Carpetbag Brigade, Ifetayo Youth Ensemble and More Set for SummerStage's 'Global Family Day', 7/7

On Sunday, July 7, 2013, SummerStage 2013 will present Global Family Day in Central Park, featuring: THE CARPETBAG BRIGADE and NEMCATACOA TEATRO, ELIZABETH MITCHELL, NATURAL EXPRESSION RHYTHM BAND, ASE DANCE THEATER COLLECTIVE, and the IFETAYO YOUTH ENSEMBLE. The free show takes place in Central Park, Manhattan. Recommended Arrival Time: 2:00pm. Showtime: 3:00 PM - 6:00PM.

SummerStage Kids presented by Disney presents Global Family Day, a day dedicated to engaging children and their families through engaging performances! This family affair will awaken the kid in all of us through interactive performances from around the world and around the corner. Contemporary circus performers, musicians, dancers, and super cool activity stations make for a great afternoon in the park!

The Carpetbag Brigade Physical Theater Company is joining forces with the Colombian performing arts company, Nemcatacoa Teatro to present a series of works showcasing acrobatic stilt walking and street theater spectacle. Both companies will be performing works from their diverse repertoires including "Callings" a work inspired by the sirens of the sea and "Landscape Reinventions," a look at how bodies interact with the details of architecture to reinvent it. Featuring acrobatic stilts, butoh dance, contact improvisation and physical theater, this will be a visual feast for the eyes.

Artist Website: http://carpetbagbrigade.wordpress.com

ELIZABETH MITCHELL, a GRAMMY nominated recording artist has been recording and performing music for children and families since 1998 when, during her time as an assistant teacher, she found that music was a common language that all her students could share. You Are My Flower, her first album, was recorded in one magical afternoon. Her next album, You Are My Sunshine was released following the birth of her daughter, Storey. In 2006 came You Are My Little Bird which was voted Best Children's Album that year by the critics of Amazon.com and garnered generous critical praise. Her most recent release is an album called Little Seed: Songs for Children by Woody Guthrie, released as part of the celebration of the 100th birthday of Woody Guthrie in 2012. She records and performs with her extended family band You Are My Flower, which includes her husband Daniel Littleton and their eleven year old daughter, Storey.

Artist Website: http://youaremyflower.org/

Natural Expression Rhythm Band is known as one of the best "Engine Rooms" in the English speaking Caribbean community. The "Engine Room" is the backbone of percussion that sweetens all Steelband and Calypso music and incorporates tire irons, graters, cowbells, triangles, and much more to give it a unique sound. Natural Expression Rhythm Band is comprised of 15 to 25 veteran Caribbean percussionists, who have been playing together since 2007 and have won a myriad awards.

Artist Website: http://naturalexpressionrhythmband.wordpress.com/

The professional, neo-folklore ASE Dance Theater Collective is a performance group that specializes in dance theater from the African Diaspora which works to conceptualize ideas in the human experience. The Brooklyn based group is comprised of dancers, vocalists, freestyle dancers, spoken word artists and musicians, and dedicates itself to preserving the past, present, and future of the African presence in the "New World." ASE successfully strives to link modern dance, original vernacular movement, and traditional dance theater.

Artist Website: https://www.facebook.com/pages/ASE-Dance-Theatre-Collective/113498953178

Since its inception in 1989, Ifetayo Cultural Arts Academy has been dedicated to supporting the creative, educational, and vocational development of youth of African descent in Brooklyn and surrounding communities. The organization's name comes from the West African Yoruba word "ifetayo" meaning "love is enough for joy" and captures Ifetayo's approach to empowering youth, studying culture through the arts, and redefining community. The Ifetayo Youth Ensemble (IYE) is an award-winning performance group, recognized for their combination of artistic excellence and exploration of social issues. IYE creates high-caliber original, socially relevant, and interdisciplinary performance works.

Artist Website: http://www.ifetayo.org

For the most up-to-date scheduling and line-up for all SummerStage programming, follow SummerStage via the below links and visit www.CityParksFoundation.org for festival information.

Website: http://www.cityparksfoundation.org/summerstage/

Twitter: @SummerStage #SummerStage13 #ThisIsHipHop

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/summerstagenyc

City Parks Foundation (CPF) is the only independent, nonprofit organization to offer park programs throughout the five boroughs of New York City. We work in over 750 parks citywide, presenting a broad range of free arts, sports, and education programs, and empowering citizens to support their parks on a local level. Our programs and community building initiatives reach more than 600,000 people each year, contributing to the revitalization of neighborhoods throughout New York City.

SummerStage reminds our patrons that in the interest of public safety the following items cannot be brought into the Central Park venue: glass bottles, cans, coolers, folding chairs, bicycles, rollerblades, skateboards, beach umbrellas, video cameras, tape recorders, professional camera gear or pets. All bags are subject to search. Bringing alcoholic beverages into any NYC park is forbidden and the distribution or sale of unauthorized promotional materials is not allowed. Beer and wine are on sale at the Central Park venue for on­site consumption only.