28 SummerStage Shows That Aren't Sold Out
Our Top Picks
By Abby Schreiber
Although a few of the big-ticket Central Park SummerStage shows are already sold out (including Foster the People, Beach House, M83 and Childish Gambino),
there are still a slew of concerts open to the public around the five
boroughs, most of which are free. Check out our picks for all of the
non-sold out performances below (and go here for a complete list of SummerStage acts).
6/7 -- Bobby Womack / Willis Earl Beal (Re-scheduled):
Legendary soul musician Bobby Womack plays a show with fellow soulman
Willis Earl Beal. Due to an illness, the concert has been rescheduled
but date is still TBA. Central Park. FREE
6/10 -- Talib Kweli and Screening of Brooklyn Boheme: A performance by hip-hop wordsmith Talib Kweli and a live band will be followed by a screening of Brooklyn Boheme,
a new documentary that looks at the vibrant artist community that
flourished during the 80s and 90s in Fort Greene, Brooklyn. (Read more
about the film here.) Herbert Von King Park, Brooklyn. FREE
6/12 -- The New York Pops with Ozomatli ft. special guest Harlem School of the Arts: NYC's
pops orchestra plays a show with L.A.'s Ozomatli, a group known for
their indiscriminate mixing of hip-hop and salsa, dancehall and funk,
samba and merengue, R&B and reggae. (You might also know them from
their cameo in the Drew Barrymore basic cable classic, Never Been Kissed.) The Harlem School of the Arts jazz band and jazz combo will also perform as special guests. Central Park. FREE
6/15 -- Joey Arias: The
legendary New York City cabaret and performance artist will perform
renditions of classic Bob Dylan, Cream, Klaus Nomi and Billie Holiday
songs, accompanied by composer Ben Allison and his band. Central Park. FREE
6/16 -- Dawes / Kurt Vile and the Violators: Bring
out your picnic blankets for California-based rock band Dawes, who
channel the acoustic folk rock popularized by Laurel Canyon greats
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young and Joni Mitchell (among others).
They'll play alongside lo-fi indie rock singer/songwriter Kurt Vile and
his band. Central Park. FREE 
6/17 -- Groove Theory / Soulive / Riq & Rah with Strings (Black Thought and Rahzel with Strings) / DJ ?uestlove: This
R&B/soul night will feature the reunited Groove Theory
(musician/producer Bryce Wilson and singer Amel Larrieux), accompanied
by soul/groove/jam trio Soulive (brothers Alan and Neal Evans and Eric
Krasno). Rounding out the show will be Roots drummer ?uestlove on the
ones and twos along with bandmates Riq & Rah. Central Park. FREE
6/19 -- Das Racist / Action Bronson / Trouble Andrew: Brooklyn-based joke rappers-turned-bona fide MCs Das Racist will headline a bill that also includes fellow New York rappers Action Bronson and Trouble Andrew. Red Hook Park, Brooklyn. FREE
6/20 -- The Daily Show's Rory Albanese / Wyatt Cenac / Adam Lowitt / Al Madrigal / John Oliver / Kristen Schaal, hosted by John Hodgman: John Hodgman will host a night of stand-up from Daily Show
correspondents Wyatt Cenac, Al Madrigal and John Oliver, contributor
Kristen Schaal, executive producer Rory Albanese and co-executive
producer Adam Lowitt. Central Park. FREE
6/21 -- Deertick / Jonny Corndawg: Grungy, country-tinged rock band by way of Providence, RI head to Red Hook Park along with country crooner Jonny Corndawg. Red Hook Park, Brooklyn. FREE
6/24 -- Alabama Shakes / Diamond Rugs / Robert Ellis: The
Athens, Alabama quartet are bringing their hard-hitting blues-rock to
NYC with Diamond Rugs, a rock band formed by members of Deer Tick, The
Black Lips, Los Lobos, Dead Confederate and Six Finger Satellite, as
support. Country rock singer Robert Ellis will open. Central Park. FREE
6/24 -- Hannibal Buress / Kevin Barnett / Josh Rabinowitz: Comedy Central hosts this night of funnymen, headlined by Chicago-native Hannibal Buress (who's written for 30 Rock and SNL) and featuring comics Kevin Barnett and Josh Rabinowitz. Fingers crossed Buress does his "apple juice" bit. Red Hook Park, Brooklyn. FREE
6/26 -- The
Klezmatics / Socalled / Daniel Kahn and the Painted Bird / Joshua
Nelson / NYT-Folksbiene's "Soul to Soul" / Yiddish Princess: As part
of Yiddishfest 2012,you can expect both traditional (eclectic klezmer
band The Klezmatics) and modern (klezmer-meets-folk-meets hip-hop artist
Socalled and "Soul to Soul," a performance that looks at intersections
between African-American and Yiddish folk music). Central Park. FREE
6/30 +7/1 -- Limón Dance Company with Special Musical Guest Paquito D'Rivera: Founded
by Mexican choreographer, José Limón, the dance company celebrates
their 65th anniversary with two premiere performances of Come With Me, a
"specially commissioned dance piece set to live music by world-renowned Grammy Award-winning Cuban composer, Paquito D'Rivera." Central Park. FREE
7/3 -- Norah Jones / Jim Campilongo Trio: Norah Jones is back with a new album, Little Broken Hearts,
and departs somewhat from her usual jazz style with new pop/rock
inflections, courtesy, in part, to production assistance from Danger
Mouse (DJ/producer and one-half of Gnarls Barkley). Acclaimed guitarist
Jim Campilongo opens. Central Park. $49.50
7/7 -- CBGB Festival with Guided By Voices / The Pains of Being Pure at Heart / Cloud Nothings / & More: The much buzzed-about
CBGB Festival features the original indie rockers, Guided By Voices,
along with shoegaze-y noise pop act, The Pains of Being Pure at Heart
and lo-fi rock act Cloud Nothings. More acts TBA. Central Park. FREE
7/11 -- Mala Rodríguez / Ximena Sariñana / Profetas / The Sconek-T: Along
with the Latin Alternative Music Conference, SummerStage brings Latin
Grammy-winning Spanish rapper Mala Rodríguez, Mexican songstress Ximena
Sariñana -- whose 2008 solo debut was likened to Norah Jones -- hip-hop
duo Profetas and The Sconek-T, a Mexican band known for blending
classical music with rock, Latin music and electro. Central Park. FREE.
7/15 -- Guthrie Family Reunion Celebrating Woody's 100th: In
honor of what would have been Woody Guthrie's 100th birthday, son Arlo
will be joined with various family members in a tribute concert for the
legendary folk singer. Central Park. FREE
7/17: The Upright Citizen's Brigade Presents the All Stars of Improv: Performers from the legendary improv company that launched the careers of many a familiar face on NBC (The Office, Parks & Recreation, SNL) will take to SummerStage for two acts of improvised comedy. Central Park. FREE
7/18 -- Big Daddy Kane / Marley Marl: Hip-hop
legend Big Daddy Kane, who first exploded onto the rap scene in the
late 80s, will join producer Marley Marl for a show in Queensbridge
Park. Queensbridge Park, Queens. FREE
7/21 -- Bebel Gilberto / Criolo / Flávio Renegado / Béco Dranoff: Presented
in association with Brasil Summerfest, this show brings together some
of Brazil's hottest musical acts. Internationally acclaimed
singer/songwriter Bebel Gilberto mixes electro with bossa nova while
hip-hop artists Criolo and Flávio Renegado mix rap with samba, funk,
reggae and other genres as diverse as their native country itself.
They'll be joined by acclaimed producer Béco Dranoff. Central Park. FREE 
7/25 -- The Metropolitan Opera Summer Recital Series: The kick-off performance will feature soprano Danielle de Niese, who recently sang the part of Ariel in the Met's The Enchanted Island, tenor Dimitri Pittas, who appeared at the Met this season in La Boheme and Macbeth, and bass-baritone John Del Carlo, who played Bartolo in the Met's production of Il Barbiere di Siviglia. They will be accompanied by pianist Dan Saunders. Central Park. FREE
7/28 -- Gary Clark Jr. / GIVERS: Buzzy
acts Gary Clark Jr. and GIVERS will share the stage for a show
featuring Clark's bluesy rock and GIVERS' sweetly melodic indie pop. Central Park. FREE
8/1 -- Camille A. Brown & Dancers w/ Special Musical Guest Imani Uzuri / Malcolm Low Formal Structure / Special Guest: Dancin'
Downtown at the Joyce Contest Winner: Camille A Brown & Dancers
will perform a piece incorporating music from vocalist/composer Imani
Uzuri's recent album, The Gypsy Diaries. They'll be joined by dance troupes Malcolm Low Formal Structure and the winner of the Dancin' Downtown at the Joyce contest. Central Park. FREE
8/1 -- Rob Base: The hip-hop MC known for his classic "It Takes Two," brings his mix of rap and house music beats to Tappen Park. Tappen Park, Staten Island. FREE
8/4 -- Amadou & Mariam / Theophilus London / Just a Band: Blind
Malian singers Amadou & Mariam bring their contemporary world music
to SummerStage along with It-Boy rapper Theophilus London and Kenyan
electro/art collective Just a Band. Central Park. FREE
8/6 -- Old Crow Medicine Show / The Lumineers / The Milk Carton Kids: Folk/bluegrass
rockers Old Crow Medicine Show are joined by country folk-rock trio The
Lumineers and pop-rockers The Milk Carton Kids. Central Park. $35.00
8/9 -- The Metropolitan Opera Summer Recial Series: This installment features up-and-coming Met artists like soprano Deanna Breiwick (who covered the role of Ariel in The Enchanted Island), tenor Alexander Lewis (who will make his Met debut in Manon) and baritone Edward Parks (who recently played Fiorello in Il Barbiere di Siviglia). Socrates Sculpture Park, Queens. FREE 
8/11 -- Carolina Chocolate Drops / Buckwheat Zydeco / Abigail Washburn: Get
ready for a night of Southern music courtesy of Carolina Chocolate
Drops, a group that started as a tribute to legendary fiddler Joe
Thompson; Louisiana zydeco master Stanley "Buckwheat" Dural Jr. and his
Buckwheat Zydeco group; and singer/songwriter/banjo player Abigail
Washburn. Central Park. FREE
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