Photo Credit: Ryan Muir
Free Music, Theater, and Dance Events on the Bryant Park Lawn
Presented by Bank of America
Featuring Events in Partnership with Renowned NYC Arts Institutions
Bryant Park announces the 2024 lineup for its free summer performing arts series, Bryant Park Picnic Performances presented by Bank of America. The annual festival will feature 25 live music, dance, and theater events between May 31 and September 13. All shows are free to the public and designed to be enjoyed casually – no tickets required – with more than 700 picnic blankets for audience members to borrow and ample chairs available.
Picnic Performances has grown to become one of New York City’s foremost outdoor performing arts festivals. Last summer, more than 75,000 people attended the series and nearly half a million enjoyed the free performance livestreams. Picnic Performances has become a vital outdoor platform for the City’s arts institutions, showcasing long-standing partnerships with Carnegie Hall, New York City Opera, Harlem Stage, The Town Hall, and Joe’s Pub, as well as new partnerships with New Victory Theater, World Music Institute, and Belongó. The 2024 season features Grammy-winners, world-class dance companies, theater stars, celebrations of centenaries in jazz and opera, a James Bond-themed finale, and dozens of local artists and spotlight performers from Ghana, New Orleans, Mexico, and South Africa.
Bryant Park’s president Dan Biederman says, “Thanks to Bank of America’s support, Picnic Performances has become a summer tradition for tens of thousands of New Yorkers. There is no easier way to enjoy this city’s exemplary arts and culture: just join us on the lawn.”
“The Picnic Performances are one of the best ways for New Yorkers to get outdoors and celebrate the arrival of Spring and Summer,” said José Tavarez, president, Bank of America New York City. “We believe that the arts are a unifying force that promote cultural understanding, and we are thrilled to continue our support of one of the most iconic green spaces in the city. We are excited to be, once again, the presenting sponsor of the Picnic Performances, marking a more than 10-year-long partnership with Bryant Park.”
2024 summer highlights include:
- For the opening weekend of Picnic Performances, New York City Opera honors the 100th anniversary of the death of Giacomo Puccini with a two-night celebration of his music featuring orchestra, chorus, and star vocalists. The summer of Puccini continues with a fully-staged production of Tosca in August.
- Internationally acclaimed dance companies – including Mark Morris Dance Group, Ronald K. Brown/EVIDENCE, and David Dorfman Dance – headline multiple evenings of Contemporary Dance alongside established, rising, and student companies.
- Jazzmobile celebrates the Centennial of legendary jazz vocalist Sarah Vaughan, “The Divine One,” with a jubilant performance by the acclaimed vocalist Charenée Wade and her septet.
- Carnegie Hall Citywide presents five concerts in July and August, beginning with a special evening with Pulitzer-Prize-winning composer Tania León and The Harlem Chamber Players with special guests. Carnegie Hall will also present the acclaimed South African musician Thandiswa Mazwai, Grammy Award-nominated bandleader of The Late Show Band Louis Cato, the high-energy Afrojazz trailblazer Michael Olatuja and Lagos Pepper Soup, and red-hot salsa dura band La Excelencia.
- Joe’s Pub brings rising theater stars Jaime Lozano and Florencia Cuenca for Broadway en Spanglish, featuring bilingual performances of iconic show tunes with Mariachi Real de Mexico and more guest stars TBA.
- As part of New Victory Theater’s summer series New Victory Dance, Ephrat Asherie and Barkin/Selissen Project join for an interactive dance event curated specifically for kids and families.
- World Music Institute welcomes Ghanaian highlife band Gyedu-Blay Ambolley (NYC debut).
- Asian American Arts Alliance features MacArthur ‘Genius’ pianist Vijay Iyer and his trio.
- The beloved Bryant Park tradition Accordions Around the World returns with 2024 Grammy nominee Zydeco star Dwayne Dopsie and Latin funk band Afro Dominicano.
- American Symphony Orchestra kicks off their season with Beyond the Hall, a program highlighting music from beyond the confines of the traditional concert hall.
- The Town Hall and Belongó celebrate John Barry’s iconic James Bond music with an all-star lineup of musicians led by Arturo O’Farrill with the Afro-Latin Jazz Orchestra, and composer arranger and slide trumpet master Steven Bernstein, together with exciting surprise special guests.
This season, 16 shows will be livestreamed for free on Bryant Park’s social media channels and website, reaching national and international audiences. Additional media support is provided by public radio stations WBGO and WQXR. View an archive of performances from previous years here.
Food and drink are available for purchase from a curated lineup of local vendors near the lawn. At all performances, attendees can discover new dishes and celebrate classics from the five boroughs with a rotating line-up of artisanal vendors by Hester Street Fair. Stout NYC offers light bites as well as a selection of beer, wine, and non-alcoholic beverages for purchase.
Additional artist and performance information will be available in the coming months. For the most current information please visit bryantpark.org/picnics.
Bryant Park Picnic Performances 2024
Programming Details
New York City Opera
Puccini Celebration
Honoring the 100th anniversary of the passing of Giacomo Puccini, one of the greatest opera composers in history, Picnic Performances opening weekend features New York City Opera and two glittering concerts celebrating Puccini’s immense and indelible legacy. Featuring the New York City Opera Orchestra and Chorus and conducted by Maestro Joseph Rescigno, the concerts will include selections from each and every Puccini opera, performed by some of the brightest stars of the opera world singing some of the most beloved arias, duets, and ensembles in all of opera.
Tosca
Continuing the summer of Puccini, New York City Opera will present a full production of the perennial favorite, Tosca. Tosca is a three-act opera that takes the audience back in time to Rome during the 1800’s, just after the French Revolution. Napoleon has successfully taken France and has invaded Rome and created a new republic. The beloved opera singer, Floria Tosca, is in love with painter Mario Cavaradossi and here begins the story of how Chief of Police Baron Scarpia intersects with these lovers in drama, betrayal, revenge and murder. The fully staged production features the New York City Opera Orchestra and Chorus, and led by Maestro Joseph Rescigno.
Contemporary Dance
Curated by Tiffany Rea-Fisher
Sidra Bell, Ballet Tech, TBA
Sidra Bell is the founder of Sidra Bell Dance New York and a choreographer and educator who is currently a Master Lecturer at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia, and a recent artist-in-residence at Harvard University. Bell is also the founder and creative director of the award-winning MODULE Laboratory, a New York City based immersive platform for movement and theater artists. Bell has won several awards, including a First Prize for Choreography at the Solo Tanz Theater Festival in Stuttgart, Germany, and a National Dance Project Production Award from the New England Foundation for the Arts. Bell has created over 100 works, notably for BODYTRAFFIC, Ailey II, The Juilliard School, Whim W’Him, among many others. She was the first Black female choreographer commissioned to create work for New York City Ballet, where she created two works for film and the Lincoln Center stage (Fall Fashion Gala 2021 and Innovators & Icons Program).
Ballet Tech, the New York City public school for dance, provides its students with a high-quality academic education and intensive, rigorous classical dance training. Ballet Tech – grades 4-8 – combines the best of public education and professional arts instruction. The school is a collaboration between the New York City Department of Education, which provides the academic instruction, and the Ballet Tech Foundation, which provides dance instruction.
David Dorfman Dance, Soles of Duende, Joffrey Concert Group, National Dance Institute
The renowned David Dorfman Dance closes the second Contemporary Dance, alongside all-female tap ensemble Soles of Duende.
David Dorfman Dance (DDD) creates movement that seeks to de-stigmatize the notion of accessibility and interaction in post-modern dance by embracing audiences with visceral, meaningful dance, music and text. By sustaining a vision to create innovative, inclusive, movement-based performance that is radically humanistic, DDD maintains a core commitment to examine and unearth issues and ideas that enliven, incite, and excite audiences in dialogue and debate about social change and a myriad of other topics. In advocating his mission “to get the whole world dancing,” Dorfman’s work has enjoyed broad and diverse audiences nationally and internationally. DDD has performed extensively throughout the world and has regularly performed in New York City at major venues including The Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM), The Joyce Theater, The Kitchen, Danspace Project/St. Mark’s Church, La MaMa, and more.
A Brooklyn-born Puerto-Rican from New Haven, a Mexican Puerto-Rican Jew from the Lower East Side, and a Bengali Indian from Jersey walked on to the wooden floor, and the rest? History. Bonded by their deep love of music, their crafts, and true connection, Soles of Duende is on a lifelong mission to elevate the joy and music of true collaboration across disciplines and the celebration of the forms they practice. Based in the sounds of Tap (Amanda Castro), Flamenco (Arielle Rosales) and Kathak (Brinda Guha), Soles of Duende’s fire is the spirit that lives within each of these women to celebrate their connection given their beautiful differences and to uplift the forms that made them.
Founded by Robert Joffrey in 1981, and under the Direction of Bradley Shelver, Joffrey Concert Group is a pre-professional performing ensemble that provides young artists from the School’s year-round Trainee Program the opportunity to experience life as a professional dancer. In the years since its inception, selected Trainees studied and performed some of the most celebrated classical and contemporary repertoire. This included the works of Gerald Arpino (Birthday Variations, Light Rain), Robert Battle (Battlefield), George Balanchine (Serenade), August Bournonville (La Ventana), Dwight Rohden (New Work), and Africa Guzman (The Stolen Path). The Concert Group has toured domestically and internationally, providing dancers the experience necessary to confidently transition from student to professional. Concert Group dancers have gone on to perform in premiere companies including Miami City Ballet, Boston Ballet, Complexions Contemporary Ballet, the Forsythe Company, the Martha Graham Dance Company, Dance Theatre of Harlem, and the Joffrey Ballet.
Each year, National Dance Institute (NDI) transforms the lives of thousands of New York City public school children and their communities. Under the artistic direction of Kay Gayner and a staff of professional teaching artists, NDI uses dance and music to instill in students a love of the arts, a passion for learning, and a desire to strive for their personal best.
Ronald K. Brown/EVIDENCE, Robin Dunn, Kevin Wynn Tribute, Brooklyn Arts
Founded by Ronald K. Brown in 1985 and based in Brooklyn, New York, Ronald K. Brown/EVIDENCE, A Dance Company focuses on the seamless integration of traditional African dance with contemporary choreography and spoken word. Through work, EVIDENCE provides a unique view of human struggles, tragedies, and triumphs. Brown uses movement as a way to reinforce the importance of community in African American culture and to acquaint audiences with the beauty of traditional African forms and rhythms. He is an advocate for the growth of the African-American dance community and is instrumental in encouraging young dancers to choreograph and to develop careers in dance. Brown has choreographed work for Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Ailey II, Cleo Parker Robinson Ensemble, Dayton Contemporary Dance Company, Jennifer Muller/The Works, Jeune Ballet d’Afrique Noire, Ko-Thi Dance Company, Philadanco and others. He choreographed Regina Taylor’s award-winning play, Crowns, and won an AUDELCO Award for his work on that production. The company has traveled internationally to perform, teach master classes, and conduct lectures/demonstrations for individuals of all ages. EVIDENCE brings arts education and cultural connections to local communities that have historically lacked these experiences. The company reaches an audience of more than 25,000 people per year.
F.A.C.E. coach, choreographer and producer Robin Dunn has appeared in and choreographed several off-Broadway productions, as well as directing “Amateur Night” at the world-famous Apollo Theater. Her client list includes Saturday Night Live, Nickelodeon, Sesame Street, Missy Elliot, and more. She is also the creator and executive producer of the awards shows Ladies Get Down (A Salute to Women in Hip Hop & more …) and Fellas Git Dap (A Salute to Men in Hip Hop and more…). Dunn’s method for breathing life into a performance is through her patented Robin Dunn’s F.A.C.E. (Focus, Attitude, Confidence, Energy, and Eye Contact) method. F.A.C.E. is a tightly constructed method designed to develop and enhance artists, business professionals, and individuals with being more comfortable on stage, camera, the workplace and in their everyday lives. Dunn teaches Hip Hop dance at The Ailey School, The Ailey Extension, Hunter College, and Steps on Broadway.
The dance community pays tribute to beloved dancer and choreographer Kevin Wynn, who passed away late last year. The Kevin Wynn Tribute will celebrate the life of Wynn, a former dancer with José Limón Dance Company and Dianne McIntyre’s Sounds in Motion, as well as a dedicated teacher at Conservatory of Dance at Purchase College, where he touched the lives of many dancers.
Brooklyn Arts is a dual-mission high school dedicated to providing aspiring artists and scholars with an academically rigorous pre-college course of study and a comprehensive, four-year pre-conservatory arts program. At Brooklyn Arts, life-long learners use their creativity to enrich their education, learning both the artistic and professional skills required in their field of study. By using the abundant resources of New York City, students are challenged to achieve their greatest artistic and academic potential. Brooklyn Arts fosters meaningful partnerships with parents, families, and the community to holistically develop global citizens who are prepared to meet the challenges of the 21st century. The Dance Program strives to offer dance students the opportunity to develop their skills both in school and in professional venues. Through study in the Dance Program, students develop their talents in classical ballet, contemporary and modern dance, and graduate prepared for the rigors of a Liberal Arts or Conservatory college program. Students work with professional choreographers each year to hone their skills and learn their craft.
Mark Morris Dance Group, Blacks in Ballet, Reed Luplau
Internationally acclaimed Mark Morris Dance Group headlines an extraordinary lineup of ballet and modern dance companies.
Founded in New York City in 1980 by artistic director and choreographer Mark Morris, the Mark Morris Dance Group (MMDG) has been called “the preeminent modern dance organization of our time” (Yo-Yo Ma), its members receiving “highest praise for their technical aplomb, their musicality, and their sheer human authenticity.” (Bloomberg News). Live music and community engagement are vital components of the Dance Group, which has toured with its own musicians, the Music Ensemble, since 1996. The Dance Group provides educational opportunities in dance and music to people of all ages and abilities while on tour internationally and at home at the Mark Morris Dance Center in Brooklyn, NY.
Blacks in Ballet (BIB) was created from the initiative of Brazilian dancers Ingrid Silva, Ruan Galdino and Fábio Mariano. With the purpose of discovering, disseminating and valuing beautiful black bodies in dance, they created the platform on social media to reaffirm that black classical dancers exist. BIB elevates examples of black dance professionals who were references in the history of dance, highlighting those important names, as well as current dancers and future talents. There are many black dancers from different nationalities with beautiful stories that can inspire many other people. The aim of the founding trio is to make more people aware of the success stories and normalize diversity in the dance world.
Reed Luplau was born in Perth, Australia, and started dancing at 18 months at his mother’s studio, Jody Marshall Dance Company. Before graduating from The Australian Ballet School, Luplau was invited by then Artistic Directors Graeme Murphy & Janet Vernon to join the Sydney Dance Company (SDC), where he performed and choreographed for five years. Since relocating to New York City, Luplau has performed for Stephen Petronio Company, Aszure Barton & Artists, and Lar Lubovitch Dance Company. Luplau’s theater credits include the original Broadway casts of both Moulin Rouge! The Musical and Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812, among others. Luplau’s film and television work include the role of Theo in Alan Brown’s Five Dances, HALSTON, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Fosse/Verdon, and more.
Jazzmobile
Sarah Vaughan Centennial Featuring Charenée Wade
Celebrating the 100th birthday of legendary jazz singer Sarah Vaughan with acclaimed vocalist Charenée Wade and her septet.
“Sarah Vaughan was the first vocalist that attracted me to Jazz at an early age,” says Charenée Wade. “Her warm and rich tone was mesmerizing, her storytelling, improvisation, playful expressiveness, and her “swanging” soulfulness set a new standard for artists all around the world. She is the epitome of a great jazz musician and all generations of artists should listen and can learn from her recordings and expansive body of work. They called her Sassy, but she is truly the Divine One.”
Known for expert vocal improvisational ability and her seriously swinging groove, Brooklyn native Charenée Wade evokes a classic jazz sound akin to Betty Carter and Sarah Vaughan, two of her musical touchstones. With her Motéma debut, Offering: The Music of Gil Scott-Heron and Brian Jackson, she pays tribute to another inspiration, the socially conscious poet and musician Gil Scott-Heron, and confirms that she too plans to use her artist platform thoughtfully. The first full-length album tribute to Scott-Heron and his musical collaborator Brian Jackson by a woman artist, Offering is arresting in just how timely Scott-Heron’s messages are today and how perfectly Wade delivers them through her savvy arrangements and intimate jazz interpretations. While she has earned many accolades – first runner-up in New York’s Jazzmobile Vocal competition; a participant in Betty Carter’s Jazz Ahead program; a feature on NPR’s Song Travels; a starring role in the off-Broadway show Café Society and in Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Salute to Betty Carter – she may surprise people with this authentic tour de force. Wade gives ample evidence on this remarkable debut as to why she is one of the most exciting, distinctive and bold young musical talents on the rise today. Wade has performed with Bobby Sanabria, Aaron Diehl, Oran Etkin, Robert Glasper and MacArthur Fellow and choreographer Kyle Abraham, among others, and at venues and festivals worldwide including Montreux and Spoleto. A singer, composer, arranger and educator, Wade teaches at Juilliard Jazz and is also a professor at the Aaron Copland School at Queens College. In 2017 Wade received the Jazz At Lincoln Center Millennial Swing Award, and was just recently appointed to Peabody Institute.
Emerging Music Festival
Curated by AdHoc
Up-and-coming bands curated by AdHoc
The park’s annual celebration of young indie, rock, pop, folk, soul, and global bands returns with eight groups over two nights. Lineup to be announced in May. Past Emerging Music Festival performers include Sammy Rae and The Friends, Madison McFerrin, Tomberlin, Celisse, Mikaela Davis, Reyna Tropical, Acid Dad, Cassandra Jenkins, and Dead Tooth.
Carnegie Hall Citywide
Tania León and The Harlem Chamber Players
Tania León, Conductor
Terrance McKnight, Host and Narrator
Josh Henderson, Violin
Leyland Simmons, Choreographer
Additional artists to be announced with
Dancers from Harlem School of the Arts
The concert is conducted and hosted by Carnegie Hall’s 2023–2024 Debs Composer’s Chair, Tania León—a composer, educator, conductor, advocate, and icon who has been a singular force in New York City’s arts and culture since the 1960s. The program includes one of León’s category-defying pieces, followed by works for string orchestra by Adolphus Hailstork and Chen Yi. The concert ends with an extraordinary collaboration: Trevor Weston’s The People Could Fly, featuring the ensemble with narration by WQXR radio host Terrance McKnight, violin soloist Josh Henderson, and Dancers from the Harlem School of the Arts.
Thandiswa Mazwai
South Africa’s Thandiswa Mazwai is a chart-topping singer, songwriter, and bandleader with a passionate worldwide following. Always popular with New York City audiences, she has electrified crowds at Afropunk, the Apollo Theater, GlobalFEST at Lincoln Center, and more. Fresh off the release of her latest album, Sankofa, Mazwai’s performance is a celebration of Pan-Africanism and blends jazz, South African Xhosa music, and a variety of contemporary West-African influences.
Louis Cato
Multi-instrumentalist, singer, and songwriter Louis Cato is best recognized today as the bandleader for The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, but Cato—an enormously versatile and collaborative musician—has worked with such varied artists as John Legend, Talib Kweli, Bobby McFerrin, Snarky Puppy, A Tribe Called Quest, Q-Tip, Jack White, Jon Batiste, and others. On top of being one of today’s most in-demand players, Cato is increasingly carving out his own name as an artist.
Michael Olatuja & Lagos Pepper Soup
One of today’s most inventive bassists, the London-born, Lagos-raised Michael Olatuja has worked with Diana Ross, Stevie Wonder, Angelique Kidjo, Shakira, Phil Collins, Rod Stewart, Hugh Masekela, Terence Blanchard, and Joe Lovano, and many others. He’s also a major presence in the bands of Broadway, films scores of directors like Lin-Manuel Miranda, and more. In this outdoor performance, he shares selections from his acclaimed Lagos Pepper Soup album and brand-new songs that blend energetic Afrobeat, jazz, and funk into what Olatuja calls “a zesty, sonic stew that honors the ancient Xulu word ‘umbuntu,’ which means, ‘we are all connected.’”
La Excelencia
New York City’s La Excelencia is an award-winning salsa dura band inspired by the sounds of the ‘70s and the sociopolitical landscape of today. Combining traditional salsa elements with a modern and unabashedly hard-hitting energy, La Excelencia inspires dancers and invigorates listeners alike. On this Friday night in Bryant Park, enjoy a free hometown performance by these internationally renowned salsa stalwarts. “It takes just a note or two to hear that La Excelencia is different,” writes The New York Times. “The real deal doesn’t show up that often, and here it is. Celebrate it.”
Joe’s Pub
Broadway en Spanglish: Florencia Cuenca and Jaime Lozano
Iconic Broadway tunes with a Mexican twist and live accompaniment by Mariachi Real de México. Special Broadway guests TBA.
Jaime Lozano and Florencia Cuenca are a dynamic husband-wife duo that deliver a fresh Mexican musical interpretation in their show Broadway en Spanglish. Featuring live accompaniment from the Grammy Award-winning Mariachi Real de México de Ramon Ponce, the show features iconic show tunes – such as songs from Hamilton, Waitress, and Frozen – along with exciting new arrangements by Lozano. Cuenca is a Mexican singer-actor-writer-director who has been performing on stage since she was just three years old. Lozano, considered by Lin-Manuel Miranda as “the next big thing on Broadway,” is a Mexican musical theater composer, arranger, orchestrator, writer, and director. Their collaboration has graced the stages of Lincoln Center, Joe’s Pub, 54 Below, and MASS MoCa, among many others. Eight years ago, this dynamic duo relocated to New York City. They are husband and wife, partners, collaborators, and they are parents of a beautiful seven-year-old son named Alonzo – their American Dream.
New Victory Theater
Ephrat Asherie Dance + Barkin/Selissen Project
The finale of Bryant Park’s first-ever ‘Family Day’ features dance performances by renowned dance companies Ephrat Asherie Dance and Barkin/Selissen Project as well as fun, interactive moments specifically chosen for younger audiences. The performances are curated by New Victory Theater, as part of their summer series New Victory Dance, a program for New York City-based dance companies hosted by New Victory Teaching Artists.
Ephrat Asherie Dance (EAD) is a dance company rooted in African-American and Latino street and social dances. Dedicated to revealing the inherent complexities of these forms, EAD explores the expansive narrative qualities of various street and club styles – including breaking, hip-hop, house and vogue – as a means to tell stories, develop innovative imagery, and find new modes of expression. EAD’s first evening-length work, A Single Ride, earned two Bessie nominations in 2013 for Outstanding Emerging Choreographer and Outstanding Sound Design by Marty Beller. The company has presented work at The Apollo Theater, Celebrity Series, Columbia College, Dixon Place, FiraTarrega, Guggenheim Works & Process, Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival, La MaMa, River to River Festival, Mass MoCA, and New York Live Arts, among others.
Barkin/Selissen Project (B/S P), a New York City-based contemporary dance company founded in 2009, presents the choreography of Artistic Directors Kyla Barkin and Aaron Selissen through live performance, film and workshops. The company strives to blur lines between the emotional and intellectual, dream worlds and waking states. With dramatic shifts from nuance to explosive athleticism, Barkin and Selissen’s choreography infuses fresh perspective on subjects ranging from the complexities of mathematics to the complexities of human nature. Barkin/Selissen Project has been presented at venues across the U.S and abroad including Jacob’s Pillow Inside/Out, SUNY Stony Brook’s Staller Center, Jazz at Lincoln Center, West End Theater, 92Y, Bryant Park, and more. Partnerships for workshops include Sally Taylor’s ConSenses, Festival of the Moving Body, Communicating in Partnerships through Dance/Hartford Performs, Balance 1 Academy Berlin, Limón Professional Studies Program, and more. With a similar approach to teaching and training, the company promotes the coupling of techniques and modalities to prepare artists’ bodies for the challenges of the work. By creating a mindful and inspiring environment, B/S P provides a vibrant platform for artistic growth and refinement.
World Music Institute
Gyedu-Blay Ambolley, Artist TBA
The groundbreaking African highlife band from Ghana makes its New York City debut.
For the first time in America, Gyedu-Blay Ambolley and an eight-piece band will perform his 1975 debut album, Simigwa, in its entirety! Gyedu-Blay Ambolley is a musical luminary hailing from Ghana, West Africa, with a staggering 29 albums under his belt. Known affectionately as the “Simigwa Do Man,” Ambolley’s musical journey began in the vibrant port city of Sekondi-Takoradi, in the Western Region of Ghana. His early fascination with music blossomed into a lifelong passion. From mastering his father’s flute at the tender age of eight to honing his guitar skills under the mentorship of “Uncle Bonku,” Sammy Lartey, and Ebo Taylor, Ambolley’s musical odyssey has been nothing short of extraordinary. This all led to Ambolley becoming a musical life force and exploding on the scene in 1973 with a jazzy highlife sound called “Simigwa-Do.” His name has become synonymous with Simigwa music and dance. Gyedu-Blay Ambolley’s groundbreaking debut solo album, Simigwa, stands as a cornerstone of Ghanaian music history (and one of its most iconic album covers). Simigwa stands as Ambolley’s magnum opus, a masterpiece fusing together the rich tapestry of highlife, afrobeat, folk and funk.
Jalopy Theatre
Artists TBA
Asian American Arts Alliance
Vijay Iyer Trio
Three-time Grammy nominee and MacArthur ‘Genius’, pianist Vijay Iyer brings his renowned jazz trio.
Described by The New York Times as a “social conscience, multimedia collaborator, system builder, rhapsodist, historical thinker and multicultural gateway,” composer-pianist Vijay Iyer has earned a place as one of the leading music-makers of his generation. His honors include a MacArthur Fellowship, a Doris Duke Performing Artist Award, a United States Artist Fellowship, and the Alpert Award in the Arts. His newest album features his acclaimed trio with drummer Tyshawn Sorey and bassist Linda May Han Oh titled Compassion (ECM, 2024). His lush, expansive collaboration with Arooj Aftab and Shahzad Ismaily, Love in Exile (Verve, 2023), received two Grammy nominations and was named among the best albums of the year in Pitchfork and The New York Times.
Accordions Around the World
Curated by Ariana Hellerman
Dwayne Dopsie and the Zydeco Hellraisers, Afro Dominicano, Artist TBA
This annual celebration of accordionists returns with a rare New York City appearance from the Louisiana-based, three-time Grammy-nominated Zydeco star Dwayne Dopsie as well as Latin funk steeped in Dominican styles of music from Afro Dominicano. A third group will be announced soon.
2024 Grammy Award nominee and “America’s Hottest Accordion” winner, Dwayne Dopsie plays high-energy zydeco that keeps you wanting more. Dwayne hails from one of the most influential Zydeco families in the world. Although inspired by tradition, he has developed his own style that defies existing stereotypes and blazes a refreshingly distinct path for 21st century Zydeco music. Dwayne attributes his musical abilities to his father, Rockin’ Dopsie, Sr., a pioneer of Zydeco music. He has played the accordion since age seven and states, “This is my calling – Zydeco music is in my blood and it is my heart and soul.” This singer/songwriter and accordionist has performed in 40 countries and also in hundreds of cities across the United States, Europe, Brazil, Panama and Canada since debuting his band at age 19.
The funk-fusion combo Afro Dominicano infuses their songs with Afro-Caribbean soul: a blend of Dominican folkloric styles and pop influences that includes merengue, bachata, samba, reggae, punk and R&B, all filtered through a uniquely New York sensibility. The group’s mix of sweet vocals, accordion, guitar, traditional percussion and electric bass sparks high-energy riffs and romantic balladry that eludes the pigeonhole of genre in favor of genuine human connection. The social justice-inspired collective of Dominican-American musicians celebrates the forthcoming release of their newest album with a night of fresh jams and good times, featuring music by DJ Bembona.
American Symphony Orchestra
Beyond the Hall
Leon Botstein conducts the orchestra, performing music sourced from dance salons, opera houses, cabaret, and the silver screen.
For the third consecutive year, the American Symphony Orchestra debuts its season at Bryant Park. This year, the orchestra presents Beyond the Hall, a program exploring music in a context different from the usual concert setting. From the dance salon (Florence Price’s Suite of Dances) to the cabaret (Weill’s Threepenny Opera) and the opera stage (Joplin’s Treemonisha), from the musical hall (Bernstein’s On the Town) to the silver screen (Herrmann’s Psycho), the selections included here examine the complex and dramatic role that music has played across venues, genres or modes of expression.
Harlem Stage
Artists TBA
Harlem Stage brings its Uptown Nights Latin Music Series to Bryant Park with a special artist TBA.
The Town Hall and Belongó
The Man with The Golden Horn
An all-star lineup of musicians – including Arturo O’Farrill and the Afro-Latin Jazz Orchestra and slide trumpet master and arranger Steven Bernstein – perform the iconic music of James Bond films.
A very NYC celebration of John Barry’s James Bond music: Arturo O’Farrill and the Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra meet up with legendary Downtown composer, arranger and slide trumpet master, Steven Bernstein. Joining the festivities will be a variety of surprise guests to take a wild ride through the iconic music of 007. The classic James Bond scores will be shaken and stirred in an Afro Latin big band setting with a strong dose of NYC underground, and a nod to Charlie Palmieri’s organ playing.
Complete Line Listings
May
May 31: New York City Opera – Puccini Celebration
June
June 01: New York City Opera – Puccini Celebration
June 06: Contemporary Dance – Sidra Bell, Ballet Tech, TBA
June 07: Contemporary Dance – David Dorfman Dance, Soles of Duende, Joffrey Concert Group, National Dance Institute
June 14: Contemporary Dance – Ronald K. Brown/EVIDENCE, Robin Dunn, Kevin Wynn Tribute, Brooklyn Arts
June 21: Jazzmobile – Sarah Vaughan Centennial Featuring Charenée Wade
June 28: Emerging Music Festival Day 1 – Artists TBA
June 29: Emerging Music Festival Day 2 – Artists TBA
July
July 05: Carnegie Hall Citywide – Tania León and The Harlem Chamber Players
July 12: Carnegie Hall Citywide – Thandiswa Mazwai
July 19: Carnegie Hall Citywide – Louis Cato
July 26: Carnegie Hall Citywide – Michael Olatuja & Lagos Pepper Soup
August
August 02: Carnegie Hall Citywide – La Excelencia
August 09: Joe’s Pub – Broadway en Spanglish: Florencia Cuenca and Jaime Lozano
August 10: New Victory Theater – Ephrat Asherie + Barkin/Selissen Project
August 16: World Music Institute – Gyedu-Blay Ambolley, Artists TBA
August 17: Jalopy Theatre – Artists TBA
August 23: New York City Opera – Tosca
August 24: New York City Opera – Tosca
August 30: Asian American Arts Alliance – Vijay Iyer Trio
August 31: Contemporary Dance – Mark Morris Dance Group, Blacks in Ballet, Reed Luplau
September
September 05: Accordions Around the World – Dwayne Dopsie and the Zydeco Hellraisers, Afro Dominicano, Artist TBA
September 06: American Symphony Orchestra – Beyond the Hall
September 12: Harlem Stage – Artist TBA
September 13: The Town Hall + Belongó – The Man with The Golden Horn
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Location and Subway Directions:
Bryant Park is situated behind the New York Public Library in midtown Manhattan, between 40th and 42nd Streets & Fifth and Sixth Avenues. Take the B, D, F, or M train to 42nd Street/Bryant Park; or, take the 7 train to 5th Avenue.
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