A steady rain all day couldn’t stop the upbeat dancing of hundreds of groups making their way down Broadway at the 17th annual Dance Parade. Fred Astaire would have been proud of the dancers braving the elements to make this a successful parade where thousands of dancers showed off their moves along the parade route on Broadway and 22nd to 8th St. and Cooper Union where a group of judges saw each of the groups provide some amazing dances. The parade continued to Tompkins Square Park where there were more festivities going on celebrating the most ancient of art forms…..dance.
The young Dance Parade is one of the biggest cultural displays of dance in the city. There were Asian dancers of all kinds. African, European, South American, Central and North American and Caribbean dancers gave their all in the rain to be part of this magnificent parade. Many cultures came together to show off costume and dance to the thousands of revelers that came out to see the fantastic display. Each year, parade organizers honor contributors that have left their mark in the dancing world. This year the Grand Marshals were honored including Elizabeth Streb, founder of STREB EXTREME ACTION, along with Ronald K. Brown, founder of EVIDENCE, a world renown dance company based out of Brooklyn. But the float that was having the most fun with some amazing mixes came from DJ Natasha Diggs. They were all dancing in the streets to her mixes. She even got down and danced the hustle with a well taught dancer.
Dancers come from all over NY and the country to be part of the event. It truly is one of a kind and brings all kinds of people together in honor of dance and all that it does for us including mental, physical and spiritual health. I put together a best of video to highlight some of the better dancers.
NYC Parade Life 