Watching the Dance Parade and DanceFest

Photos by Stacie Joy 

The Dance Parade was back on NYC streets yesterday afternoon... as more than a billed 10,000 dancers took part in the 16th iteration of the festival that includes the DanceFest in Tompkins Square Park. 

EVG contributor Stacie Joy was along the parade route on St. Mark's Place and in Tompkins Square Park... and shared these images that show the color and pagentry of the more than 130 participating groups of dancers...

Given the energy and enthusiasm, it was often hard to tell that the heat index was in the high 90s...

Saturday afternoon fever

A few images from the Dance Parade on St. Mark's Place as a group enters Tompkins Square Park on this unseasonably warm hot May afternoon ... this selection is via Derek Berg...

We will have much more from the Dance Parade and DanceFest in later posts... EVG contributor Stacie Joy was out and about throughout the afternoon.

Meanwhile... 

Come on, come on, and dance all night 

Despite the heat, it'll be alright

This Saturday, the Dance Parade and DanceFest return to the East Village

As you may have heard, the Dance Parade (no. 16!) returns IRL on Saturday after a pandemic-era hiatus. (They were virtual, but...)

This year's theme is appropriately titled: "Back to the Streets." 

And per the EVG inbox:

Dance styles reflect the cosmopolitan legacy of the city and the elastic inventiveness of the form and include African, Asian-Indian, avant-garde contemporary, ballet, Indian bhangra, Bolivian Carporalesn, 5Rhythms, breaking, Traditional Chinese, contemporary, hip-hop, Irish, Indonesian, Jamaican Dance Hall, lindy hop, modern, roller disco, salsa, Tahitian and Tango. 

The dancing commences at 12:30 p.m .at the corner of 20th Street and Broadway. (See the map below!)

The parade eventually heads across Eighth Street... Astor Place (grandstand alert!) and St. Mark's Place. The whole thing ends in Tompkins Square Park, where DanceFest takes place from 3-7 p.m.  ... an event that includes three stages and the "Experience Dance Booths."

Revisit some 2019 DanceFest pics on EVG right here.