BPL Kicks Off Summer Music & Dance Series At Central Library Plaza

PROSPECT HEIGHTS – The Brooklyn Public Library kicks off its Plaza Swing Series on Wednesday, a summer music series featuring live performances and dancing at the Central Library Plaza.

The weekly summer dance party debuts tonight, July 11, with Swingtime Big Band playing classics from the Great American Songbook. Need to brush up on your dance steps? There will be a dance lesson at 6:30pm before the band starts playing at 7pm.

On July 18 StringsNskins combines traditional djembe (a West African drum) beats with classical violin to create a fusion of Haitian, African, Colombian, and Brooklyn sounds. Their set will include songs in English, Spanish, and Haitian creole and contain a “message of unity.”

On June 25, join Orlando Marin, “The Last Mambo King,” and the only remaining orchestra leader from “New York’s golden era of mambo” who still performs on a regular basis.

Guitarist Matt Munisteri and his band will play ragtime, blues, Tin Pan Alley, and jazz classics on August 1, while Nation Beat performs a mix of Brazilian maracatu drumming with American roots music including bluegrass, funk, rock, and country-blues on August 8.

The Plaza Swing Series is part of BPL PRESENTS, a series of arts and culture events held at the Central Library that includes talks and readings with authors, artists, and scholars; live music, dance and theater performances; film screenings; and art exhibitions.

All Plaza Swing Series shows take place on Wednesdays at the Central Library Plaza, 10 Grand Army Plaza. Dance lessons from 6:30pm to 7pm and live music from 7pm to 9pm. In case of rain, shows will be rescheduled for Thursday. Bring your dancing shoes!