Let’s Dance Boston Coming to Dewey Square Park

By Phil Orlandella

Dewey Square Park located in the Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Greenway will be in full swing with live music when the Celebrity Series of Boston once again presents “Let’s Dance Boston” a free activity for all.

The five-day dance and music extravaganza will feature a different style of dance with expert instructors providing 45-minute sessions in the selection of the evening.

Following the dance lessons the live band will perform for 90-minute sets- to accompany the dancing in the park.

Wednesday, September 13  

From the Lindy Hop to the Charleston, there is a vibrancy and excitement to Swing that will be evident as Michael Gamble and the Rhythm Serenaders, featuring Laura Windley, take the stage. This hard-swinging and stylistically faithful ensemble, created in the mold of the late 1930s, early 1940s dance band, performs arrangements popularized by bands led by Fletcher Henderson, the Coleman Hawkins All Stars, various Duke Ellington and Lionel Hampton side groups, the Dickie Wells and Willie Bryant orchestras, and more. The evening starts with a dance lesson from local teachers and choreographers Katie and Paolo Piselli, who bring more than 15 years of experience in social dancing to the dance floor.


Thursday, September 14

Havana comes to The Greenway with the fast-paced, Latin dance moves of the Mambo accompanied by the high-voltage celebration of Latin music from Tito Puente, Jr. and His Orchestra.  Puente, Jr. is determined to nurture the musical legacy left by his father, Tito Puente, revered by many as “Mambo King”. The evening begins with a lesson in the basic moves of Mambo from Ana Masacote, an international ambassador of Latin dance who has been profiled in La Voz del Mambo magazine as “The Future of Mambo” and Gastrell Rossignol, a Latin dance instructor.

Friday, September 15

Hustle down to Dewey Square Park on Friday, September 15 for a ‘70s Disco Party with The Loser’s Lounge, a collective of New York City’s finest performers founded in 1993 by former Psychedelic Furs keyboardist Joe McGinty. You bring the moves, they’ll bring all the greatest hits of the ‘60s, ‘70s and ‘80s. Award-winning performance coach and choreographer Rob Glover will start the evening by sharing the basic partner steps of the classic disco dance, the Hustle. Dust off your best disco suits and dresses and bring the sparkle down to The Greenway.

Saturday, September 16 

The fun continues on Saturday, September 16, with the spicy sounds of Orquesta SCC “La Excelencia”, a salsa dura orchestra based in New York City. This contemporary 11-piece big band is world-renowned for breaking from many unnecessary traditions in order to recreate the genuine Latin style and sound in a manner that befits the modern era of music. Spicy sounds require hot moves, and Jenna Robey and Luis Talavera Diaz, Latin dance instructors from Malden, Mass., will share the basics of Salsa. Robey recently placed first with her Salsa team at the World Salsa Summit.

Sunday, September 17

Let’s Dance Boston concludes with an afternoon of Klezmer, offered in association with the Jewish Arts Collaborative. The day features the sounds of Alicia Svigals’ Klezmer Fiddle Express, led by composer/violinist/vocalist Alicia Svigals, the world’s leading klezmer fiddler and a founder of the Grammy-winning Klezmatics.  The afternoon begins with instruction from Steve Weintraub, an internationally-known teacher of traditional Yiddish Dance who trained with Alvin Ailey and Erick Hawkins. Known as the “Pied Piper of Yiddish Dance”, Weintraub has led workshops around the world, performing in places such as Krakow, Paris and Weimar.

First appearing on The Greenway in 2015, Let’s Dance Boston is one of the most vibrant free outdoor dance and music parties ever to take place in the city. Let’s Dance Boston takes place on a specially installed large dance floor with an elevated performance stage at Dewey Square Park.   All instructions and open dance sessions are free and open to the public.

Let’s Dance Boston is sponsored by Leslie & Howard Appleby, Amy & Joshua Boger, Stephanie L. Brown Foundation, Donna & Mike Egan, and Eleanor & Frank Pao.  Additional support is provided by the Barr Foundation