Battery Dance celebrates the art of dance in its home community this August, in partnership with Battery Park City Authority. On Saturday, August 9, the Company celebrates the re-opening of Robert F. Wagner, Jr. Park, following a two-year pause during which it was rebuilt as part of a coastal resiliency effort to protect Battery Park City and lower Manhattan from storm surge and sea level rise. A medley of dance companies will present a 1-hour program opened by Indigenous performer Marie Poncé, followed by tap-dancer John Manzari with a live band. Battery Dance presents Frontiers by Turkish-Dutch choreographer Rutkay Özpinar and Limón Dance Company caps off the evening with the classic work A Choreographic Offering created by José Limón in 1964.

The following week brings the 44th Annual Battery Dance Festival enlivening Rockefeller Park from August 12-16, 2025, with a rain date on August 17. New York City’s longest-running free public dance festival brings together eight diverse dance companies from around the world coupled with a dynamic roster of eight New York-based companies. The free series of events celebrates the universal language of dance with a mix of performances, workshops, and immersive experiences for audiences of all ages.

The five-night performance line-up features a plethora of premieres and several performances featuring live music. Crowds of over 12,000 in-person and over 35,000 virtual viewers typically flock to the Festival each summer, with audiences glorying in the opportunity to experience dance against the spectacular water, sky and cityscape backdrop.

“Battery Dance stands committed to providing the enlightenment and transcendence of dance free to the public despite the shattering of precedents we had taken for granted. We prevailed through Superstorm Sandy’s flooding of lower Manhattan, the financial crisis of the 2008/09 recession, and the attacks on the World Trade Center,” said Jonathan Hollander, artistic director of Battery Dance. “Thanks to our partners at Battery Park City Authority, our sponsors and donors, and the dancers and staff and Board of Battery Dance and all the participants who join us in the timeless pursuit of community gathering and beauty, we are prevailing again!”

“For more than a decade our beautiful public spaces have played host to the beauty of the Battery Dance Festival, and we’re honored this year to host events both as part of Wagner Park’s reopening celebration, and in Rockefeller Park for five more fantastic evenings of dance,” said BPCA President & CEO Raju Mann. “A neighborhood favorite and staple of Battery Park City’s summer programming calendar, the Festival provides New Yorkers a front-row seat to world-class talent, and we thank our partners at Battery Dance for this enduring partnership.”

Performance Schedule:

Dance @ The New Wagner Park, Saturday, August 9 at 7pm

Battery Dance performs in this celebratory night of dance alongside Marie Poncé, The Limón Dance Company, and tap dancer John Manzari & Band in celebrating Wagner Park’s reopening.

Battery Dance Festival: Tuesday, August 12 – Saturday, August 16 at 7pm

Tuesday, August 12: John Manzari & Band, excerpts of Recenter (USA); Pace University Dancing to Connect conducted by Robin Cantrell (USA); Battery Dance, Sense of Belonging, a world premiere by Faizah Grootens (USA); Faizah Grootens, While You’re Here (Netherlands), Bulareyaung Dance Company, Colors (Taiwan)

Wednesday, August 13: UNARTE, Verso Roto (Spain -World Premiere); Theater Plauen – Zwickau Ballet Ensemble, Eden (South Korea/Germany); Bulareyaung Dance Company, Colors (Taiwan); Faizah Grootens While You’re Here (Netherlands), Platforma 13, Balkan Ballerinas (Romania – U.S. Premiere)

Thursday, August 14: Kar-mel Small, La Manta de Reina (USA); Theater Plauen – Zwickau Ballet Ensemble, Eden (South Korea/Germany); Platforma 13, Balkan Ballerinas (Romania – U.S. Premiere); UNARTE, Verso Roto (Spain -World Premiere); Buglisi Dance Theatre, Sospiri (USA), Battery Dance, Empty Hand by Damani Pompey (USA – World Premiere)

Friday, August 15: India Day- Dances of Kerala, presenting dancers and musicians from five different dance, theater and martial arts traditions from the Southwestern Indian State of Kerala: Kalaripayattu, Kutiyattam, Kathakali, Mohiniyattam and Theyyam.

Saturday August 16: Mofassal Al Alif, In Search of You ( Bangladesh); Ô’tänamos, Aeternus Viator (USA – World Premiere) Battery Dance, Sense of Belonging by Faizah Grootens (USA- World Premiere); Wan Dance, Mak Long(Indonesia – New York Debut); Dorchel Haqq, Swallow (USA – World Premiere) Al-Dal’ouna Dabka Team, Dal’ouna Events (USA)

Program subject to change.