Celebrate Brooklyn! Dance Parties to Kick Off in May

BRIC, producer of Celebrate Brooklyn!, the borough's premier outdoor summer festival, returns with the fifth annual Celebrate Brooklyn! Dance Parties. The free series, held on Brooklyn Bridge Park's Pier 1 on three consecutiveThursday evenings in May (14, 21 & 28), serves as a "bridge" to Celebrate Brooklyn's 37th annual season, which starts June 3 with a free performance by Chaka Khan and runs throughout the summer at the Prospect Park Bandshell. Please find a schedule with programming details below.

Celebrate Brooklyn! Dance Parties feature a varied lineup of fantastic live performances paired with some of New York's best DJs, on a great lawn with spectacular views of the city, plus dance lessons, free valet bike parking, a variety of food trucks, a beer garden and more. The free dance parties will begin at 7:00 PM each night and end by 10:00 PM. Pier 1 can be entered at the foot of Old Fulton Street at the Brooklyn waterfront.

Leslie G. Schultz, BRIC's President, said: "BRIC is excited to partner with Brooklyn Bridge Park and grateful for support from the Bridge Park Conservancy to bring Celebrate Brooklyn! back to the park, and to offer up eclectic, and free music and dance parties in an exquisite outdoor setting. This partnership enables BRIC to advance its mission of providing high-quality performing arts that is free and accessible by all."

Jack Walsh, BRIC's Vice President of Performing Arts & Executive Producer of the Celebrate Brooklyn! Performing Arts Festival, said: "For 37 years, Celebrate Brooklyn! has been synonymous with live performances by world-class artists from Brooklyn and around the world, presented in Brooklyn's most stunning outdoor settings. We are excited to return to Brooklyn Bridge Park for a series that features a stellar line up of performers and DJs that will bring together the community in a fun, social way, finally putting winter behind us and bringing us all one step closer to summer!."

Regina Myer, President of Brooklyn Bridge Park, said: "We are thrilled to welcome Celebrate Brooklyn! back to the park for a fifth year. We truly value our partnership with BRIC and look forward to having their fantastic dance parties kick-off our 2015 programming season."

Nancy Webster, Executive Director of Brooklyn Bridge Park Conservancy, said: "Dance your way to spring in Brooklyn Bridge Park when Celebrate Brooklyn! returns with a wide-ranging musical lineup this May. Many thanks to BRIC for kicking off a great programming season in Brooklyn Bridge Park."

Media partners include The Village Voice, WNYC 93.9 FM, WBGO 88.3 FM and WFUV 90.7 FM. Free bike valet parking provided by Transportation Alternatives and Spinlister.