Themed Engagement Communities

New York City is home to every kind of theater you can imagine. Broadway, off Broadway, experimental theater, Shakespeare in the Park, and everything in between makes NYC arguably the greatest theatre city in the world. Join this community to meet other theater lovers, explore the diverse range of theater opportunities in NYC, and learn about all things theater related. 3N Theater Arts Company (3NTAC) community members will see theatre productions together, learn about the process of making theatre, and even get the opportunity to produce performances in the residence hall. Activities will include public play readings, field trips to see plays and musicals, a 24-hour original play festival, meetings with working artists, and original 3NTAC productions. This community is open to all students regardless of school or major, so join us and become part of the New York theatre scene!

As part of the Aperture community, you will be encouraged to explore how your identity and your New York story can be expressed through photography. From black and white film to digital images, you and your peers will investigate exhibits, galleries, subways, and city streets while creating a portfolio depicting your first year at NYU. Through a supportive community of fellow photo-buffs, you will have the opportunity to share techniques, learn more about your camera and photography editing techniques, and get out into the city. Capture your vision of the city through field trips to iconic sites like the Brooklyn Bridge and Times Square. Aperture residents are encouraged to exhibit their photographs in the Third North atrium. This floor is a phenomenal opportunity for advanced photographers and for beginners alike, whether you are handy with a SLR camera or just your camera-phone. No experience with photography is necessary, but a sincere interest is encouraged.

Countless films have been set in New York City; whether it’s a classic like The Godfather or the recent Academy Award winner for Best Picture, Birdman. Talented filmmakers like John Cassavetes and NYU alumni, Martin Scorsese and Spike Lee, are known for their work filming in the NYC streets. Big Apple, Big Screen seeks to capture this cinematic spirit of NYC by building a community among first-year film lovers through unique film related outings around the city. Residents will be encouraged to actively learn about, engage, in, and discuss cinema. The Big Apple, Big Screen community will visit famous locations in film such as Sleepy Hollow and various cinemas and studios like the Little Airplane animation studio. Other activities include outings to see the newest film releases, film and documentary screenings, film seminars and workshops, and discussions about cinema and film over food.

Ever wonder what the Eagles meant by in a “New York Minute” or why the Beastie Boys crooned “No Sleep ‘till Brooklyn?” From rock to classical, New York City is the center for emerging musical talent. Come and learn about musical movements, examine emerging trends, and share your appreciation of music with others. F.A.M.E. will explore music through concerts and music events around NYC, documentary screenings, and active discussion and collaboration. Whether it’s a classical concert from the NY Philharmonic or seeing The Weekend at the Barclay's Center in Brooklyn, this community has a place for every kind of music lover. Emphasis will be placed not only on external sources of musical influence, but also on student expression through opportunities like playlist making, open mic nights, and songwriting seminars. No formal musical training is necessary to participate in this community, but residents should have an active interest in musical expression and appreciation.

Geeks in the City calls forth those who have what some people call "geek interests" but what we personally think of as "awesome interests." Be prepared to enter an epic community of residents and bond over your shared interests.This floor is for people who are passionate about everything from TV shows about Time Lords and Targaryens to books and movies set in sci-fi and fantasy realms to everything that art and entertainment has to offer in between. New York City is a hub of activity for this subculture, and we will take advantage of it by exploring the city for its own hidden geek hubs. Past community adventures include attending midnight screenings and premiers, hosting TV marathons and book clubs, attending Comic Con, video game nights, Dungeons & Dragons game night, zombie laser tag, trips to comic book stores, and more. Geeks in the City, assemble!

Get ready to laugh out loud with a group of students who enjoy all things comedy. New York City is brimming with every kind of comedy you can imagine including stand-up, improvisation, Broadway shows, and more. Countless comedians have graced the NYC comedy scene from NYU alum Aziz Ansari to Tina Fey. Laughing Matters will explore comedy across NYC to learn about the craft of comedy and how it plays into the life of a student at NYU. There is no better way to learn about comedy than experiencing it first-hand! Previous events have included Sarah Silverman, Kathy Griffin, Demetri Martin, Avenue Q, Matilda on Broadway, a fully improvised musical, and a live taping of The Daily Show. Students are not required to be funny; they just need to love to laugh. So what are you waiting for? Say “Yes, And” to this community and see what happens next!

L'Etage Français gives residents the opportunity to live with others who share a common passion for the French language and the vast array of Francophone cultures found worldwide, almost all of which have representative communities here in New York City. This community is open to all levels of French speakers, from beginning to advanced, and it will take advantage of the wide-range of French-language activities and events in the city. This includes cinema, theatre, poetry slams, concerts, exhibits, festivals, restaurants, New York University’s own cultural showcase - La Maison Française, Brooklyn’s Little Haiti, and more. Some examples of past programs include outings to Les Misérables and An American in Paris on Broadway, the Metropolitan Opera House to see the famous French opera Les Contes d'Hoffman, and dinner at a local crêperie.

As you sit in front of your TV do you ever wonder about the work behind the screen? NYU Show is the perfect community for residents who are passionate about television and want to learn more about the industry. New York City is home to all different genres of television from talk shows like The Daily Show and the Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon to sitcoms like Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt and Broad City. With so many possibilities in New York City, you’re bound to discover something new and exciting in the world of TV. NYU Show will explore everything NYC has to offer including talk show tapings, the Museum of the Moving Image, and more! You will also have the chance to shape the NYU community by working with NYU TV to film movie trailers and work on various TV related projects. Join our crew and discover the many channels of New York City!

"Poverty is not a certain small amount of goods, nor is it just a relation between means and ends; above all, it is a relation between people.  Poverty is a social status." ~Marshall Sahlins. 

The USA has one of the most unequal national distributions of wealth in the world.  Manhattan has the highest degree of wealth inequality in the US.  So, the juxtaposition of extreme wealth and extreme poverty is going to be such a defining feature of your life in NYC that it might start to seem like a normal state of affairs.  However, students who join this floor choose not to normalize this strange situation, but rather to examine it more closely.  Through service-learning, participation in cultural events, and compelling conversations with professionals, activists, and each other, you will create opportunities to learn and to educate.  We will think about how the distribution of resources is determined not only by the dynamics of the market, but also by the gendered and racialized status-structures we have inherited.  We'll think about the immediate material consequences of economic inequality on poorer New Yorkers and its longer-term impact on the social cohesion, peace, and health of the entire community.  Above all, you'll think about how things could be different and might be changed.

**As a member of the Inequality & Justice floor, you will have the unique experience of being able to take your first-year Writing the Essay (WTE) course in the Rubin classroom with your Faculty Affiliate who will lead activities outside of the class throughout the city and connect to work in the class.  If you are required to take WTE, we will register you for the course and inform you prior to academic registration.

Representation matters. Art matters. Representation in the arts matter. As a member of this community you will explore how various forms of art and media (theatre, music, film, and dance) represent diverse identities, communities and experiences. Using New York City as a playground, we will engage with media in its various forms with a focus on how artistic representation can prompt us to become more critical, informed and active citizens of the world. As a member of this floor you will be introduced to the vibrant art world of New York City through trips to theater shows, performances, screenings, and museums.  

Vivir en Español is being offered as an exciting partnership between Residential Life and the Department of Spanish and Portuguese Languages and Literatures. Participants are given the opportunity to live with a group of friends who share a common passion for the languages and cultures of Spain and Latin America and related cultures, which have representative communities here in New York City. The group, which is open to speakers of all levels of Spanish, from beginning to advanced, will take advantage of the wide-range of Spanish-language activities and events in the city, from cinema, theatre, poetry slams and concerts to conferences, exhibits, festivals, and restaurants, from New York University’s own Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies and its King Juan Carlos I of Spain Center to a number of unique New York City resources, such as the Instituto Cervantes, the Hispanic Society of America, the Museo del Barrio, the Nuyorican Poets Cafe, and the Repertorio Español. At the same time, this Explorations community will place a focus on Spanish language by organizing sessions conducted in Spanish that will help the community prepare, expand and reflect on the activities in which it engages in the City. 

The Women at Tandon explorations community offers women students a strong support system as they pursue STEM related academic programs and careers here at NYU. This community will foster engagement in the world of STEM through visits to exhibitions, workshops, and speakers across New York City. Some examples are the Museum of Math, Discovery in Times Square, and more. Women on this floor will also have the opportunity to build relationships with other women in STEM, network with successful alumnae in the STEM field, participate in social functions, watch film and read literature related to women and STEM, and get involved in community service such as tutoring in STEM subjects at local schools. The goal of this floor is to reinforce positive experiences as a woman in STEM and help foster community around the shared interest.

The nervous energy as the bases are loaded in the bottom of the 9th; the anticipation as the buzzer sounds and the ball is still in midair; the eruption as the ball hits the back of the net in stoppage time and the excitement as the Quarterback drives his team down the field on a game winning drive; the intensity of match point, and the thrill of the 10 meter stretch: these are the moments that sports fans love. Connect with other sports fanatics and debate the hottest topics while experiencing sports in the biggest market in the United States: New York City. With 11 professional sports teams, numerous minor league and independent league sports teams, the US Open, and home of various league offices, New York is a hub for sports and sports culture. We will visit historical venues such as Madison Square Garden and Yankee Stadium, as well as state of the art venues such as Barclays Center, Citi Field, and Red Bull Arena.

The Chinese Culture Floor in 2nd Street invites residents to explore and experience the exciting diversity of Chinese culture. Through a partnership between the Office of Residential Life and the Department of East Asian Studies, we organize a broad range of events, including restaurant trips to sample China’s regional cuisines, celebrations of Chinese holiday festivals, and theater excursions to view everything from acrobats to musicals and stand-up comedy with a Chinese twist. Traditional or modern, top culture or pop culture – we love it all, and we invite you to join us. Participants are welcome to sign up individually (the most common case) or with a group of like-minded friends (a good way to create a mini language community for those with an interest in Chinese language). No former knowledge of Chinese culture is required, but interest in or desire to learn about Chinese culture is encouraged. 

For students away from home, maintaining a healthy lifestyle can be both a challenge and an exciting opportunity. New York City offers a vast range of choices for exploring the subject of health and nutrition from markets, restaurants and cooking schools catering to macrobiotic, organic, vegan, and raw foodist lifestyles to clubs and communities committed to activities such as meditation, yoga, running, hiking, and kayaking on the Hudson, to name only a few. In addition to pursuing the more practical aspects of healthy living, our community will approach the subject of health as an intellectual field of research as well, interrogating some of its broader historical, political, and cultural implications, by hosting a series of lectures, screening documentary films as well as other activities. We may also explore developing a relationship between a local farmer and our residence hall community through a program called "community supported agriculture," which brings local, seasonal, and organic produce into our community. Through participation in this community, students will discover the many personal and social benefits that come from maintaining a healthy lifestyle both in mind and body. 

Looking for a community that celebrates your inner geek? Geek NYC is a floor that celebrates people with all sorts of "nerdy" interests, particularly those in science fiction and fantasy. We will discover this often-underrated side of New York City, and explore all it has to offer. This may include programs such as signings, movie screenings, and perhaps a day or two at New York Comic Con. All humans welcome, as well as Time Lords, Dothraki, Hobbits, and Jedi Knights, among many other fictional races and species.

The 1960's was a groundbreaking era for many subcultures and movements in America. As the largest city in the country, New York acted as a center for change during this time. The city was host to such people and events as Andy Warhol, John Lennon, Jimi Hendrix, The Stonewall Inn Riots, demonstrations against the Vietnam War, the Great Blackout, and the founding of the Mets baseball team. The influences of the '60s still affect the city today, and traces of this decade can be found especially around NYU. Join this community for the opportunity to explore and learn more about this influential time in our dynamic city. 

We are all witnessing tremendous advancements in the sciences--advancements that create societal benefits, conflicts, and contradictions. The genomes of many organisms have been sequenced, allowing us to decipher information encoded in their DNA in an unprecedented way. Will this lead to better medical treatments, or will it provide the means to create and organize new forms of bioterrorist weaponry? The World Wide Web has linked the continents, escalating communication and globalization. Will this catalyze societal homogenization in a desirable or undesirable way? Here at the onset of this centenary, the Science and Technology in the 21st Century community will explore current scientific and technological explorations, emphasizing the future prospects for change that discoveries in these areas will elicit. You will approach science and technologies not only from the vantage points of biology, chemistry, physics, math and computer, but also study their interface with law, business, economics, and the arts. And, New York City will be your laboratory! 

Serve the City is a community designed for upperclassmen who are passionate about community service and interested in humanitarian issues. We will participate in service projects throughout New York City's five boroughs as well as host documentary screenings and discussions about various service related topics. If interested, residents on this floor will have the opportunity to suggest and program their own service projects. Although Serve the City will be focused on building a tight-knit floor community, we will also occasionally reach out to other hall residents by inviting them to serve with us. During the fall semester, community members will discuss participating in either a domestic or international service trip over spring break.

Break out of your comfort zone. Engage with people of different faiths and backgrounds. Working with Faculty Affiliates Rabbi Yehuda Sarna and Imam Khalid Latif, you will meet leaders on the cutting edge of the spiritual landscape of NYC, visit global institutions such as the United Nations, and get trained in cross-faith bridge-building competencies. Open to everyone – you do not have to be an active member of any religion to be a part of this Explorations community. 

As NYU moves closer toward becoming a global network of campuses, we need to provide opportunities for students to connect with other students who are about to go abroad and those for those students who have recently returned. This floor would be a place for students to connect with the global network in both social and educational ways. Students will be able to participate in programming that is directly related to both study abroad sites and the very act of travel and studying abroad. For example, members might attend a performance of Argentine Tango Off-Broadway followed by a meal of empanadas prepared by a student who has recently returned from Buenos Aires. The after-performance discussion might take place while enjoying the empanadas and hearing a lecture/ slide show from a returning student. Other activities might include connecting with the travel bookshop Idlewild Books or bringing in travel experts to discuss things like staying connected while abroad or how to set up a Flickr account to store and organize all of your photos. We would be interested in bringing in experts from the health center to talk about specific issues related to health and safety while studying abroad. 

Writers Room is a place for creative writers of all kinds (songwriters, playwrights, musicians, screenplay, tv, web-series, video games, poets, fan fiction) to get constant feedback in an environment where they are in a creative powerhouse full of inspiration.  By creating a close community of writers, this floor will offer improvement for every participant in their artistic craft and will provide a safe space for works in progress to nurture artists and encourage members to venture out of their form.  Events for this community may include: writing workshops and showcases, open mic nights, and visits to local writer's houses, supply stores, and famous bookstores.