CELEBRATing ALL THE CULTURE WESTCHESTER HAS TO OFFER SUMMER 2023!
The summer of 2023 was a great time to enjoy live music in Westchester County. ArtsWestchester in partnership with the City of White Plains, the City of Mount Vernon and Peekskill, the Village of Sleepy Hollow, and the Bethany Arts Community showcased the diversity that makes the county a great place to live, work and play. The free events included concerts in parks, staged performances on city streets, and an outdoor cultural festival.
Friends, family, and neighbors enjoyed great evenings of cross-cultural experiences with music and dance from northern Westchester to Southern Westchester and all points in between! Residents and visitors traveled the world and enjoyed evenings fill with the sounds of reggae, music and dance from the Andes of Peru, Ballet Folklorico of Mexico, Jamaican and Caribbean folk music, classic American rock-n-roll music, African music & dance, and enjoyed a day filled with music, food and dance at the the Ecudorian Festival.
Thursday, June 1, 2023 | 6-8pm
WESTCHESTER & ROCKLAND JUNETEENTH KICK-OFF CELEBRATION
THE COST OF FREEDOM: THE JOURNEY CONTINUES
Bedford Hills Community House (74 Main St., Bedford Hills)
Free to the Public
Join us as we come together to kick off the Juneteenth celebrations taking place in Westchester and Rockland Counties throughout the month. The program features a keynote lecture by scholar-activist Professor James Small; presentations by Black Westchester founders Damon K. Jones and AJ Woodson; music and dance performances by regional artists, including Grammy Award-winning cellist Akua Dixon; educational workshops for youth, food; and more!
Organized by the Westchester & Rockland Countywide Juneteenth Coalition with support from Westchester County Government, in concert with Antioch Baptist Church (Bedford Hills) and the Westchester County African American Advisory Board.
Sunday, June 4, 2023 | 2-3pm
WESTCHESTER PRIDE
VOGUE: THE DISCOVERY OF SELF
Discussion with Benny Ninja
ArtsWestchester Gallery | 31 Mamaroneck Avenue | White Plains
FREE
4pm – Vogue Performance by Haus of Telfar
Court Street (between Main and Martine Avenue) | White Plains
FREE
Join us for an intimate conversation with Vogue legend Benny Ninja as he reflects on his life in Westchester, the vogue and club scenes. He will also offer insights on “how to create your path while leaving a trail.” The program will be moderated by his son, RIDIKKULUZ, from the Haus of Telfar. Following the conversation, the Haus of Telfar will present an original vogue production created for specifically for the 2023 Westchester Pride.
Co-organized by ArtsWestchester and The LOFT: LGBTQ+ Center
For more info about Westchester Pride, visit: https://www.loftgaycenter.org/westchester_pride_2023
Wednesday, June 21, 2023 | 6:30-8pm
PERFORMING FAMILIES
feat. Bria The Artist & Valerie Not Val, Reencuentro Andino, and El Grupo Los Quisqueyano
Peekskill Landing Park | Peekskill
FREE
Celebrate the bonds of music with three Peekskill family ensembles as they explore the connections between kinship, tradition and the arts. The program will feature mother-daughter ensemble ‘Bria The Artist & Valerie Not Val,’ Ecuadorian family ensemble ‘Reencuentro Andino,’ andDominican merengue típico ensemble ‘El Grupo Los Quisqueyano.’
Bring your lawn chair or picnic blanket!
Co-organized by ArtsWestchester, Arts10566 and the City of Peekskill.
Wednesday, July 26, 2023 | 7-8:30pm
CITY OF WHITE PLAINS: SOUNDS OF SUMMER
feat. McLean Avenue Band
Renaissance Plaza | White Plains
FREE
McLean Avenue Band has taken the Irish American music scene by storm by masterfully combining traditional Irish tunes and ballads with elements of rock, pop and R&B.
Co-organized by the City of White Plains and ArtsWestchester
Saturday, July 29, 2023 | 3-5pm
ART BENNETT MEMORIAL CONCERT
ArtsWestchester Gallery | 31 Mamaroneck Avenue | White Plains
FREE | Space is Limted Reserve Early
Join us for a special jazz program honoring the life and music of White Plains saxophonist and flutist Art Bennett. The program will feature performances by William Parker, Harold Smith, Juma Sultan, Adam Siegel, Michael Bessio, Alan J. Palmer and many others.
Sunday, August 6, 2023 | 4:00pm (concert)
DANCEMASTER AT JAMAICAN EMANCIPENDENCE DAY
Hartley Park | 125 Gramatan Avenue | Mount Vernon
FREE
Noel “Dancemaster” Stevens, is the foremost Jamaican ambassador of soca, a popular music blending West African, Calypso and East Indian rhythms. This concert is co-presented by the Jamaican Emancipendence Committee, ArtsWestchester, and the City of Mount Vernon as part of the 189th year of Jamaican Emancipation and the 61st anniversary of Independence. The half-day Jamaican Emancipendence Dayprogram (2-7pm) will also include a keynote talk by Jamaican Olympic bobsledder Devon Harris, face painting and Jamaican food vendors, as well as performances by Youth Theater Interactions and the Denzel Washington School of the Arts Marching Band.
Tuesday, August 8, 2023 | 6:30pm
JONATHAN SCALES FOURCHESTRA
City Hall Plaza | 1 Roosevelt Square North | Mount Vernon
FREE
Jonathan Scales is one of the most innovative steel pannists in the world, known for redefining the steel pan as an instrument of jazz-funk-rock fusion. In his hands, the sonic palette of an instrument often associated with cruise ships and tropical resorts is radically expanded to mimic the role of horns, piano, vibraphone and marimba.
*In event of rain, program will be held at the Doles Recreation Center, 250 S 6th Ave, Mt Vernon, NY
Co-organized by ArtsWestchester and the City of Mount Vernon, in conjunction with the Mount Vernon Summer Breeze series
Sunday, August 20, 2023 | 3-8pm
DIA DE LA CULTURA ECUATORIANA
Barnhart Park | Sleepy Hollow
FREE
Join us for an afternoon of Ecuadorian music, dance, food and craft, along with family-friendly presentations that feature traditional Ecuadorian costumes and the indigenous Kichwa language.
Guests are welcome to bring their own lawn chairs or picnic blankets to enjoy the performance.
Co-organized by ArtsWestchester and the Village of Sleepy Hollow
Saturday, September 23, 2023 | 5-9pm
MOONCAKE NIGHT MARKET
ArtsWestchester Gallery | White Plains
$10.00 | General Admission
Food sold separately by vendors and is not included in the admission fee.
Celebrate the magic of the full-harvest moon with an evening of music, dance, craft, and food! Participants will enjoy hands-on workshops in Chinese calligraphy, lantern making, mooncake stamping, decorative knotting, origami and more, as well as performances by award-winning artists. Performances will feature the mysterious and colorful Bian Lian “face changing” mask dance of the Sichuan opera, Chinese and Korean instrumental music, and a variety of folk and traditional dances. Private karaoke all night!
Co-organized by ArtsWestchester, the Greenburgh Evergreen Club, and the OCA-Asian Pacific American Advocates Westchester & Hudson Valley Chapter
Saturday, October 21, 2023 | 1:30-4pm
AN AFTERNOON OF SYRIAN MUSIC
Katonah Museum | Outdoor Sculpture Garden | Katonah
FREE
Join us for a special program on Syrian musical heritage and preservation with the Syrian Music Preservation Initiative. An interactive presentation (1:30pm) will be followed by a performance (3pm) that features esteemed Arab chamber music ensemble Takht Al-Nagham. This program is presented in conjunction with the Katonah Museum of Art’s exhibition, Stories of Syria’s Textiles: Art and Heritage Across Two Millennia (on view October 15, 2023 – January 28, 2024).
Co-organized by ArtsWestchester and Katonah Museum of Art
It is with the support of people like you that make it possible for ArtsWestchester to continue to bring arts and culture to your communities. Please consider becoming a member or making a donation (in any amount) and help us keep the arts alive in Westchester.
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