(Long Island, NY) On Sunday, July 19th the nonprofit City Parks Foundation (CPF) concluded its expanded SummerStage 30th anniversary season. The Queens run opened on June 7th with a show in Flushing Meadows-Corona Park as part of the festivities surrounding the World’s Fair Anniversary Celebration. The concert featured performances by Charles Bradley & His Extraordinaires, Hollis Brown and Damien Escobar and was attended by over a thousand people. This event was the first in a series of free SummerStage events taking place in Queens over the next several weeks that featured a variety of music, dance, theater, film and family programs. The festival then moved into Socrates Sculpture Park and Queensbridge Park by the waterfront, offering locals and all New Yorkers free, high quality performances. Thousands of residents have attended the free shows in Queens hosted by SummerStage as part of its expanded summer season.
In June of 1986 Sun Ra and the Omniverse Jet Set Arkestra performed a free concert in the Naumberg Bandshell in Central Park, and the summer music landscape in New York City changed forever. Today, nearly 30 years later, SummerStage is New York City’s largest free performing arts festival, presenting work in all performing arts disciplines, with a focus on New York’s unique neighborhoods. SummerStage has touched the lives of more than six million fans from around the world.
“As an organization we are dedicated to working in traditionally underserved neighborhoods across the city,” said Heather Lubov, Executive Director of City Parks Foundation. “By presenting artists and genres that reflect the cultures and communities in these parks, introducing disciplines such as dance or theater alongside musical performances, and providing all of this fantastic art free of charge, we are building new audiences and fostering a broader interest in the arts here in New York City.”
“Capital One Bank is proud to support SummerStage as it showcases the diversity and artistic vitality of New York,” said Michael Slocum, President, Commercial Banking and Northeast Regional President, Capital One. “The arts play an important role in building strong, healthy communities, and we are pleased to help the festival reach new audiences across the city.”
The full SummerStage schedule for Queens is below. For the most up-to-date scheduling and line-up for all SummerStage programming, follow SummerStage via the below links and visit www.SummerStage.org for festival information.
- Twitter: @SummerStage
- Instagram: @SummerStageNYC
- Facebook: SummerStage NYC
About City Parks Foundation
City Parks Foundation (CPF) is the only independent, nonprofit organization whose mission is to offer programs in parks throughout the five boroughs of New York City. We work in more than 350 parks citywide, presenting a broad range of programs in an effort to promote healthy and vibrant communities. Our programs and community building initiatives reach 425,000 people each year.
The 2015 SummerStage festival is presented by:
Capital One Bank, Disney, Sierra Nevada, Lagunitas, Ommegang, Rekorderlig Cider, AQUAÇAI, City Winery, Hendricks Gin, and JWT are official SummerStage sponsors. Additional funding generously provided by the Dalio Foundation; Howard Gilman Foundation; The Harold and Mimi and Steinberg Charitable Trust; J.E. & Z.B. Butler Foundation; The Shubert Organization; The Fan Fox & Leslie R. Samuels Foundation; and the Harkness Foundation for Dance. New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, in partnership with the City Council; New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo and the New York State Legislature; National Endowment for the Arts, through the Access to Artistic Excellence Program; Queens Borough President Melinda Katz; NYC Council Member Rosie Mendez; and NYC Council Member Debi Rose. Additional support is generously provided by our dedicated festival audience and SummerStage Members.
Media sponsors include: Time Out New York, Relix, Zoom Media & Marketing, Big Screen Plaza, Remezcla, The Village Voice, WNET, WNYC, WFUV, WBGO, and QNS.com.
In all of its programming and activities, City Parks Foundation partners with the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation to improve neighborhood parks and the communities they serve.
