This year marks our 8th Summer Tea at Prospect Park since 2019! In this time of change, arts and culture in the communities are where we continue to find inspiration and meaning. We look forward to seeing you for a day of connection, mindfulness, and shared tea experiences.
11 am–12 pm
Opening performance by Nava Dunkelman
Walk through the nature trails by the boathouse led by Prospect Park Alliance staffs
Balcony Yoga at the Boathouse led by Enmy Uribe
Tea Meditation with Music featuring Kirin McElwain
12 pm–3 pm
Community Tea Circles
Enjoy a community cultural experience created by various community members. Participating artists and community members include Aida Sulova, Eduard Boguslavsky, Erika Houle, Esther Gim, Joyce Maio, Kristina Clark,Haru Matsuhisa, Mariusz Mikulec, Mengyan Gong, Michelle Huang, Molly Chen, New York Tea Society, Sina Jesteh, Taka Kawajiri, Talia Steiger, Victoria Schmidt-Scheuber and many more friends and volunteers
Poem Composing Tree
Appreciating and writing Odes to Common Thingspoems under the tree with Robin Lampman.
Sustainable Paper-Making Workshop with Michele Brody along with Destiny Jones
Tea with an Oak Tree by Flower Heart Alliance
Heart Sutra Collectives with artist Ines Sun for calligraphy writing to connect to your mind and body.
Music by Aidin Turganbekov
Limited spots. Registration is required.
About Nava Dunkelman
Nava Dunkelman is a percussionist and improviser based in Brooklyn, NY. Born in Tokyo, Japan and raised in a multi-cultural environment by an American father and Indonesian mother. Her musical approach is innovative and dynamic, combining virtuosity and intuition. Meticulous in an intrinsic way, she uses her distinctive sound palette to explore and give life to a vast spectrum of musical possibilities.
Nava's current projects are electro-percussion experimental noise duo IMA with Amma Ateria, and percussion duo NOMON with her sister Shayna Dunkelman. She also has performed and collaborated with Angélica Negrón, Brandon Seabrook, Du Yun, ÉMU (Maria Takeuchi), Fred Frith, gabby fluke-mogul, Ikue Mori, John Zorn, Pauchi Sasaki, William Winant, yuniya edi kwon, and many others. She has performed classical and contemporary pieces with the William Winant Percussion Group, Joan Jeanrenaud, Raven Chacon, San Francisco Girls Chorus, San Francisco Contemporary Music Players and others.
Her work has been recognized through notable awards and residencies, including Civitella Ranieri Music Fellowship (2026), Jerome Artist Residency (2024–2025) and Jerome Commission at Roulette (2023–2024), Hermitage Artist Retreat (2025), Loghaven Artist Residency (2024), create Award with the American Composers Forum (2023), and New Music USA Creator Development Fund (2022).
About Kirin McElwain
Photo @ Alice Plati.
Kirin McElwain is a cellist and composer working in the realms of experimental, contemporary classical, and improvised music. Weaving together classical and Baroque influences with an affinity for sub-bass and harsh electronic textures, her music explores themes of desire, shame, perfection, and belonging.
Her solo discography includes the 2023 EP Viriditas (self-released) and the 2025 full-length Youth (AKP Recordings)— both included on year-end lists at A Closer Listen and Anxious Magazine— as well as singles and remix work for Mystery Circles and sound artist/dj/composer Omar Ahmad.
As a cellist, Kirin can be heard on various film and television scores, including Devonté Hynes’ (Blood Orange) solo cello soundtrack or the feature length film The Invite directed by Olivia Wilde (A24 Music). Kirin has additionally served as a music coordinator and cellist for composer Tamar-kali, in addition to work for clients such as HBO, National Geographic, Gimlet Media, and NPR. Outside of the studio, Kirin has performed live with Post Malone, Ioanna Gika, and This Will Destroy You, among others at the MET, the Detroit Institute of the Arts, James Cohan Gallery, Neue Galerie, Carnegie Hall, National Sawdust, the Kimmel Center, Le Poisson Rouge, Public Records, and Roulette, in addition to many community-run venues.
Kirin has been an artist-in-residence at EMS Stockholm and Westben Center for the Arts, a New Amsterdam Records Composers Lab Fellow and her work has received support from the Foundation for Contemporary Art. Her duo with vocalist Alex Koi is the recipient of a 2024 Young Arts grant for their upcoming collaborative album which will be released in Spring 2027.
About Aidin Turganbekov
Aidin Turganbekov is a musician from Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan. His musical path began at the age of 8 when a youth music school was established in his small village near Bishkek. He learned to play the komuz and participated in various other classes, such as choir and music theory. After studying at that school for six years with outstanding grades and frequent public performances, Aidin, with the support of his komuz instructor, chose to further his education at a Kyrgyz State Musical College to learn the prima kiyak, which is a Kyrgyz violin. Aidin did not complete his studies at the music college but transitioned to becoming a sociology student at the American University of Central Asia. His presence in New York City is a product of his educational journey; however, he has continually played the komuz and shared his cultural heritage with others.
In New York, Aidin hosts Central Asian cultural nights, providing a platform for his community to connect and feel acknowledged.
Special thanks to
This program is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council.
