Swing's the thing this summer at the library

By Meredith Deliso

The Brooklyn Public Library’s dance series is in full swing.

Thursdays this month at the main branch, the outdoor plaza transforms into a dance floor, where you can boogie to hot jazz and even a 20-piece big band as part of the library’s free Plaza Swing Series.

Tonight, it’s Gordon’s Grand Street Stompers, a good old-fashioned jazz band in the New Orleans sense. The Stompers play Louis Armstrong hits one set, Disney theme songs the next, so they’ll definitely keep you on your toes.

Then on June 16, the Harlem Blues and Jazz Band performs Kansas City stompers and sultry blues like they did it in the 1920s and ’30s.

The series bids adieu until next summer with the Swingtime Big Band — and by big, we mean a 20-piece band — on June 23. The group doesn’t waste the chance, playing timeless swing by renowned big band leaders like Count Basie, Glenn Miller, Benny Goodman, and Duke Ellington.

Now in its second year, the series is quickly becoming a summertime favorite.

“It’s a great opportunity to bring attention in the neighborhood to lindy hop and to the library,” said Veronica Wong, an avid swing dancer, pictured with Brian Lawton.

Plaza Swing Series at the Brooklyn Public Library’s Central Branch [Flatbush Avenue at Eastern Parkway in Park Slope, (718) 230-2100], Thursdays, now through June 23 at 6:30 pm. Free. For more info, visit www.brooklynpubliclibrary.org.

Photo by Stefano Giovannini