Dance Festival Kicks Off At Little Island In Lower Manhattan

WEST VILLAGE, NY — Dancing feet are on their way to Little Island in Lower Manhattan. New York City's newest public park located in Hudson River Park near West 13th Street is hosting a Dance Festival from Wednesday to Sunday.

The percussion dance-focused festival is co-curated by Little Island artists-in-residence Ayodele Casel and Torya Beard.

The festival will feature tap dance artists, classical and contemporary Indian dance, African drumming, and more in a variety of performances. The Dance Festival will also align with and celebrate National Dance Day on Sept. 18.

"We are overjoyed to have the opportunity to curate a festival centering percussive dance artists whose work is deeply rooted in unabashed cultural expression," said Ayodele Casel, Artist-in-Residence, and Torya Beard, Dance Festival Co-curator, in a news release.

You can find out the full lineup and schedule for the Dance Festival — here.

While the majority of the Dance Festival programming can be experienced for free, evening events hosted in The Amph will be ticketed. Tickets are available on the LittleIsland website.

Savory Hospitality will serve locally sourced food and beverage on Little Island each day of the Dance Festival including breakfast and coffee from 7:00 to 10:30 am; lunch from 11:30 am to 4:00 pm; and dinner from 5:00 to 11:00 pm.

Both vaccinated and unvaccinated guests can attend the ticketed events at the Amph, but unvaccinated visitors will be required to wear masks when they cannot properly practice social distancing.

You can find out more about the Dance Festival on Little Island's website.