10th Annual Dance Parade and Festival Set for 5/21

Thousands of dancers are limbering up in preparation for the 10th Annual Dance Parade and Festival in New York on Saturday May 21st 2016. The annual event is a street parade and dance festival in a city park that brings together dancers from around the city and as far away as Japan to showcase dance styles in a multi-cultural, rhythmic-infused magical display of human movement, art and color.

Dance styles reflect the cosmopolitan legacy of the city and the elastic inventiveness of the form, and include African, Asian-Indian, ballet, bhangra, Bolivian Tinkus, Brazilian zouk, breakdance, Chinese, hip-hop, Irish, Indonesian, Jamaican Dance Hall, lindy hop, modern, roller disco, salsa, samba, Tahitian and tango.

Theme: "Decade of Dance"
Parade Start: 21st & Broadway
Parade Time: 1-3pm
Grandstand: 8th Street & University Place
Festival: "DanceFest" 3-7pm in Tompkins Square Park, dance performances, workshops, lessons and social dancing

Four Grand Marshals,leaders and innovators in the dance world, launch the parade in a ribbon cutting ceremony. Past Grand Marshals include Carmen de Lavallade, Robert Battle, Savion Glover, Hex Hector, Jawole Willa Jo Zollar, Dr. Charles 'Chuck" Davis, Jacqulyn Buglisi, and Louie Vega.

Leading out the parade will be over 100 enthusiastic city youth who will dance their "debut on Broadway" and have the fun of their lives. The young dancers will have participated in a ten-week education program of dance workshops sponsored by New York City Departments of Parks and Recreation and funded by New York City Department of Cultural Affairs. The workshops are run in urban centers in Queens, Brooklyn and Manhattan.

"We want to inspire all to participate and enjoy no matter who you are - whether you dance only at weddings when pickled or are a pro on stage - Dance Parade is for everyone!" said Yana Landowne, board member

No Parade would be complete without the New York Dance Police (NYDP) - a volunteer group of men and women who inspire the crowds to dance and celebrate the spirit of Dance Parade. Anyone caught not dancing could be ticketed which includes a summons to attend a free dance class in the city.

Dance Parade originated as a response to a court case seeking to overturn New York City's 1926 Cabaret License Law that still restricts social dancing in bars and restaurants. A New York State Supreme Court Judge ruled in 2006 that social dancing was not considered "expressive activity" protected by the State Constitution's freedom of expression amendment. Dancers and dance groups got together to create a vibrant cultural and dance event in response to the decision, and Dance Parade New York was born.

Dance Parade New York is an entity of Dance Parade Inc, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization whose charitable mission is to promote dance as an expressive and unifying art form, while educating the public about opportunities to experience dance. The organization celebrates diversity by showcasing all forms of dance around the world through sponsorship of a yearly, citywide Dance Parade and Dance Festival. Additional programs include education outreach, residencies and artistic partnerships to aid in increased public awareness, and the showcasing of dance in multiple ways.

To post a comment, you must register and login.