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Astor Place Cube Kicks Off 50th Birthday Celebrations With Silent Disco

By Allegra Hobbs | April 26, 2017 10:24pm
 The beloved three-dimensional Alamo sculpture is back in Astor Place.
The beloved three-dimensional Alamo sculpture is back in Astor Place.
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DNAinfo/Allegra Hobbs

EAST VILLAGE — The beloved Alamo Cube turns 50 this year, and champions of the sculpture next week will celebrate by hosting a silent disco with a special Astor Place-themed playlist — kicking off months of festivities leading up to a November birthday bash.

The Village Alliance is inviting fans of the three-dimensional cube, which made a long-awaited comeback to Astor Place last November after years of repairs, to grab a headset, turn up some retro tunes, and dance the night away with the spinning structure amidst a light show the night of May 5.

Attendees of the free "Astor Blaster" disco will receive wireless headsets and will have the option of tuning into the three live DJs playing the event or a special Spotify playlist created for the event, featuring music rooted in the neighborhood that was the nexus of punk rock, said the group's executive director.

"It's everything from Blondie and the Talking Heads to...the Hamilton soundtrack because it came from the neighborhood," said William Kelley, referring to the famed Broadway musical that first premiered at The Public Theater on Lafayette Street.

"It starts in the '60s because 1967 was the year the cube was installed — it was New York City's first piece of art in its public art program," he continued. 

Revelers will also be welcome to dance to their own music, said Kelley.

The disco starts at 6:30 p.m. and will go until 10:30 p.m., when dancers will have the option of flocking to nearby bars participating in the event with "Astor Blaster" drink specials, said Kelley.

The silent disco is just one in a series of celebratory activities to drum of excitement around the cube's 50th birthday — the first in the series was a poetry jam held in the plaza April 22. 

A series of family-centric "Creativity Cubed" events May 19, June 24 and July 22 will let kids craft their own mosaics or miniature spinning cubes, said Kelley. 

The Astor Fitness series will bring free fitness classes to the plaza on Wednesday and Saturday mornings beginning May 31 and running through July 29.

The Astor Alive! Performing Arts Festival will then bring free music, theater, and dance to Astor Place on Sept. 23.

Finally, cake and small spinning cubes will be handed out at the cube's 50th birthday Nov. 1, called "Remembering the Alamo."

For more information on the silent disco, visit the event's Facebook page.