June Events in Prospect Park

BROOKLYN, June 1, 2016 – Join the Prospect Park Alliance in June for quintessential Brooklyn summer fun! Music wafts through the air as the New York Philharmonic and BRIC's Celebrate Brooklyn! festival return with free performances that will delight the whole family.

Children can explore the Park's wildlife – both visible and microscopic – at the Alliance's two roving Pop-Up Audubon tents this month. Join our educators to learn about life up in the trees, down on the ground, and below the surface of the Prospect Park Lake.

– Indicates kid-friendly event

Flax to Linen Saturdays + Sundays in June, 2–4 pm Lefferts Historic House, Free Join the Alliance to check on the flax crop planted in the spring and try out the tools used to process flax fibers into linen cloth. Touch different pieces of linen cloth to compare the weaves and sew a small linen pouch to take home.

Pop-Up Audubon: Incredible Invertebrates Saturdays + Sundays in June, 11 am–4 pm Vanderbilt Playground, Free Join the Alliance to examine the tiniest creatures in Prospect Park. • Adventure Hike, 12–1 pm: Alliance naturalists will introduce you to the natural history of Prospect Park and the Park's hidden trails. Recommended for families with children 5 and older. • Nature on the Go!, 1–2 pm: Discover the diverse array of aquatic life by examining the specimens of Prospect Park Lake. • Nature's Helpers, 2–3 pm: Did you know that trees help trees? After learning how mulch protects tree roots, spend time spreading wood chips around trees. • Family Bird Watching, 3–4 pm: After learning how to use binoculars, join our naturalists to identify some of the 250 species of birds that call Prospect Park home.

Pop-Up Audubon II: Water Detectives Saturdays + Sundays in June, 11 am–4 pm South Lake Near Peristyle, Free What's in our water? Investigate water chemistry and identify macro invertebrates in and around the upper watercourse.

• Discovery Pack, 11 am–4 pm: The Prospect Park Alliance invites you to get inspired by nature with our new Discovery Packs, a ready-to-go kits filled with nature activities for families. • Woodland Water Walk, 12–1 pm: Join Alliance naturalists for a guided nature walk following the upper section of Prospect Park’s watercourse and explore the unique ecosystem of the Ravine. • Junior Naturalists, 1–2 pm: Discover what creatures live in Prospect Park’s water bodies and the chemistry that influences their development in this citizen science program. • Nature’s Helpers, 2–3 pm: Let’s lend a helping hand to make our park a better place. Learn how mulch helps trees, spread wood chips or protect the environment by removing damaging litter. • Family Bird Watching, 3–4 pm: After learning how to use binoculars, join our naturalists to identify some of the 250 species of birds that call Prospect Park home.

Early Morning Bird Walk: Local Nesters Sunday, June 5, 8–9 am Prospect Park Audubon Center, Free Join the Prospect Park Alliance and discover hidden nests! Glimpse the lives of busy bird parents and their hungry nestlings. Tour leaves promptly at 8 am. Led by the Brooklyn Bird Club.

Flavorpill Presents Magic Hour: Talib Kweli + Prince Klassen Sunday, June 5, 4–8 pm LeFrak Center at Lakeside, $14 per person Magic Hour is back Sunday, June 5th for another skate sesh. Hip-Hop legend Talib Kweli will send you spinning around the rink with a supremely dope DJ set.Party till the wheels fall off. For tickets, visit Lakeside online.

Celebrate Brooklyn!: Sharon Jones + the Dap Kings Wednesday, June 8, 8–10 pm Prospect Park Bandshell, Free Sharon Jones + the Dap-Kings perform at the Bandshell as part of Celebrate Brooklyn!, presented by BRIC in partnership with the Prospect Park Alliance. For the latest information, including weather updates, set times, seating configurations, and FAQs, please visit the BRIC website.

Comeback queen Sharon Jones, whose “whirl of young Tina Turner energy and powerful, expressive vintage soul vocals” (Mojo) harken back to the glory days of Stax and Motown, returns to the BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! Festival with the unstoppable Dap-

Kings, the beating heart of Bushwick-based Daptone Records, hell-bent on surpassing their legendary 2010 closing night show.

Gates open at 6:30 pm. Gates open an hour before the performance unless otherwise noted, and all performances are rain or shine.

Chancellor’s Day Thursday, June 9, 12–5 pm Join the Prospect Park Alliance for family-friendly activities at the Prospect Park Audubon Center, Lefferts Historic House and the 1912 Carousel. • Nature Exploration, 12–4 pm Prospect Park Audubon Center, Free Bundle up and find out what your favorite Park animals are doing this winter. Join Alliance naturalists to discover the winter survival strategies of animals that live in Prospect Park. Enjoy nature games, science activities, bird watching, and take home your own tube of homemade lip balm! Blooming Naturalist, 1–2 pm: So you think you are a Naturalist? Find out at the Audubon Center by learning how to identify birds and use binoculars and field guides. Participants can even create their own tube of lip balm and an Official Blooming Naturalist button. Nature on the Go!, 2–3 pm: An Alliance Naturalist will lead children and families to areas near the Audubon Center, where you can learn about the nature that is all around us and participate in a Citizen Science project. Animal Encounter, 3–3:30 pm: Curious as to how “Snappy” the turtle got her name? Want to watch the snake gobble up a mouse? Join Alliance Naturalists in learning more about the animals in the Audubon Center’s collection and even assist in an actual feeding. • Race Around the Farm Yard, 2–4 pm Lefferts Historic House, Free Get out and get moving in the Lefferts yard! The whole family can participate in potato sack races, spoon races, stilts and other old fashioned games. • Carousel Rides, 12–5 pm Children’s Corner, $2 per ride, $9 for a book of 5 tickets, free with Alliance Family Plus membership Celebrate with a ride on the Park’s beloved 1912 carousel. Join the Alliance at the $150 level and your family (up to 4 people) will receive unlimited rides on the Carousel for a full year!

Bones of an Old Dutch House Tour Sunday, June 12, 12–1 pm Lefferts Historic House, $10 suggested donation, reservations required

Examine the white oak timbers (the bones) of Lefferts Historic House and the many layers that were added, subtracted and changed over the past 230 years. Climb the staircase for a view of the attic's smokehouse and descend into the cellar for a look at the foundation. For adults and teenagers. Only 10 people per tour.

Celebrate Brooklyn!: Baaba Maal + Lakou Mizik Thursday, June 16, 7:30–10:30 pm Prospect Park Bandshell, Free Baabal Mall performs at the Bandshell as part of Celebrate Brooklyn!, presented by BRIC in partnership with the Prospect Park Alliance. For the latest information, including weather updates, set times, seating configurations, and FAQs, please visit the BRIC website.

The singular Senegalese vocalist, guitarist, and percussionist Baaba Maal “has a gift, nearly unparalleled in all of popular music, for creating at once soaring and vulnerable melodies.” (NPR) Maal has become one of Africa’s greatest musical exports by fusing a range of styles into something completely original; his 2016 record The Traveller continues down this restless path. Lakou Mizik, a rousing collective of Haitian musicians formed after the devastating 2010 earthquake, offers “a joyous antidote to Haiti’s hard times.” (The Guardian)

Gates open an hour before the performance unless otherwise noted, and all performances are rain or shine.

New York Philharmonic Friday, June 17, 8–10 PM Long Meadow, Free Join the New York Philharmonic to celebrate their 51th summer of free outdoor programming. Alan Gilbert leads the Orchestra in Beethoven's Overture to Fidelio, Symphony No. 3, Eroica; and Mozart's Clarinet Concerto, featuring Anthony McGill on clarinet.The performance will be followed by fireworks. Alliance members at the Arborist level and above enjoy VIP seating.

Celebrate Brooklyn!: Bud Light Music Series with + Kristin Hersh Saturday, June 18, 7:30–10:30 pm Prospect Park Bandshell, Free Violent Femmes perform at the Bandshell as part of Celebrate Brooklyn!, presented by BRIC in partnership with the Prospect Park Alliance. For the latest information, including weather updates, set times, seating configurations, and FAQs, please visit the BRIC website.

The first new album in fifteen years from Milwaukee-based acoustic punk originals Violent Femmes, We Can Do Anything, finds frontman ’s seething angst and rueful humor undiminished—the record pulses with “the playful quirkiness, infectious beats and jittery observations of the band's earliest work.” (NPR Music) Kristin Hersh’s trenchant explorations of “rage, aggression and mental chaos” (NY Times) with Throwing Muses helped define American alt-rock in the ‘90s; now the author of six books, she remains a ferociously intense presence onstage.

Gates open an hour before the performance unless otherwise noted, and all performances are rain or shine.

Flavorpill Presents Magic Hour: Xeno + Oaklander Sunday, June 19, 4–8 pm LeFrak Center at Lakeside, $14 per person We've tapped everyone's favorite techno music/art label, Ghostly International, to curate the DJ talent for this edition of Magic Hour. Join us at The LeFrak Center at Lakeside Prospect Park on Sunday, 6/19 for a skate soundtracked by Xeno & Oaklander, with support from Heathered Pearls. For tickets, visit Lakeside online.

Celebrate Brooklyn!: ALVVAYS, Ducktails + Big Thief Thursday, June 23, 7–10:30 pm Prospect Park Bandshell, Free ALVVAYS perform at the Bandshell as part of Celebrate Brooklyn!, presented by BRIC in partnership with the Prospect Park Alliance. For the latest information, including weather updates, set times, seating configurations, and FAQs, please visit the BRIC website.

ALVVAYS, an enchanting fuzz-pop quintet from Toronto, “creates the sound of pristine pop music blasted through cheap, blown-out headphones…you sense both the sadness and the liberation of knowing that nothing lasts forever.” (Pitchfork) Matt Mondanile’s Ducktails “approximates the gentle comfort of a Sunday afternoon” (Spin) with a breezy style reminiscent of his other band, Real Estate; Brooklyn’s own Big Thief, “everything you could possibly want from modern folk-tinged rock and more,” (Vice) rounds out the bill. Presented in Association with The Village Voice.

Gates open an hour before the performance unless otherwise noted, and all performances are rain or shine.

Celebrate Brooklyn!: ¡Cubanismo!, Ricardo Lemvo + Makina Loca Friday, June 24, 7:30–10:30 pm Prospect Park Bandshell, Free

¡Cubanismo! perform at the Bandshell as part of Celebrate Brooklyn!, presented by BRIC in partnership with the Prospect Park Alliance. For the latest information, including weather updates, set times, seating configurations, and FAQs, please visit the BRIC website.

Led by trumpeter Jesús Alémañy, a prodigy who joined the great Havana son group Sierra Maestra at 15, the sizzling dance band ¡Cubanismo! approaches Cuban music with both a reverence for tradition and an outward-reaching flare, punctuating every performance with a “rhythmic kick and a sense of adventure.” (AllMusic) Ricardo Lemvo, the Congo-born, LA-based singer and bandleader of Makina Loca, plays “a blend of Cuban and Central African traditions that is seamless and organic—and infectious." (LA Times)

Gates open an hour before the performance unless otherwise noted, and all performances are rain or shine.

Flax Harvest Saturday, June 25 + Sunday, June 26, 1–4 pm Lefferts Historic House, Free Join Alliance educators for the mid-summer flax harvest. Help harvest our flax crop and prepare it for processing.Learn how flax is processed into linen and try on some reproduction clothes for a fun photo-op in our farm wagon.

Celebrate Brooklyn!: Philandanco Saturday, June 25, 8–10:30 pm Prospect Park Bandshell, Free Philandanco perform at the Bandshell as part of Celebrate Brooklyn!, presented by BRIC in partnership with the Prospect Park Alliance. For the latest information, including weather updates, set times, seating configurations, and FAQs, please visit the BRIC website.

The trailblazing choreographer Joan Myers Brown, who founded her extraordinary company Philandanco in 1970, has been engaged in shattering barriers for African Americans in contemporary dance nearly her whole life. This program will feature work by Thang Dao, Ronald K. Brown, and Abdel Salaam that originally premiered in James Brown: Get on the Good Foot, a Celebration in Dance, along with a piece by Christopher Huggins and a New York premiere.

Gates open an hour before the performance unless otherwise noted, and all performances are rain or shine.

Ongoing Events

Prospect Park Alliance Monday Eastside Revival Mondays, 10 am–2 pm Register online or call (718) 287-3400 for more information Join the Prospect Park Alliance to help beautify two of the Park’s most elegant locations: the Vale of Cashmere and the Rose Garden. Tasks may include raking, sweeping, path edging, and litter removal.

Greenmarket at Bartel-Pritchard Square Wednesdays, 8 am–3 pm Bartel-Pritchard Square Nestled inside Prospect Park's tree-shaded southwest corner, this much-loved weekday market is where South Slope and Windsor Terrace residents stock up on locally grown staples. The offerings range from a selection of vegetables, fruits, baked goods, plants, and flowers, to fresh-caught fish and organic baked goods. For a full calendar of events and a list of sellers, visit GrowNYC.

Nature Exploration Prospect Park Audubon Center, Free Join the Prospect Park Alliance for nature education programs at the Prospect Park Audubon Center, the first urban Audubon Center in the nation. • Thursdays + Fridays, 12–4 Discovery Pack, 12–3 pm: The Prospect Park Alliance invites you to get inspired by nature with our new Discovery Packs, a ready-to-go kits filled with nature activities for families. Bird Nerds Game Hour, 1–2 pm: Test your knowledge of birds in this fun, mildly competitive hour of puzzles, Bingo, card games, and more! Nature on the Go!, 2–3 pm: An Alliance Naturalist will lead children and families to areas near the Audubon Center, where you can learn about the nature that is all around us and participate in a Citizen Science project. Animal Encounter, 3–4 pm: Curious as to how Snappy the turtle got her name? Want to watch the snake gobble a mouse? Join Alliance Naturalists in learning more about the animals in the Audubon Center’s collection and even assist in an actual feeding. • Saturdays + Sundays, 10 am–1 pm Nature Play, 10–11 am: Join Alliance naturalists and learn to appreciate the beauty of nature and develop self-reliance, creativity and problem-solving skills through different outdoor play-based activities.

Discovery Pack, 10 am–12 pm: The Prospect Park Alliance invites you to get inspired by nature with our new Discovery Packs, a ready-to-go kits filled with nature activities for families. Blooming Naturalists,12–1 pm: So you think you are a Naturalist? Find out at the Audubon Center by learning how to identify birds and use binoculars and field guides.

Prospect Park Alliance Thursday Corps Thursdays, 10 am–2 pm Register online or call (718) 287-3400 for more information The Alliance’s Thursday Corps volunteers perform a multitude of different projects throughout the Park. The group meets at a different location every week helping in a variety of landscape and horticultural projects. Regardless of physical ability, there's something for everyone to do.

Shape Up NYC: Cardio & Body Strengthening Fridays, 11 am–12 pm Prospect Park Audubon Center, Free This total body workout addresses muscle strength and endurance while keeping the heart rate up to burn calories and strengthen the cardio respiratory system. Continuous movement to great music makes it fun! This instructor is part of the NYC Parks Fitness Instructor Training Program.

Greenmarket at Grand Army Plaza Saturdays, 8 am–4 pm Grand Army Plaza At what other market can you do all your food shopping, sample local wine and explore Brooklyn's favorite park? Established in 1989, the Grand Army Plaza greenmarket is the flagship Brooklyn market. EBT/Food Stamps and WIC & Senior FMNP coupons accepted year-round. For a full calendar of events and a list of sellers, visit GrowNYC.

Prospect Park Alliance Saturday Woodland Corps Saturdays, 10 am–2 pm Register online or call (718) 287-3400 for more information The Saturday Woodland Corps is a team of volunteers committed to the continued restoration and revitalization of Prospect Park’s 250 acres of forest. Join them to help care for Brooklyn’s last remaining forest!

Introduction to Bird Watching Saturdays, ending June 25, 12–1 pm Prospect Park Audubon Center, Free

Look! Up in the sky, it’s a bird! But what kind of bird is it? Take a tour and learn about the magnificent array of birds that call Prospect Park home. Led by the Brooklyn Bird Club.

Yoga in the Park Thursdays, June 2–August 25, 7–8 PM Long Meadow, Free Join the Prospect Park Alliance, Bend + Bloom Yoga and Lululemon Brooklyn every Thursday at 7pm for free, community yoga classes in the beautiful Long Meadow. Bring your own towel or mat, water and a friend!

Sunset Yoga Thursdays, June 2-Sept 1, 7–8 pm LeFrak Center at Lakeside, Free The best way to de-stress after a long week is with sunset yoga at Lakeside. Join Abhaya Yoga every Thursday night from 7-8 pm for a relaxing and revitalizing hour of yoga. Please bring a mat, water bottle and towel.

Grand Army Market Sundays, 10 am–5 pm Grand Army Plaza The Brooklyn Flea comes to Prospect Park! Grand Army Market will feature 30 carefully selected vendors with an emphasis on makers and unique design offerings. The market will include some of the most popular maker vendors from Brooklyn Flea selling toys, apparel, flowers and plants, art, food and more!

Smorgasburg Prospect Park Sundays, 11 am–6 pm Breeze Hill Smorgasburg, the celebrated open-air food fair, returns to Prospect Park this spring! On Sundays from April 3–October 23, over 100 local and regional food purveyors will gather on Breeze Hill to offer a range of cuisines.

Locations, Directions, and Hours

Children’s Corner Willink entrance, at the intersection of Flatbush Ave. and Empire Blvd. By subway: Q, S, or B run to Prospect Park Station. By bus: B16, B41, and B43 • Lefferts Historic House Admission: $3 suggested donation

Hours: Open during school holidays and Thursdays–Sundays, 12–5 pm • Prospect Park Carousel Admission: $2 per ride; $9 for a book of five tickets, unlimited rides with Prospect Park Alliance Family Plus membership. Hours: Thursdays–Sundays, 12–5 pm • Prospect Park Zoo Admission: Adults $8, Children (3–12) $5, Seniors (65+) $6. Children under 3 free. Hours: Open daily, 10 am–4:30 pm

LeFrak Center at Lakeside Parkside and Ocean Avenue or Lincoln Road Entrance. Walk directly across the Drive and follow the path to Lakeside. By subway: Q, B and S to Prospect Park Station; Q train to Parkside Avenue station By bus: B12 or B16 to Parkside and Ocean Avenues, B 41 to Ocean Avenue Admission & hours: Visit our website for up-to-date hours, pricing and programming

Prospect Park Audubon Center Enter the Park at Lincoln Road & Ocean Ave. or Flatbush Ave. & Empire Blvd. (Willink entrance) and follow the directional signs. By subway: Q, S, or B to Prospect Park Station. By bus: B16, B41, and B43 will bring you close to the Park's Willink entrance. Admission: Free Hours: Open during school holidays, as well as Thursdays + Fridays, 12–4 pm and Saturdays + Sundays, 10 am–1 pm

Prospect Park Tennis Center Located at the Parade Ground, 50 Parkside Avenue at Coney Island Avenue By subway: F to Fort Hamilton Parkway station (exit at Greenwood/Prospect Ave.), Q to Parkside Avenue station By bus: B68 along Coney Island Avenue to Parkside Avenue Hours: 7 am–11 pm daily, advance reservations recommended.

Programs and prices are subject to change. For up-to-date information, please visit our website.

Prospect Park is one of Brooklyn’s most treasured destinations and a national landmark. The Prospect Park Alliance is a nonprofit organization that partners with the City of New York to ensure the ongoing care and long-term stewardship of Prospect Park. The Alliance preserves the natural environment, restores historic design and provides public programs and amenities for the Park, which receives more than 10 million visits each year.

To learn more about ways to get involved, visit prospectpark.org. ##

Press Contact: Grace McCreight: 718-965-8954/[email protected]