Ben Folds has been announced as the headliner for this summer’s PopUp Brooklyn do-it-yourself picnic dinner and fundraising event for the Prospect Park Alliance, a community effort to preserve and improve the storied greenspace in the heart of Brooklyn, New York. Advance pre-sale tickets for the June 28 event sold out in April but others can ask to be placed on the guest list and purchase tickets ($35 per person).
The concept behind the pop-up dinners is simple. At a predetermined time (5 pm) and at a secret location (announced to ticket holders two hours prior), revelers dressed in white gather to set up tables, enjoy dinner and wine they bring themselves, then music and revelry. After the event, everyone pitches in to clean up and remove their trash, leaving no trace of where they were in the park. From the event description:
Imagine a night where thousands come together in Brooklyn, dressed in white, with food and wine, to decorate tables and dance in celebration of the unusual, the unexpected, and the unforgettable. The image is beautiful. The idea is simple.
The PopUp Dinner brings both this image and idea to life. A flash dinner picnic at a location only revealed moments before the start time, The PopUp Dinner combines excitement with elegance. Tables and chairs are provided, while guests are invited to bring a picnic for your friends and something to share for new friends. In accordance with the simplicity of the event, white attire is encouraged, a vibrant contrast to the evening and a symbol for the effortlessness of enjoying an evening out…Â The PopUp Dinner is only a place, a time, and a group of people coming together; the memories you make are your own.
Similar events have been held in Paris for decades, and landed in New York a couple years ago. One such party took place in September 2013 in Manhattan’s Bryant Park, as documented by CBS News.
The headline concert is sponsored by Acura and organized by Handmade Events. Folds performed to a sell-out crowd at a show at Prospect Park last summer.
More info: Press release – Brooklyn Magazine article – Edible Brooklyn article
