Family-friendly performances to be held every third Saturday in Alameda City Parks through September
Grab your chairs and blankets, pack a picnic lunch, and head outdoors for fun all summer long as Rhythmix Cultural Works and the City of Alameda’s Recreation and Park Department bring people of all ages together with a series of free, family-friendly concerts in Alameda’s City Parks. Explore and enjoy music, dance, visual art, and educational opportunities with Rhythmix in the Park on the third Saturday of the month, May through September.
Rhythmix in the Parks supports our community celebrating our diverse cultural traditions; uplifting underserved voices; supporting BIPOC artists; redefining Alameda’s City parks as accessible and safe spaces to be enjoyed by all; and embracing the City of Alameda motto, “Everyone Belongs Here.”
Live performance schedule
Saturday, May 18 at noon, Woodstock Park, 355 Cypress Street: Rhonda Benin & Friends Onward to Freedom–A Celebration of Black History. Join Rhonda Benin & Friends and discover how the music created by enslaved African Americans expressed their desires and plans for freedom, and how that music helped them survive. Dance, clap, and sing along to this uplifting celebration of Black music and history while exploring the question “What is Freedom?”
Saturday, June 15 at noon, Littlejohn Park, 1422 Buena Vista Avenue: AZA–Tamazight Music from Morocco. AZA unites traditional Tamazight (incorrectly labeled “Berber”) music, indigenous to North Africa, with the global influences of its diverse members. With elements of indigenous Moroccan musical styles, including Ahwash, Rwais, and Gnawa, among others, AZA’s stirring performances feature deep, danceable rhythms, intricate melodies, and soaring, soulful vocals. Visually dynamic and engaging, AZA has been inspiring international audiences for more than 20 years.
Saturday, July 20 at noon, Tillman Park, 220 Aughinbaugh Way: Sekhou Senegal–West African Music and Dance. Audiences of all ages can dance along to traditional sounds of Sekhou Senegal, a West African music and dance ensemble created by twin brothers Ousseynou and Assane Kouyate. Ousseynou and Assane were born and raised in Senegal, Africa, from a family line originating in Mali and Guinea. They come from a long line of griots—the poets, historians, storytellers, and keepers of West African song and dance traditions.
Friday, August 16, 6:30 p.m., Jean Sweeney Park, 1925 Sherman Street: String & Shadow Puppet Theater—Or So It Would Seam: A Giant Puppet Tale for People of All Ages. Equal parts whimsical fairy tale, outer-space odyssey, and slap-stick clown show, “Or So It Would Seam” follows the cosmic seamstresses of the planet Lupita who, among other things, weave the fabric of space-time. A sci-fi folk tale populated with succulent moons and mountainous planets, “Or So” will take audiences out of this galaxy to contemplate the intricate and unexpected ways we are all connected to one another. This show will be filled to the brim with giant puppets, colorful stilt-walkers, original storytelling, and live music, featuring a cast of 12 performers/musicians.
Saturday, September 21 at noon, Chochenyo Park, 2430 Encinal Avenue: Round the World – Music, Dance & Art Festival. Enjoy an afternoon of global music and dance performances from acclaimed Bay Area ensembles, highlighting music and dance from Asia, Southeast Asia, Latin and South America, Africa, and the Pacific Islands. Celebrate the art, music, dance and cultural traditions of Alameda’s diverse community and beyond with interactive activities for youth and a “multicultural marketplace” featuring local craft vendors and global cuisine.
For more information, visit Rhythmix in the Parks online.
