BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn!

BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! is New York’s longest running free outdoor performing arts festival. THE OFFICE Founding Director Rachel Chanoff was BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn!’s Artistic Director, and THE OFFICE curated the festival, from 1992 to 2022, defining its identity through dynamic, innovative, boundary-pushing programming that included unique commissions and concept shows, surprising artist pairings, work that bridged art and activism, and a deep commitment to giving opportunities to local performers—all of which made Celebrate a home for artists to experiment and take risks. Launched in 1979 as a catalyst for a Brooklyn performing arts scene and to bring people back into Prospect Park after years of neglect, BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! was an early anchor in the park's revitalization and has become one of the city's foremost summer cultural attractions. The festival attracts upwards of 250,000 attendees from across New York City to the Prospect Park Bandshell each summer.The programmatic identity we developed over three decades prioritized joyous, meaningful celebration of Brooklyn’s diversity; over 25 free shows each summer, we aimed to present work that speaks to as many communities as possible, and to hold up and give a platform to artists whose work embodies the values of inclusion, equity, and social justice that inspire us. During its 40+-year run, BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! has presented celebrated global music icons, legendary jazz artists, chart-topping indie bands, gravity-defying dance troupes, large-scale film/live score projects, innovative theater and spoken word, multi-artist concept shows, and more, becoming a beloved summer tradition.