SummerDance The Night Away

By Michelle Meywes Kopeny in Arts & Entertainment on Jul 19, 2012 7:20PM

Occidental Brothers Dance Band International plays SummerDance September 7.

Get your dancing shoes on and head downtown tonight to the Spirit of Music Garden in Grant Park for the first night of SummerDance’s 16th season. The annual outdoor festival runs every Thursday, Friday and Saturday (except Lollapalooza weekend) until September 16 when the series ends with a grand finale event in front of the Cloud Gate sculpture at Millennium Park. All ages and skill levels are invited to show off their dance moves, and most importantly have a good time under the stars on the 4,900 square foot dance floor created especially for SummerDance.

Each night’s festivities begin at 6 p.m. (4-7 p.m. on Sundays) with an hour of dance lessons, and then the live entertainment gets going for you to shake your grove thing and show off what you’ve just learned. Different styles of dance and music from around the world are featured each night from African to Ballroom to Salsa to Polka. Chicago’s own Occidental Brothers Dance Band International are among the acclaimed musical acts scheduled to perform this season, along with other standouts like Cuban composer and vocalist Angel d’Cuba and Funkadesi. For the full band and instructor schedule, check the SummerDance website.

Free. The Spirit of Music Garden is located at 601 S. Michigan Ave.