8pm on Wednesdays for “Whenever Wednesdays,” a rotating series of lectures, discussions, and screenings, usually connected somehow with the current exhibits. The best part? It’s FREE! That means that you’ll have plenty of cash left to indulge in a drink or a bite at a spot nearby, like the cozy and popular White Dog Cafe. How cheap we talkin’: Admission is FREE! The rest is up to you. Besides, White Dog, other fun watering holes near the ICA include POD…
