Pencil This In

READING: Tonight at 192 Books, Marisha Pessl reads from Special Topics in Calamity Physics, her buzzy and well-received first novel. Seating is usually limited at 192 Books so call (212) 255-4022 to reserve a spot. - Krissa Corbett Cavouras

7pm // 192 Books [192 10th Ave. at 23rd St] // Free

THEATER: Downtown writer/director/innovator Young Jean Lee kicks off the fall season at HERE with what the theater website describes as her own worst nightmare: “a predictable, confessional, Korean-American identity play with a flowery Asian-sounding title. In the spirit of Andy Kaufman, Monty Python and South Park, ‘Songs of the Dragons Flying to Heaven’ takes a warped, humorous look at her cultural heritage and provokes uneasy, exhilarating and perhaps comical questions about race and culture.” The work has been in development for the past year and a half as part of HERE’s resident artist series. (The busy Lee is also co-editor with Mac Wellman of the “New Downtown Now” anthology. The recently published book features new and newish plays by Will Eno, Anne Washburn, Erin Courtney, and Lee herself, among others.) - John Del Signore

8:30pm // HERE [145 6th Avenue (between Spring and Broome] // Buy tickets here

KARAOKE: Hip Hop karaoke sounds like a bad, bad idea. Or an MTV show. But it's real, live, and happening again tonight. So go check out participants attempting to rhyme over a variety of 250 hip hop tracks.

10pm // Knitting Factory [74 Leonard St] // Free

MUSIC: It's the battle of the buzz bands. Over in corner Mercury Lounge we have The Big Sleep, The Comas, Other Passengers, Emperor X. In corner Annex we have Endless Boogie, Sam Champion, Ra Ra Riot, Chin Chin. Who will you be rooting for? Just make sure if you choose Annex, you pay the bands directly. Us...we're taking the night off.

8pm // Annex and Mercury Lounge