Dinosaur Jr at SummerStage in Central Park
photo by P Squared

SummerStage announces weekly digital series

NYC is still on “pause” amid the coronavirus pandemic, and while City Parks Foundation hasn’t outright cancelled their annual SummerStage live concert series, they have said “we aren’t able to hold our traditional concerts in parks around all 5 boroughs of NYC at this time.” To tide us over, they’ve announced a new digital series, SummerStage Anywhere. They’ll stream performances on YouTube every weekend in June, and continue into July.

“We are really excited to bring SummerStage to audiences at home through SummerStage Anywhere,” Heather Lubov, Executive Director of City Parks Foundation, writes. “The arts have been critical during this time of sheltering at home, serving both as a respite and as an important outlet for expression and creativity. And, of course, our city’s parks remain some of the only public resources available for respite as we shelter at home. Both parks and arts create community, and that’s what we need most right now, even if we remain socially distant. So we are hard at work to make sure we can still deliver SummerStage to you, anywhere, while we look forward to gathering together in parks again soon.”

The schedule for June includes a performance from Angélique Kidjo, LAMC’s annual showcase, a Juneteenth celebration with a “digital day of dance,” and more. See it in full, and watch a video message from Cyndi Lauper, below.

SummerStage Anywhere: June 2020 Schedule

Saturday, June 6 at 7PM ETMAX

Saturday, June 13 – LAMC Showcase, hosted by KCRW radio DJ Raul Campos, featuring pop singer Kany Garcia, hip hop artist Mabiland, indie electro pop musician Javiera Mena and rock band Circo. Time TBD.

Friday, June 19 – Juneteenth Celebration, featuring a tribute performances from Jamel Gaines’ Creative Outlet Theatre from Brooklyn and a panel discussion led by Dr. Indira Etwaroo, Executive Artistic Director of The Billie Holiday Theatre. Time TBD.

Friday, June 26Angélique Kidjo, with a digital performance and live Q&A. Time TBD.