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SummerStage Returns to Park with Live Events, June - October, 2021

Posted June 5, 2021 · City Parks Foundation

SummerStage is back! We’ve missed seeing you in person. That’s why we’re absolutely thrilled to announce our lineup of live performances for the 2021 season of Capital One City Parks Foundation SummerStage, kicking off on June 17. 

Join us for opening night in Central Park on Thursday, June 17, featuring the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis. The Central Park free season continues with eclectic jazz collective Sun Ra Arkestra, which opened the very first SummerStage concert in 1986 and will help celebrate our reopening this year.  Other featured free performances include legendary New York rock icon Patti Smith; incendiary rap duo Armand Hammer with prolific producer The Alchemist; Afrobeat group Antibalas; samba-funk founder Dom Salvador and his sextet; a showcase of renowned dance companies including Complexions Contemporary Ballet and Parsons Dance; salsa icon Tito Nieves; a summer recital with the Metropolitan Opera; a dance party with DJ collective The Originals; electronic-musician Marc Rebillet; and Grammy-award winning contemporary R&B singer Erica Campbell. Visit our website to see the full season lineup. 

Shows around the city kick off on June 19th in Harlem’s Marcus Garvey Park commemorating Juneteenth with a special advance screening of the critically-acclaimed documentary Summer of Soul (...Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) followed by a performance by the film’s director Questlove with special guests. We’ll be back in Harlem in August for our annual Charlie Parker Jazz Festival weekend. We’ll be in Flushing Meadows-Corona Park in Queens with Grammy-nominated artist Falu, who will kick off a screening of Monsoon Wedding at the Queens drive-in with Rooftop Films. We return to Coney Island with disco diva Gloria Gaynor; “Princess of Salsa,” La India; a celebration of hip-hop’s Funk Flex with Ginuwine and guests; and more to be announced. 

To ensure the safety and comfort of all guests, all shows will require pre-registration for free tickets, which will be distributed in advance of the show. New venue safety guidelines will also be in place. Ticket requests will open on Mondays at 12 PM ET; Jazz At Lincoln Center on June 17 and Summer of Soul screening on June 19 requests will open on June 7. For the latest safety protocols and more information on our temporary guidelines, visit our safety page and our FAQs. We will also be livestreaming many of our performances this year, so visit SummerStageAnywhere.org to tune in from home.

Want to read more about our full season? Check out the official 2021 SummerStage season digital brochure here. 

See you in the parks!