‘AMERICAN LIVING ROOM FESTIVAL’
HERE Arts Center, 145 Sixth Avenue, 212-647-0202, here.org
July 22-August 24: HERE presents its 14th year of summer programming.
‘BAREFOOT DANCING’
Wave Hill, West 249th Street and Independence Avenue, Bronx, 718-549-3200, wavehill.org
June 11-July 30: At one of the most glorious sites in the metropolitan area, gambol in the grass to live world music at the Garden Pergola that overlooks the Hudson and the Palisades. Each week, the performers offer casual dance instruction before opening the lawn to all comers. Week by week, artists include James Reams and the Barnstormers playing American bluegrass; Cheres, folk musicians offering songs of western Ukraine; Hanguk, traditional Korean percussionists; Dancing Crane, Georgian musicians from the Caucasus; Troupe Makandal, Haitian drummers and dancers; Jerry O’Sullivan, an uilleann piper from the hills of Ireland; Sachiyo Ito, an Okinawan choreographer whose troupe plays flute and taiko drums; and Tokounou, West African players of djembe drums. Free with admission to grounds.
‘CELEBRATE BROOKLYN!’
Prospect Park Bandshell, Prospect Park West and 9th Street, Brooklyn, 718-855-7882 ext. 45
June 12-August 15: Dance Brazil offers Afro-Brazilian dance and capoeira from Bahia on July 11, and Keely Garfield Sinister Slapstick and the Creative Outlet Dance Theater of Brooklyn share a bill on August 8, during the 25th-anniversary season of this outdoor festival.
DANSPACE PROJECT
St. Mark’s Church, 131 East 10th Street, 212-674-8194, danspaceproject.org
June 18-22: Eiko & Koma’s free outdoor installation Offering, performed last summer on the waterfront in Battery Park, reduced many spectators to tears. After a world tour, it returns to New York and to the churchyard at St. Mark’s-in-the-Bowery, where the two artists offer their “ritual of mourning” atop the graves in one of the city’s oldest graveyards.
‘FUSE: THE NYC CELEBRATION OF QUEER CULTURE’
HERE Arts Center, 145 Sixth Avenue, 212-206-1515, here.org
June 16-July 5: Includes, on June 16 in the Dorothy B. Williams Theater, a special edition of Marcia Monroe’s monthly “Crossing Boundaries” series with Paul Langland in Dana Salisbury’s Self-Erasure, Ann Gadwa in her own I Dream of Monster Babies, Sondra Loring in the lesbian duet Running With Penknife (Open), and Johannes Wieland’s Trio. The very next night, “Queer Moves” features choreographers Jen Abrams, Arthur Aviles, and Sharon Estacio, and a week later, more queer dance from Randy James Dance Company, Mollie O’Brien, Pedro Osorio, and Peter Sciscioli. At the Club, choreographer Jennifer Allen shares a bill with director Jennifer Kagan on June 25. And “Body Blend” ‘s June 30 show with Barbara Mahler, Jesse Phillips-Fein, Jessi Scopp, and Rachel Thorne Germond. The next night, “Queer Moves” includes dance by Charles Andreson, Carlos Fittante, Daniel Gwirtzman, and Tamieca McCloud.
‘HUDSON RIVER FESTIVAL’
Wagner Park, Battery Park City, 212-528-2733, hudsonriverfestival.com
June 17-August 26: Folk dancing for the whole family, at a Swedish Midsummer Festival (June 20 at 5 p.m.); a Cuban Family Dance (July 19 at 6 p.m.) and a Greek Family Dance (August 9 at 6 p.m.).
‘JACOB’S PILLOW DANCE FESTIVAL’
358 George Carter Road, Becket, Massachusetts, 413-243-0745, jacobspillow.org
June 14-August 24: The 2003 season offers performances and free outdoor shows from 19 companies, including Twyla Tharp Dance, Mark Morris Dance Group, and Merce Cunningham Dance Company.
‘LATINO CULTURAL FESTIVAL 2003’
Queens Theatre in the Park, Flushing Meadows Corona Park, 718-760-0064
August 3 Tango Mujer
August 8 Alicia Sanchez y Compañía
August 10 Noche Flamenca
‘LINCOLN CENTER FESTIVAL’
Lincoln Center, Columbus Avenue and 63rd Street, 212-875-5766, 212-721-6500 (Centercharge), lincolncenter.org
July 8-27: Dance Theatre of Harlem offers two programs including the world premiere of Michael Smuin’s St. Louis Woman, Shen Wei Dance Arts make their local debut with Shen’s Folding and The Rite of Spring, and Israel’s Batsheva Dance Company performs the New York premiere of Anaphaza, to a collage score.
‘LINCOLN CENTER OUT-OF-DOORS’
Lincoln Center Plaza, 212-875-5766, lincolncenter.org
August 2-24: For most of August, this free cornucopia of offerings is the only game in town, and a high-stakes game it is, with concerts by Anjani’s Kathak Dance of India, Noche Flamenca, the Paul Taylor Dance Company, the Divine Divas of Oriental Bellydance, Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo, the Kevin Wynn Collection, Ailey II, and a program of edgy new dance from Philadelphia. Forget the Hamptons; if the urge to spend money strikes you, rent a room at the Empire Hotel, and then just stroll across Columbus Avenue to revel in this bounty.
‘MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S SWING’
Josie Robertson Plaza, Lincoln Center, 212-875-5766, lincolncenter.org
June 25-July 26: Hot bands ranging from Buster Poindexter on opening night to Illinois Jacquet and His Big Band at the close play for your dancing pleasure; it’s free to cut the concrete, but access to the well-sprung dance floor and up-front lessons requires tickets—or better, a season pass. Special free “swing for kids” days June 28 and July 19, and, new this year, a Smooth Moves dance competition on July 9.
‘THE NEW YORK INTERNATIONAL FRINGE FESTIVAL’
Various venues, 212-279-4488, fringenyc.org
August 8-24: Back for its seventh year, the largest multi-arts festival in North America will present live street performances from nearly 200 emerging theater and dance companies.
‘RIVER TO RIVER 2003’
World Financial Center Plaza, West Street between Vesey and Liberty streets, 212-945-0505, rivertoriverNYC.org
May 27-mid-September: On a roster that includes, in September in Battery Park, work by such dance world stars as Mark Morris, Elizabeth Streb, Twyla Tharp, and the late Martha Graham, root for this exotic truffle: Three dancers, four sopranos, and an actress tell of the women Odysseus encounters on his way back to Penelope, in this free performance May 29 and 30, 10 minutes before sunset, inspired by Homer’s Odyssey, choreographed by the Dutch artist Beppie Blankert in collaboration with composer Louis Andriessen.
‘SUMMER IN THE SQUARE’
Union Square Park, Union Square East and 16th Street, 212-460-1208
June 11-August 20: Paula Hunter’s diverse roster of companies plays Wednesdays at 6, starting with a “neighborhood affair” featuring dances by Washington Irving High School Performing Arts House Dancers, New York University students, and Carol Fonda. Subsequent weeks include Arthur Aviles Typical Dance Theatre, Flamenco Vivo Carlota Santana Spanish Dance, the Joffrey Dance Ensemble, Taylor 2, Lori Belilove & Company, KR3TS (a wonderful young troupe from East Harlem), the Niall O’Leary Irish Dance Troupe, Valetango, and Battery Dance Company.
‘TAP CITY 2003’
The Duke on 42nd Street, 229 West 42nd Street, 212-239-6200, 646-230-9564, nyctapfestival.com
July 12-20: Adding to the clatter of midtown are two weeks of classes, concerts, and grand jams featuring the young, the international, the legendary masters, and the newest ensembles. Watch as a classic genre is transformed. There’s a welcome party and jam at Jimmy’s Uptown in Harlem on July 13.