If you can't afford tickets to 'Sunday In The Park With George' starring Jake Gyllenhaal on Broadway, there is another way you can take in some incredible park performances this summer...
By going to a real park! Bryant Park, to be exact! The Bryant Park corporation just announced their line-up of open air entertainment for the summer and it's dope—and best of all—FREE.
At part of this year's 'Bryant Park Presents' series, expect world class performances of Shakespeare, opera, and contemporary dance, just to name a few.
The midtown oasis will offer up it's own 'Shakespeare in the Park', with productions of The Merry Wives of Windsor, Twelfth Night, and The Tempest, on weekends throughout the summer, presented by The Drilling Company.
On selected dates, The New York City Opera will perform "one night only" excerpts from their upcoming full productions of Los Elementos by Antonio Literes, La Cenerentola by Gioachino Rossini, La Fanciulla del West by Giacomo Puccini, and Giuseppe Verdi's greatest hits.
Contemporary dance lovers will get a treat on Fridays in June and July, with alternating Ballet and Modern-centric performances from Martha Graham Dance Company, CONTINUUM, Kate Weare Company, and more.
Bryant Park will also be cashing in (okay not really because again, this is all free) on the summer music festival craze with three unique music festivals packing the park with musicians and music lovers!
[anad]
The first is an Accordion Festival on Friday July 21st, from 5pm to 10pm, to cap off a month of weekly Accordion Picnics, Wednesday nights from 6pm to 8pm. Each week, over 24 artists of the often overlooked instrument will finally get to take the spotlight. At the festival, five different bands that feature accordionists will take the stage to show off the power of the accordion across cultures.
On Friday August 4th from 6pm to 10pm and Saturday August 5th from 2pm to 9pm, some of the biggest names in Classical and Jazz music with come together for IN/TER\SECT—A festival that brings together the two often feuding but surprisingly closely related musical genres.
And finally there's the Emerging Music Festival, returning for its third year to celebrate New York's best new music in indie rock, soul, R&B, singer-songwriting, and more. Come support up and coming artists on Friday August 18th from 6pm to 10pm and Saturday August 19th from 4pm to 10pm.
Just don't jump in the fountain when the accordion gets too hot.
[Feature Image Courtesy Bryant Park] [via Time Out NYC]