The Beat

Former ‘Crow’s Nest’ Rebuilt, Expanded and Renamed

New Experience Offers Visitors a Powerful Location to Get Offline, Get Outside

$12 Million Project Improves Safety and Enhances the Maid of the Mist Experience

Photos of the Completed Cataract Stairs Can Be Found Here

Governor Kathy Hochul today announced the completion of the Cataract Stairs and Overlook – a new stairway and overlook structure at Niagara Falls State Park formally known as the Crow’s Nest. Located alongside the American Falls, the Cataract Stairs allow visitors to climb next to the Falls and experience breathtaking, up-close views for a one-of-a-kind experience of one of the world’s most iconic natural wonders.

The New York Historical Presents: You Should Be Dancing: New York, 1976 and Beyond

On view October 2, 2026 – April 4, 2027 with Special Opening Program and Viewing Dance Party

Press Preview: October 1, 10am – RSVP to communications@nyhistory.org 

New York, NY (September 3, 2026)—Taking visitors back to a decade when the new music genres of punk, disco, and hip hop sprang up in New York City and then exploded across the world, The New York Historical presents its new exhibition, You Should Be Dancing: New York, 1976 and Beyond. On view October 2, 2026 – April 4, 2027, the exhibition explores how, in a time of financial crisis, New York City cultivated a new generation of creativity and celebration. Featuring musical instruments, performance gear, fashion items, period photographs, albums, flyers, and posters presented within spaces reminiscent of the clubs, bars, and gathering places of the time, You Should Be Dancing illustrates the lasting impact this era has had on American culture at large.

One-night-only October 29 event invites visitors inside the historic Canfield Casino for an evening of haunted history, ghost stories, and unexplained encounters

Saratoga Springs, N.Y. (September 2026) — As summer comes to an end and Saratoga Springs prepares for the Halloween season, the Saratoga Springs History Museum is bringing back one of its most popular autumn traditions: the Halloween Ghost Tours of the Canfield Casino, taking place Thursday, October 29, 2026, from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m.

September 19–20 REAL TIME REVOLUTION® Signature Event, “Lodging as the Nature of the Campaign will Admit,” invites visitors to build alongside Continental soldiers racing winter and a British advance

Ticonderoga, N.Y. — The fight for independence is unfolding in real time at Fort Ticonderoga, and on September 19 and 20 visitors can take part in it. During the REAL TIME REVOLUTION® Signature Event, “Lodging as the Nature of the Campaign will Admit,” guests of all ages will pick up a mallet or a saw and work beside soldiers of the Northern Continental Army to raise the wooden huts that sheltered an army atop Liberty Hill 250 years ago.

Inspired by Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde 

New York, N.Y. - Gothic feminist playwright Patricia Lynn’s new play HYDE (Or Girls Can Kill Goats) will have a workshop production September 24 - 26 at A.R.T./New York Theatres. The play is a bold contemporary reimagining of Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson. A delightfully dangerous mix of Yellowjackets and John Proctor is a Villain, HYDE transforms the classic tale of good vs evil into a fierce feminist frenzy, featuring heightened language, vivid theatricality, and a vengeful goat goddess named Bernice Hyde. Lynn also serves as director.

Seven free art-making programs for kids and adults run September 12–December 5

Saratoga Springs, NY (September 3, 2026) — The Tang Museum at Skidmore College announces its fall 2026 Family Saturdays, a series of free multigenerational art-making programs beginning September 12 and continuing through December 5.

Poughkeepsie, NY - Arts Mid-Hudson will present the 7th annual Hudson Valley Gospel Festival on Saturday, September 26, 2026, at the Family Partnership Center in Poughkeepsie. The festival will bring together regional gospel musicians, vocal ensembles, and praise dancers from Dutchess, Ulster, and Orange Counties for an afternoon celebrating gospel music, tradition, culture, and community.

2026 edition of annual festival includes nearly a dozen concerts performed by established classical and contemporary musicians and rising stars

The Village Trip, a massive celebration of culture and art in Greenwich Village, presents its annual festival September 25-October 4, 2026. Highlights of the classical music offerings include:

• A tribute to Paul Robeson with bass-baritone James C. Martin and pianist Lynn Raley, featuring the world premiere of new works by David Amram and Anthony Davis written in honor of Robeson’s legacy

Glens Falls, N.Y. — The Park Theater Foundation is thrilled to announce a diverse lineup of programming for September and October 2026. From high-fidelity explorations of classic rock albums to premier live jazz and Halloween-themed improv comedy, the upcoming fall schedule at The Park Theater offers something for everyone.

Wilmington, NY (Sep 3, 2026) - The Festival of Colors will take place Saturday, September 12, at Preston Field, bringing together local and regional artisans, food and beverage vendors, live music, and family-friendly activities to celebrate the start of fall.