Summer in the City

Summer in the city is hot, humid, and humming. It's the time of street fairs, block parties, and FREE live entertainment. I love this time of the year. Time to mark up my calender!

Central Park Summerstage:

Mavis Staples (and Stephanie McKay) kick off the season Friday, June 13th at 7PM. I saw her at BAM and saw firsthand that this woman can still take you there.

Other highlights- indie band of the moment, Vampire Weekend (June 14th), Taj Mahal (July 27th), Junot Diaz (July 27th), Richard Price- Lush Life is high on my reading list- (July 31st), and many more.

The Summerstage benefit concerts are obviously not free, but you can still sit outside and hear great music. I'll definitely be there for the Thievery Corporation (live) with Seu Jorge featuring Special Guests Bebel Gilberto & Federico Aubele Turntables on the Hudson (June 12th)- yes, Bebel Gilberto! Also lined up are shows with Sonny Rollins (August 6th) and The National, Yeasayer, Plants and Animals (August 4th).

Celebrate Brooklyn at the Prospect Park Bandshell:

Isaac Hayes (Shaft!) kicks off the season Thursday, June 12th. Man, I can't wait for that show!

Some highlights- Cold War Kids (June 27th), Beth Orton (July 12th), Deerhoof (July 18th), The Philip Glass Ensemble (July 25th), Mark Morris Dance Group (July 31st),and Lila Downs (August 8th).

The above schedules might be the most famous of the free concerts in the parks, but the schedule for the CityParks Concerts is just sick. The Jungle Brothers (August 5th) and BT Express (August 12th) in Red Hook, Whodini (July 10th) in Bed Stuy'sVon King Park, KRS One (July 24th) in the Lower East Side's East River Park, Slick Rick(August 13th) in Harlem's Jackie Robinson Park, The Delfonics (July 29th) in Queensbridge Park, and Frankie Morales (July 22nd) in South Bronx's St. Mary's Park. Many more, just check out the schedule.

McCarren Park Pool has free Pool Parties and movies, just scroll through their full schedule to see what's going on. Desperately Seeking Susan July 22nd and MGMT on July 27th caught my eye.

Shakespeare in the Park brings you Hamlet and Hair. Sweet.

Bryant Park Summer Film Festival- Mondays, opening night June 16th, Dr. No.

The Village Voice's Siren Music Festival July 19th, noon-9PM. Broken Social Scene and a gazillion other bands, essentially just rocking out right off the Coney Island boardwalk.

DUMBO's Movies with a View schedule isn't up, but watching flicks at the foot of the Brooklyn Bridge with Manhattan as a backdrop (and eventually Olafur Eliasson's waterfalls), there could be worse ways. Check back here for a schedule, first film is July 10th.

South Street Seaport:

Wire, those punk legends who still inspire, opens the season tonight.

Madison Square Park Music

BAM's R&B Festival at Metrotech

Harlem Meer Performance Festival

River to River Festival- schedule not up yet

Broadway in Bryant Park

Pier 54 River Rocks

Charlie Parker Jazz Festival- schedule not up yet

Seaside Summer Concert Series- new schedule not up yet

Martin Luther King Jr. Concert Series- new schedule not up yet

Good Morning America Concert Series in Bryant Park:

Nothing like seeing Usher (May 30th) at 7 o'clock in the freakin' morning.

But wait, there's more! NBC's Today Show has the Toyota Concert Series at Rockefeller Center. Rihanna (June 20th) and Coldplay (June 27th), and yes, at 7 AM.

The more civilized stuff:

NY Philharmonic Concerts in the Parks

The Metropolitan Opera in the Parks

That's just the tip of the iceberg (I didn't even touch art, except for the waterfall mention), and I'm exhausted. Remember, it's early in the season so new shows are added frequently. Click on all the above links for updates and full schedules, and bookmark FreeNYC for even more events and reminders. And seriously, you need to mark things in a calendar. And if you're not from the city? Come visit!