By Walter Rutledge
Keeping in the spirit of his credo, “create to communicate”, Kevin Iega Jeff has choreographed Homage for the Jamel Gaines Creative Outlet. Homage will be presented during Remembering, the company’s 30th anniversary season celebration February 13, 14, 15 at BAM Fisher Fishman Space in downtown Brooklyn. The intergenerational ensemble work highlights the artistry of three accomplished female performers Shirley Black Brown Coward, Bahiyah Sayyed and Thera Ward. Continue reading
By Walter Rutledge
The bright late morning sun was still drying the dew off the grass, but Fort Green Park was already bustling with energy. As I climbed the white marble stairs the sound of music greeted me halfway up. Patiently waiting at the base of the Prison Ship Martyrs’ Monument was Jamel Gaines, a tall man sporting a retro curly “fro”.
Soon the large plaza in front of the monument begin to fill with dancers of all ages, shapes and sizes. Gaines, the founder of Jamel Gaines Creative Outlet Dance Theatre of Brooklyn, has spent the more than 25 years building and cultivating the performing arts in Brooklyn. Long before Starbucks, trendy bars and little ugly dogs found Brooklyn’s urban landscape; Gaines had established an artistic foothold in the Fort Green section at 138 S Oxford Street.
If you have ever visited the Creative Outlet school, it has a feeling of a community/village. Parents monitor classes and assist with moving younger students between classrooms, there is a lunch concession that offers affordable hot meals and healthy snacks to the participants and family members. The focused classes resembled the most disciplined arts academy; the biggest difference of was the amount of melanin.
The pandemic put an end to the communal learning approach, and the use of traditional performing venues. Creative Outlet was forced to close its studios, but not suspend activities. Staying true to form Gaines began teaching free classes outdoors at Fort Green Park three days a week.
Creative Outlet Free Dance Class
On Thursday and Friday at 6pm and on Saturday at 11am Creative Outlet offers free classes dubbed as, “Culturally Healing and Movement Classes”. There are classes for all ages including a fun jazz-based movement class for children on Saturday morning. One of the most reassuring elements about these classes is that Gaines has brought Creative Outlet’s feeling of community with him. The first outdoor class had only six attendees; now there are over forty artists of all ages.
In addition to dance classes the Creative Outlet Queens, an interdisciplinary and multi-generational performing ensemble that also rehearses at Fort Green Park. The “Queens” will perform at Peace One Love a Black Lives Matter celebration on Saturday August 29th from 2-5pm at the Black Lives Matter Mural at Restoration Plaza (Fulton Street between New York Ave. and Brooklyn Ave). Although this is an outdoor event please practice social distancing whenever possible and please wear a mask.
By Walter Rutledge
Dance has always been a catalyst for change. In 1936 Martha Graham created her masterwork Chronicles as a weapon against the rising menace of fascism in Germany. In 1959 Donald McKayle’s Rainbow Round My Shoulder evoked the hopelessness and inequality of Black men on a southern prison chain gang. On Saturday August 29 Jamel Gaines Creative Outlet Dance Theatre of Brooklyn (also known as Creative Outlet or just C.O.) will also use the power of dance to heal a community with Peace One Love, an afternoon of the arts celebrating the spirit of the now internationally recognized Black Lives Matter movement. Continue reading
Jamel Gaines and Creative Outlet Dance Theatre of Brooklyn (with guest artists) presents dance theatre, which combines elements of theater, spoken word/poetry, moving image and live music. Gaines uses dance to address social and cultural issues. Continue reading
Channel the spirit of the ’60s at Flower Power, a joyous celebration of the enduring symbolism of flowers as icons of peace and love. Immerse yourself in a groovy and colorful flower show spotlighting the ways in which hippie culture advanced closer relationships with the natural world, and explore vibrant botanical displays.
2900 Southern Blvd
A pioneer in the use of new technologies, Van Herpen transcends conventional clothing norms while embracing both traditional couture artisanship and innovative techniques. Ranging from the micro to the macro, the exhibition explores the body’s place in space, its relationship to clothing and its environment, and its future in a rapidly changing world.
Brooklyn Musiem of Art
The show will present iconic works from the museum’s collection by more than 20 artists, including John Chamberlain, Chryssa, Jim Dine, Roy Lichtenstein, Lucas Samaras, and Andy Warhol. Highlights will include Maurizio Cattelan’s Comedian (2019) and Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen’s Soft Shuttlecock (1995), on view in New York for the first time in 25 years. These works will be shown alongside Yayoi Kusama’s INFINITY MIRRORED ROOM – DANCING LIGHTS THAT FLEW UP TO THE UNIVERSE (2019), a major loan to the exhibition, and recent acquisitions by contemporary artists such as Farah Al Qasimi, Alex Da Corte, Lucia Hierro, Martine Gutierrez, Lauren Halsey, Mohammed Ahmed Ibrahim, Yee I-Lann, Cara Romero, and Liu Shiyuan, whose practices expand the legacies of Pop.
1071 Fifth Avenue New York, NY 10128 (at 88th Street)
The new permanent installation foregrounds the creativity of artists across the subcontinent and enduring, dynamic historical traditions. The Met’s Arts of Africa galleries returned in May 2025, in a reimagined Michael C. Rockefeller Wing. Following a multiyear renovation, the reenvisioned installation reintroduces visitors to the Museum’s collection of sub-Saharan African art through a selection of some 500 works organized to survey major artistic movements and living traditions from across the subcontinent. The new galleries present original creations from the Middle Ages to the present, and one-fourth of the works are on display at the Museum for the first time.
The Met Fifth Avenue
Mark Morris Dance Group and Music Ensemble returns to The Joyce with Dances to American Music, a three-program repertory series highlighting Morris’s lifelong devotion to music.
THE JOYCE THEATERChannel the spirit of the ’60s at Flower Power, a joyous celebration of the enduring symbolism of flowers as icons of peace and love. Immerse yourself in a groovy and colorful flower show spotlighting the ways in which hippie culture advanced closer relationships with the natural world, and explore vibrant botanical displays.
2900 Southern BlvdA pioneer in the use of new technologies, Van Herpen transcends conventional clothing norms while embracing both traditional couture artisanship and innovative techniques. Ranging from the micro to the macro, the exhibition explores the body’s place in space, its relationship to clothing and its environment, and its future in a rapidly changing world.
Brooklyn Musiem of ArtThe show will present iconic works from the museum’s collection by more than 20 artists, including John Chamberlain, Chryssa, Jim Dine, Roy Lichtenstein, Lucas Samaras, and Andy Warhol. Highlights will include Maurizio Cattelan’s Comedian (2019) and Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen’s Soft Shuttlecock (1995), on view in New York for the first time in 25 years. These works will be shown alongside Yayoi Kusama’s INFINITY MIRRORED ROOM – DANCING LIGHTS THAT FLEW UP TO THE UNIVERSE (2019), a major loan to the exhibition, and recent acquisitions by contemporary artists such as Farah Al Qasimi, Alex Da Corte, Lucia Hierro, Martine Gutierrez, Lauren Halsey, Mohammed Ahmed Ibrahim, Yee I-Lann, Cara Romero, and Liu Shiyuan, whose practices expand the legacies of Pop.
1071 Fifth Avenue New York, NY 10128 (at 88th Street)
The new permanent installation foregrounds the creativity of artists across the subcontinent and enduring, dynamic historical traditions. The Met’s Arts of Africa galleries returned in May 2025, in a reimagined Michael C. Rockefeller Wing. Following a multiyear renovation, the reenvisioned installation reintroduces visitors to the Museum’s collection of sub-Saharan African art through a selection of some 500 works organized to survey major artistic movements and living traditions from across the subcontinent. The new galleries present original creations from the Middle Ages to the present, and one-fourth of the works are on display at the Museum for the first time.
The Met Fifth Avenue
New York hottest place to be for a fun Sunday evening house music party. JD Frankie Paradise will get you moving whether you dip, twist or just strike a pose.
District - 246 west 35th street
Mark Morris Dance Group and Music Ensemble returns to The Joyce with Dances to American Music, a three-program repertory series highlighting Morris’s lifelong devotion to music.
THE JOYCE THEATERChannel the spirit of the ’60s at Flower Power, a joyous celebration of the enduring symbolism of flowers as icons of peace and love. Immerse yourself in a groovy and colorful flower show spotlighting the ways in which hippie culture advanced closer relationships with the natural world, and explore vibrant botanical displays.
2900 Southern BlvdA pioneer in the use of new technologies, Van Herpen transcends conventional clothing norms while embracing both traditional couture artisanship and innovative techniques. Ranging from the micro to the macro, the exhibition explores the body’s place in space, its relationship to clothing and its environment, and its future in a rapidly changing world.
Brooklyn Musiem of ArtThe show will present iconic works from the museum’s collection by more than 20 artists, including John Chamberlain, Chryssa, Jim Dine, Roy Lichtenstein, Lucas Samaras, and Andy Warhol. Highlights will include Maurizio Cattelan’s Comedian (2019) and Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen’s Soft Shuttlecock (1995), on view in New York for the first time in 25 years. These works will be shown alongside Yayoi Kusama’s INFINITY MIRRORED ROOM – DANCING LIGHTS THAT FLEW UP TO THE UNIVERSE (2019), a major loan to the exhibition, and recent acquisitions by contemporary artists such as Farah Al Qasimi, Alex Da Corte, Lucia Hierro, Martine Gutierrez, Lauren Halsey, Mohammed Ahmed Ibrahim, Yee I-Lann, Cara Romero, and Liu Shiyuan, whose practices expand the legacies of Pop.
1071 Fifth Avenue New York, NY 10128 (at 88th Street)
The new permanent installation foregrounds the creativity of artists across the subcontinent and enduring, dynamic historical traditions. The Met’s Arts of Africa galleries returned in May 2025, in a reimagined Michael C. Rockefeller Wing. Following a multiyear renovation, the reenvisioned installation reintroduces visitors to the Museum’s collection of sub-Saharan African art through a selection of some 500 works organized to survey major artistic movements and living traditions from across the subcontinent. The new galleries present original creations from the Middle Ages to the present, and one-fourth of the works are on display at the Museum for the first time.
The Met Fifth Avenue
Welcome to the 33rd season of summer movies in Bryant Park! Bring a blanket and a friend, and grab your spot on the lawn to watch a feature film on the big screen under the stars. The lawn opens at 5pm and films begin at 8pm.
Bryant Park
Channel the spirit of the ’60s at Flower Power, a joyous celebration of the enduring symbolism of flowers as icons of peace and love. Immerse yourself in a groovy and colorful flower show spotlighting the ways in which hippie culture advanced closer relationships with the natural world, and explore vibrant botanical displays.
2900 Southern Blvd
Everyone’s favorite yoga program returns for summer 2026! From May 27 through September 16, join us for classes Tuesday mornings on the Upper Terrace, and Wednesday evenings on the lawn.
Bryant Park Yoga presented by Halara is free to the public. Bring your mat and water and enjoy one hour of yoga with New York City’s top instructors.
Bryant ParkA pioneer in the use of new technologies, Van Herpen transcends conventional clothing norms while embracing both traditional couture artisanship and innovative techniques. Ranging from the micro to the macro, the exhibition explores the body’s place in space, its relationship to clothing and its environment, and its future in a rapidly changing world.
Brooklyn Musiem of ArtThe show will present iconic works from the museum’s collection by more than 20 artists, including John Chamberlain, Chryssa, Jim Dine, Roy Lichtenstein, Lucas Samaras, and Andy Warhol. Highlights will include Maurizio Cattelan’s Comedian (2019) and Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen’s Soft Shuttlecock (1995), on view in New York for the first time in 25 years. These works will be shown alongside Yayoi Kusama’s INFINITY MIRRORED ROOM – DANCING LIGHTS THAT FLEW UP TO THE UNIVERSE (2019), a major loan to the exhibition, and recent acquisitions by contemporary artists such as Farah Al Qasimi, Alex Da Corte, Lucia Hierro, Martine Gutierrez, Lauren Halsey, Mohammed Ahmed Ibrahim, Yee I-Lann, Cara Romero, and Liu Shiyuan, whose practices expand the legacies of Pop.
1071 Fifth Avenue New York, NY 10128 (at 88th Street)
The new permanent installation foregrounds the creativity of artists across the subcontinent and enduring, dynamic historical traditions. The Met’s Arts of Africa galleries returned in May 2025, in a reimagined Michael C. Rockefeller Wing. Following a multiyear renovation, the reenvisioned installation reintroduces visitors to the Museum’s collection of sub-Saharan African art through a selection of some 500 works organized to survey major artistic movements and living traditions from across the subcontinent. The new galleries present original creations from the Middle Ages to the present, and one-fourth of the works are on display at the Museum for the first time.
The Met Fifth AvenueChannel the spirit of the ’60s at Flower Power, a joyous celebration of the enduring symbolism of flowers as icons of peace and love. Immerse yourself in a groovy and colorful flower show spotlighting the ways in which hippie culture advanced closer relationships with the natural world, and explore vibrant botanical displays.
2900 Southern BlvdA pioneer in the use of new technologies, Van Herpen transcends conventional clothing norms while embracing both traditional couture artisanship and innovative techniques. Ranging from the micro to the macro, the exhibition explores the body’s place in space, its relationship to clothing and its environment, and its future in a rapidly changing world.
Brooklyn Musiem of ArtThe show will present iconic works from the museum’s collection by more than 20 artists, including John Chamberlain, Chryssa, Jim Dine, Roy Lichtenstein, Lucas Samaras, and Andy Warhol. Highlights will include Maurizio Cattelan’s Comedian (2019) and Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen’s Soft Shuttlecock (1995), on view in New York for the first time in 25 years. These works will be shown alongside Yayoi Kusama’s INFINITY MIRRORED ROOM – DANCING LIGHTS THAT FLEW UP TO THE UNIVERSE (2019), a major loan to the exhibition, and recent acquisitions by contemporary artists such as Farah Al Qasimi, Alex Da Corte, Lucia Hierro, Martine Gutierrez, Lauren Halsey, Mohammed Ahmed Ibrahim, Yee I-Lann, Cara Romero, and Liu Shiyuan, whose practices expand the legacies of Pop.
1071 Fifth Avenue New York, NY 10128 (at 88th Street)
The new permanent installation foregrounds the creativity of artists across the subcontinent and enduring, dynamic historical traditions. The Met’s Arts of Africa galleries returned in May 2025, in a reimagined Michael C. Rockefeller Wing. Following a multiyear renovation, the reenvisioned installation reintroduces visitors to the Museum’s collection of sub-Saharan African art through a selection of some 500 works organized to survey major artistic movements and living traditions from across the subcontinent. The new galleries present original creations from the Middle Ages to the present, and one-fourth of the works are on display at the Museum for the first time.
The Met Fifth Avenue
Bryant Park Yoga Everyone’s favorite yoga program returns for summer 2026! From May 27 through September 16, join us for classes Tuesday mornings on the Upper Terrace, and Wednesday evenings on the lawn.
Bryant Park Yoga presented by Halara is free to the public. Bring your mat and water and enjoy one hour of yoga with New York City’s top instructors.
Bryant Park
A dance and wellness classes design for Older Adults taught by Walter Rutledge
204 W 134th St, New York, NY 10030
Channel the spirit of the ’60s at Flower Power, a joyous celebration of the enduring symbolism of flowers as icons of peace and love. Immerse yourself in a groovy and colorful flower show spotlighting the ways in which hippie culture advanced closer relationships with the natural world, and explore vibrant botanical displays.
2900 Southern BlvdA pioneer in the use of new technologies, Van Herpen transcends conventional clothing norms while embracing both traditional couture artisanship and innovative techniques. Ranging from the micro to the macro, the exhibition explores the body’s place in space, its relationship to clothing and its environment, and its future in a rapidly changing world.
Brooklyn Musiem of ArtThe show will present iconic works from the museum’s collection by more than 20 artists, including John Chamberlain, Chryssa, Jim Dine, Roy Lichtenstein, Lucas Samaras, and Andy Warhol. Highlights will include Maurizio Cattelan’s Comedian (2019) and Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen’s Soft Shuttlecock (1995), on view in New York for the first time in 25 years. These works will be shown alongside Yayoi Kusama’s INFINITY MIRRORED ROOM – DANCING LIGHTS THAT FLEW UP TO THE UNIVERSE (2019), a major loan to the exhibition, and recent acquisitions by contemporary artists such as Farah Al Qasimi, Alex Da Corte, Lucia Hierro, Martine Gutierrez, Lauren Halsey, Mohammed Ahmed Ibrahim, Yee I-Lann, Cara Romero, and Liu Shiyuan, whose practices expand the legacies of Pop.
1071 Fifth Avenue New York, NY 10128 (at 88th Street)
The new permanent installation foregrounds the creativity of artists across the subcontinent and enduring, dynamic historical traditions. The Met’s Arts of Africa galleries returned in May 2025, in a reimagined Michael C. Rockefeller Wing. Following a multiyear renovation, the reenvisioned installation reintroduces visitors to the Museum’s collection of sub-Saharan African art through a selection of some 500 works organized to survey major artistic movements and living traditions from across the subcontinent. The new galleries present original creations from the Middle Ages to the present, and one-fourth of the works are on display at the Museum for the first time.
The Met Fifth AvenueChannel the spirit of the ’60s at Flower Power, a joyous celebration of the enduring symbolism of flowers as icons of peace and love. Immerse yourself in a groovy and colorful flower show spotlighting the ways in which hippie culture advanced closer relationships with the natural world, and explore vibrant botanical displays.
2900 Southern BlvdA pioneer in the use of new technologies, Van Herpen transcends conventional clothing norms while embracing both traditional couture artisanship and innovative techniques. Ranging from the micro to the macro, the exhibition explores the body’s place in space, its relationship to clothing and its environment, and its future in a rapidly changing world.
Brooklyn Musiem of ArtThe show will present iconic works from the museum’s collection by more than 20 artists, including John Chamberlain, Chryssa, Jim Dine, Roy Lichtenstein, Lucas Samaras, and Andy Warhol. Highlights will include Maurizio Cattelan’s Comedian (2019) and Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen’s Soft Shuttlecock (1995), on view in New York for the first time in 25 years. These works will be shown alongside Yayoi Kusama’s INFINITY MIRRORED ROOM – DANCING LIGHTS THAT FLEW UP TO THE UNIVERSE (2019), a major loan to the exhibition, and recent acquisitions by contemporary artists such as Farah Al Qasimi, Alex Da Corte, Lucia Hierro, Martine Gutierrez, Lauren Halsey, Mohammed Ahmed Ibrahim, Yee I-Lann, Cara Romero, and Liu Shiyuan, whose practices expand the legacies of Pop.
1071 Fifth Avenue New York, NY 10128 (at 88th Street)
The new permanent installation foregrounds the creativity of artists across the subcontinent and enduring, dynamic historical traditions. The Met’s Arts of Africa galleries returned in May 2025, in a reimagined Michael C. Rockefeller Wing. Following a multiyear renovation, the reenvisioned installation reintroduces visitors to the Museum’s collection of sub-Saharan African art through a selection of some 500 works organized to survey major artistic movements and living traditions from across the subcontinent. The new galleries present original creations from the Middle Ages to the present, and one-fourth of the works are on display at the Museum for the first time.
The Met Fifth AvenueA dance and wellness classes design for Older Adults taught by Walter Rutledge
720 Nereid Ave, Bronx, NY 10466
Channel the spirit of the ’60s at Flower Power, a joyous celebration of the enduring symbolism of flowers as icons of peace and love. Immerse yourself in a groovy and colorful flower show spotlighting the ways in which hippie culture advanced closer relationships with the natural world, and explore vibrant botanical displays.
2900 Southern BlvdA pioneer in the use of new technologies, Van Herpen transcends conventional clothing norms while embracing both traditional couture artisanship and innovative techniques. Ranging from the micro to the macro, the exhibition explores the body’s place in space, its relationship to clothing and its environment, and its future in a rapidly changing world.
Brooklyn Musiem of ArtThe show will present iconic works from the museum’s collection by more than 20 artists, including John Chamberlain, Chryssa, Jim Dine, Roy Lichtenstein, Lucas Samaras, and Andy Warhol. Highlights will include Maurizio Cattelan’s Comedian (2019) and Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen’s Soft Shuttlecock (1995), on view in New York for the first time in 25 years. These works will be shown alongside Yayoi Kusama’s INFINITY MIRRORED ROOM – DANCING LIGHTS THAT FLEW UP TO THE UNIVERSE (2019), a major loan to the exhibition, and recent acquisitions by contemporary artists such as Farah Al Qasimi, Alex Da Corte, Lucia Hierro, Martine Gutierrez, Lauren Halsey, Mohammed Ahmed Ibrahim, Yee I-Lann, Cara Romero, and Liu Shiyuan, whose practices expand the legacies of Pop.
1071 Fifth Avenue New York, NY 10128 (at 88th Street)
The new permanent installation foregrounds the creativity of artists across the subcontinent and enduring, dynamic historical traditions. The Met’s Arts of Africa galleries returned in May 2025, in a reimagined Michael C. Rockefeller Wing. Following a multiyear renovation, the reenvisioned installation reintroduces visitors to the Museum’s collection of sub-Saharan African art through a selection of some 500 works organized to survey major artistic movements and living traditions from across the subcontinent. The new galleries present original creations from the Middle Ages to the present, and one-fourth of the works are on display at the Museum for the first time.
The Met Fifth Avenue