The curtain rises on the Tribeca Festival, and New York, too

The 20th Tribeca Festival is aiming to not just rebuild itself after a 2020 edition was largely scuttled by the pandemic, but to help revitalize its hometown

NEW YORK -- The 20th Tribeca Festival is aiming to not just rebuild itself after its 2020 edition was largely scuttled by the pandemic, but to help revitalize its hometown. This year’s Tribeca, which opens Wednesday with Jon M. Chu’s adaption of the Lin-Manuel Miranda musical “In the Heights,” will be spread throughout all five boroughs of New York with a mix of in-person and virtual screenings, ultimately culminating in a full-capacity premiere at a newly reopened Radio City Music Hall. For a festival founded in the wake of 9/11, coaxing New York back to life is a familiar role. “Our founding mission felt more poignant, more important than ever,” Jane Rosenthal, who started the festival with Robert De Niro, said in a recent interview. “That original mission of the festival was to use the power of film and storytelling not just to entertain but to rebuild our city — emotionally more than anything else.” Tribeca, which this year is being held two months later than usual, will be one of the biggest film festivals yet this year to go forward with a mostly in-person event. But instead of the usual theaters that are home to the festival, its primary venues this year will be outdoor screenings dispersed around the city. There's still a virtual component to the festival but the emphasis will be the energy generated by perhaps the largest cultural event held in New York in more than a year.