Thank You from Fall Festival

Burnt Sugar the Arkestra Chamber
Photo by Tracy Young

Last week, Bryant Park Fall Festival presented by Bank of America featured over a dozen of New York City's celebrated cultural institutions. These groups came together to present 8 days of free performances, sampling some of the best the city has to offer in ballet, modern dance, jazz, opera, poetry, and kids programming. Crowds were delighted, performers exhilarated, and no one let the rain or a presidential visit to the Stephen A. Schwarzman Building of the New York Public Library stop us. We could not have done it without the generous support of our sponsors, Bank of America, HBO and The Durst Organization; and our media partners, WNET.ORG, WNYC, and amNEWYORK.

Photo by Tracy Young

We also owe special thank yous to the teams of people at Verona Productions, Element Group, and Global Strategy Group, who helped us set-up, design and organize Fall Festival.

Jennifer Muller/The Works
Photo by Tracy Young

The crowd came prepared for Jazzmobile's presentation of the Winard Harper Septet.
Photo by Ethan Lercher

Peter Sellars at the Rubin Musem of Art discussion of the dramatization of Vimalakirti Sutra
Photo by Jacob Bielecki

Festival refreshments provided by 'wichcraft and City Winery
Photo by Tracy Young

Kids Club Thirteen and Vital Theatre Company present Pinkalicious
Photo by Ethan Lercher

Thank you to all of the presenting organizations as well for the music, dance, words and memories. That includes City Winery, Bowery Poetry Club, Kids Club Thirteen, City Parks Foundation's PuppetMobile, operamission, Rubin Museum of Art, Burnt Sugar the Arkestra Chamber, the Black Rock Coalition, China Institute in America, Ballet Hispanico, Jennifer Muller/The Works, The Metropolitan Opera's Lindemann Young Artist Development Program, Jazzmobile, Inc., Elisa Monte Dance, and RIOULT. 

Ballet Hispanico takes a bow.

Photo by Tracy Young

Behind the Fence: The Room and the Vaults

When the park's new underground electrical facility is completed, on-site transformers will pull power from the Con Edison electric grid. This electricity will be converted into a usable form and brought into the park's new switchgear room, where the power will be distributed to the park through over 300 wires.

Progress on all of these elements has now reached a significant stage. After the framework for the switchgear room was built and the concrete poured, we've made finishing touches to the switchgear room like waterproofing, preparing conduit connections, and backfilling over the roof.

These switchgear boxes will connect to the 70 conduits and 300 wires that leave this room and snake throughout the park.

On the side of the switchgear room site, the transformer vaults are beginning to take shape. Work was done to excavate and waterproof the area with drainage materials.

The precast transformer vaults were brought in by truck late Monday night/early Tuesday morning and lifted into the site with a crane. Each vault is a little over 100 square feet inside.

The floors and roofs for each of the vaults are also precast and installed separately. After the vault walls were placed, the floors were dropped in with a crane. You can see the cutout in the floor piece, where a sump pump will eventually be installed to keep the transformers nice and dry. 

Next up behind the fence? The transformers will be suspended inside the vaults, and the roofs and floors will be permanently affixed to the vault walls. 

For more information on the park's Power Facility Project, see our past blog posts: 

• May 19: Bryant Park Power Project
• July 6: A New Power Grid
• August 4: Camouflage and Excavation
• September 12: Rebar, Shore and Pour

Bryant Park Shopper: Uniqlo's Pop Up in Bryant Park

As we all eagerly anticipate the grand opening of not just one but two Uniqlos in Midtown (including a three-story space on 34th Street), the Japanese retailer has teased us with pop-ups all over town. Now Bryant Park has one of her own, a formidable space on the southwest corner of 42nd Street and Sixth Avenue.

Yes, this is the same space Target well-utilized to kick-off their Liberty of London and Missoni collaborations. Uniqlo will be in residence here until the 8th of October. I highly recommend a visit to properly ring in the fall season with some packable down coats, vests, cashmere sweaters, and a perfect tapered jean.

Resisting Mickey and Minnie T's is impossible.

It's been years since I tried on Uniqlo in the Soho store, but it was everything I remembered it to be: great fitting, well-cut inexpensive clothing that focus on the basics. Somehow Uniqlo's basics are never boring.

Voila: A great basic to wear with skinny jeans or leggings. Mine above are the Uniqlo skinny fit tapered and they fit like a designer jean. These are $49.90. I'm trying to show off the boat-neck shoulder detail that makes this staple modern and chic. This tunic ($149.90 for 100% cashmere) also comes in a deep red color but only in XS because it's fabulous so all us Midtown shoppers have snatched up the Ss, Ms, Ls, and XLs. Want to see more? Peruse after the jump (click read more, below), but if I've already convinced you with my one adorable tunic go to 42nd and Sixth pronto before you miss out on other gorgeous colors in your size.

Uniqlo Pop-Up Boutique 1095 Sixth Avenue at 42nd Street

Tricia Lewis of Fashion Herald is our Bryant Park Shopper  

The Talk on Twitter (Updated)

@LvndrHppE: "I'd have to say, of all the parks in NY, @BryantParkNYC is my absolute favorite."

@aubreyliciouss: "Laid out in @BryantParkNYC! I love it here <3"

Love for the park has been abundant on Twitter, since this little bit of Indian Summer descended upon New York City over the weekend. We're pleased that the weather has finally decided to cooperate, so all can enjoy the final days of the lawn, which will close in just a few weeks. In order to open Citi Pond and The Holiday Shops on time, the last day of the lawn will be October 10 most likely be October 14 ***, with Pond and Shop installation beginning immediately ever.

***Update as of September 28: The lawn will close earlier than originally expected to allow for grading, trenching and irrigation line winterizing.

Breakfast Briefing Finale with MLB.com

Did you know that all of the official major league baseball teams' websites, including the League site, are managed by the same company? MLB.com was created in 2000 to centralize all online media and operations for baseball. The unified company, MLB Advanced Media LP (MLBAM), handles everything from apparel and ticket sales, to fantasy games and blogs, to player and team statistics, and multimedia video highlights and audio broadcasts. MLBAM has become quite a dynamic organization with a large enough umbrella to encompass all of the teams, their rivalries, and the ever evolving structure of online services.

Bob Bowman at work. From Fast Company

Bob Bowman, the CEO of MLBAM will be in the park tomorrow for our final Breakfast Briefing at the Southwest Porch. His talk on sports and media will round out our sampling from a wide variety of industries this summer. There are still a few more spots for attendees, so register now. The talk includes breakfast and coffee from 'wichcraft. Breakfast Briefings are produced in partnership with Southwest Airlines and Fast Company.


Breakfast Briefing with Bob Bowman, CEO MLB.com
Tuesday, 8:30am - 9:30am
September 27
Southwest Porch

Fall Migration and Birding Tours

Bryant Park is a popular stop-over twice a year for birds migrating in between seasons. And just as the birds make a trip in both Spring and Fall, so do our New York City Audubon Society guides return to the park to lead amateur and experienced birders alike through the park for lessons on bird behavior and surprise sightings. You never know what bird may choose to take break in our London plane trees and perennial beds.

We've timed our Fall Birding Tours to catch the migratory birds in the midst of their trek south for the winter. Here, our tour guide Gabriel Willow tells us a little bit about the free tours and what you can expect birding in Bryant Park.



Birding Tours of Bryant Park resume this Wednesday at 8am, and will continue for 5 sessions over the course of the migratory season.

Birding Tours of Bryant Park 
Wednesdays, 8am-9am
September 28 - October 26
Meet at 42nd Street and 6th Avenue

Ballet Hispanico at Fall Festival

Bryant Park holds a number of performances, large and small, throughout the year. Bryant Park Fall Festival presented by Bank of America gave us the opportunity to see large scale dance, opera, and music performances on an almost 360 degree stage. This doesn't leave much of a backstage for performers, but gives the public an incredible opportunity to see a performance from all angles, and glimpse a performer stretching their limbs or vocal chords. Ballet Hispanico, the nation's premier Latino dance company, took the stage on Sunday night. Below you can see a bit of their performance, and a post-show interview with Company dancer, Donald Borror.

Fall Festival has two remaining performances, which both happen to be modern dance. Tonight, Elisa Monte Dance will take the stage, and tomorrow RIOULT will round out the Festival. Make an evening of it with snacks from 'wichcraft and City Winery, and chances to win at the Info Kiosk. Both performances begin at 6pm. 

Last Chances for Classes

As September draws to a close, so do many of our free classes. Seize the fleeting moment and grab your last chance to participate in something you've been meaning to do all summer.

Sample Tai Chi on the Fountain Terrace with The Tai Chi Chuan Center at one of the three remaining sessions. 

Glimpse the skyscrapers amongst the blue as you reach for the sky in warrior one pose. lululemon athletica will lead two more free yoga classes next week. 

Meet the Birds at Le Carrousel. Our feathered friends from Arcadia Bird Sanctuary have only two more visits this year. 

If you miss these, don't be discouraged. This fall, we have free Fencing Classes from Manhattan Fencing Center, Audubon Society Birding Tours, and Juggling. 

An Evening at Bryant Park Fall Festival

Running over the next 8 days, Bryant Park Fall Festival presented by Bank of America presents the perfect opportunity to spend an evening in the park soaking up some culture. We've got a variety of performances for visitors to choose from including funk/rock, ballet, dance, opera, and jazz. While you're in the park for Fall Festival, don't miss these other opportunities to improve your experience and round out your evening.

Photo by Ana Schechter

City Winery has teamed up with 'wichcraft to provide refreshments during each evening performance. You can expect 'wichcraft's famously fresh treats, paired with selections from City Winery's cellar. Famous for their New York City themed wines and as a cultural venue providing music and entertainment, City Winery will also bring a taste of their space to ours, as they kick-off Fall Festival tomorrow afternoon. Wine and poetry collide in their latest wine series in partnership with the Bowery Poetry Club. Both groups will be in the park tomorrow for a performance of Red Poetry, showcasing the new bottles.

While you're here, be sure to visit the Info Booth. In exchange for filling out our Fall Fest satisfaction survey, you'll be entered to win excellent prizes from Fall Festival presenting organizations, who have been kind enough to provide swag and tickets to see Fall Festival artists in their upcoming fall shows.

If you're coming to the Festival, be sure to check into Bryant Park on Foursquare. A few lucky Foursquare users will receive an instant upgrade for themselves and a guest to the VIP Fall Festival Experience, including front row seats with sips 'n snacks from 'wichcraft.

And don't worry about a babysitter, bring the kids to Fall Festival! We've got pre-performance workshops, designed especially for children, taking place five times throughout the week. Hosted by Kids Club THIRTEEN, these events will engage the kids with hands-on fun, character-themed activities, and visits from the stars themselves like Martha Speaks and Chirp from Peep in the Big Wide World.


Bryant Park Fall Festival
Friday, September 16 – Friday, September 23
Afternoons & Evenings

From the Archives: September Dedication

In this post, BPC's archivist, Anne Kumer, shares some park history. This post also appears on NYC Circa, a history blog about New York City and its public spaces.

Seventy-seven years ago today Bryant Park re-opened after an aggressive redesign and renovation led by NYC Parks Commissioner Robert Moses.

Lifted straight from an older post, which has several in-process construction photos: "Assisted by consulting architect Aymar Embury II, and landscape architect Gilmore D. Clarke, Moses transformed the grounds of Bryant Park from a Victorian greensward to a French Classical landscape very similar to today’s design."

Here are a few photos from the dedication ceremony held on September 14, 1934. First, the ceremony. It almost looks as if no one is there listening to Robert Moses, and the fountain water is very still.

But it was well attended. Everyone is clustered behind the fountain, recently moved from its prior location at the other end of the park, just behind the library.

A bird's eye of the lawn, including the hedges, Bryant Park Place along the left on 40th Street, and the Union Dime Savings Bank building at the corner of 40th and Sixth Avenue.

**All Photos, copyright: New York City Parks Photo Archive

Inside the Studio with Elisa Monte Dance

Bryant Park Fall Festival presented by Bank of America kicks off this Friday, September 16 with 8 days of free music and dance performances. Elisa Monte Dance brings their emotionally-charged, physical dance style to the park next Thursday for a ferociously exciting evening. We visited the studio last week for a sneak peek at their style and Fall Festival program.

 

In honor of the company's thirtieth anniversary, choreographer and founder Elisa Monte explains that the program chosen for this event will sample from the company's repertory to showcase the feelings and styles of the past thirty years. This partner-focused modern dance is sure to make for an exciting evening at Fall Festival, with energy that is almost tangible. Elisa Monte Dance takes the stage on Thursday, September 22 at 6pm.

Behind the Fence: Rebar, Shore and Pour

We've made a lot of progress behind the fence since we last updated you. This is welcome news, since we plan to have the power facility in full working order by the time CitiPond and The Holiday Shops return to the park at the end of October.

For the last month, its been a case of build, pour, remove and repeat inside the construction area. After we reached the bottom of the site last month and poured a concrete foundation, the crew has been working at great speeds to install rebar, shore walls and ceilings, and pour concrete that will become the floor, walls and ceiling of the power facility. In the slideshow below, you can see highlights from the last month of construction.

Bryant Park's Fashion's Night Out: It's All About Missoni for Target

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Inside Missoni for Target's Bryant Park Pop-Up

It  isn't really all about the Missoni, especially when Lord & Taylor is right down the street at Fifth Avenue and 39th Street. Go here to their incredible listing of fun for Fashion's Night Out, because Lord & Taylor has their usual terrific lineup. Here are some more FNO highlights around Bryant Park

• Zara at 42nd and Fifth will have a celebrity DJ and champagne bar
• The first 100 guests to buy the new BCBG fragrance at the BCBG boutique at Fifth and 40th will receive a bottle signed by Max Azria 
• The Alice + Olivia boutique will be hosting the A + O Carnival.

But back to our title event: everyone will be dropping by the Target pop-up featuring their new Missoni collection. Doors open at 6pm, but expect a line to form well before six in front of 1095 Sixth Avenue at 42nd and Sixth. How do I know this? Because I was lucky enough to drop by this evening for the pop-up party preview, and by the time I got there the Missoni was almost all gone. But I was able to capture a few things on film:

 The bedding is divine, and I've got to have that shower curtain (I have a thing about shower curtains). There's plenty of the zig zag to go around, and a look at Marina, the giant Missoni for Target blogger puppet, is alone worth a wait in line. I saw her earlier in the day at the IFB blogger conference, and I was mesmerized. What does her cell phone say? She's tweeting "OMG," of course.

Missoni for Target pop-up boutique 1095 Sixth Avenue at 42nd Street

Tricia Lewis of Fashion Herald is our Bryant Park Shopper 

From the Archives: 9/11 Revisited

One year after the September 11, 2001 attack on the World Trade Center in New York City, Bryant Park Corporation set up a temporary memorial of 2,819 empty chairs on the lawn, one for each of the lives lost in the attacks, facing the site where the Twin Towers once stood.

This year, as the world remembers the tenth anniversary of 9/11, we will stage a similar memorial on the lawn with 2753 chairs, reflecting a number established by the Medical Examiner's Office. In addition, Sheryl Oring will present an interactive public art project called Collective Memory, which will take place simultaneously on the Upper Terrace.

For three days a pool of ten typists will record park visitors’ answers to the question, “What would you like the world to remember about 9/11?” Answers will be typed on small white sheets of paper, and collected to be included in a forthcoming exhibition. Beginning in the afternoon on Friday September 9, you can also view these remembrances on Flickr with the BryantParkNYC Collective Memory Set.

A Tribute 9/11
September 9, 10, 11, 2011
Bryant Park Lawn

Collective Memory
12:30 - 2:30 pm
Upper Terrace

Mashing Up Midtown with Burnt Sugar

Fall Festival presented by Bank of America begins next Friday, September 16. Leading off the week of free performances is Burnt Sugar the Arkestra Chamber with their funky rock rhythms on Friday night. The group's style is what band leader Greg Tate calls conducted improvisation, so even though performances tend toward the experimental, these seasoned musicians still have to practice. We caught up with Burnt Sugar at rehearsal last week, as they prepared for their park performance.



No two Burnt Sugar performances are ever the same, according to bass guitarist Jared Michael Nickerson, so be sure to catch them in Bryant Park presented by the Black Rock Coalition on Friday, September 16 at 6pm. It's a one-of-a-kind, never to be seen again event!

2011 Bryant Park Fall Festival

Bryant Park Fall Festival presented by Bank of America returns for its fourth season in the park this September 16 through September 23. Last year we brought you performances from some of New York City's best classical music, opera, jazz and dance institutions. And this year we've expanded the offerings even further to include soul, modern Chinese music, poetry, and a talk with renowned theater and opera director Peter Sellars. Kick-off your fall cultural season with a little taste of everything New York City has to offer.

Five Boroughs Music Festival, 2010 Bryant Park Fall Festival
Photo by Ana Schechter

DANCE  Last year's two dance performances attracted some of the biggest crowds seen at the Festival. This year dance fans will enjoy four nights of dance. Ballet Hispanico, Jennifer Muller/The Works, Elisa Monte Dance, and RIOULT will all grace the stage for breathtaking visual displays of athleticism and beauty.

Parsons Dance, 2010 Bryant Park Fall Festival
Photo by Ana Schechter

MUSIC  The remaining evening performances are dedicated to music of all kinds. Burnt Sugar The Arkestra Chamber brings the funk and soul at Friday's kickoff show with Greg Tate, Vernon Reid and Melvin Van Peebles. Saturday's show will follow with music presented by the China Institute in America, a performance of classical Chinese music modernized with jazz, hip hop and electronica. Opera and Jazz round out the musical selection at the Festival. On Tuesday, the Metropolitan Opera's Lindemann Young Artist Development Program returns for their fourth performance of arias and duets at Fall Festival, and drummer Winard Harper will take the stage on Wednesday to lead a septet from Jazzmobile playing Jazz and African rhythms.

BAM, 2010 Bryant Park Fall Festival
Photo by Ana Schechter

AFTERNOONS  It doesn't stop there. For something a little different, we've got three afternoon events sampling poetry, production and music. City Winery, one of the Festival's food and beverage providers along with 'wichcraft, offers up a performance combining wine, poetry and music with readings by the Bowery Poetry Club on Friday. Then on Monday, expect the unexpected as operamission performs their take on Mozart's opera Le Nozze di Figaro with a new comic cliffhanger. And finally on Wednesday, The Rubin Museum of Art presents famed director Peter Sellars, who will discuss the dramatization of the Vimalakirti Sutra, one of the earliest narrative sutras relaying the teachings of Buddha.


KIDS  And we didn't forget the kids either! In partnership with Kids Club Thirteen, families will enjoy pre-performance workshops on Tuesday September 20, Thursday September 22, and Friday September 23, in addition to two special afternoon children's performances over the weekend. The City Park Foundation's PuppetMobile comes to the park on Saturday to tell the story of Bessie the Cow, and Sunday Vital Theatre Company celebrates all things pink with favorites from Pinkalicious, The Musical.



Be sure to check out the complete Fall Festival schedule on our website, and stay tuned to the blog for contests, VIP seats, backstage access and more. 


Bryant Park Fall Festival
Friday, September 16 – Friday, September 23
Afternoons & Evenings