Opening Weekend Garden Party Celebration
May 18 & 19, 2024
Featured Event
Wonderland: Curious Nature Programs
The Garden comes to life throughout the seasons with the characters and settings of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Seek out the Queen of Hearts and her playing cards during your weekend journey through this imaginative exhibition, join us for a lively game of croquet—and be sure to dress the part for Wonderland Nights, 21+ evenings of music and cocktails where you can let loose during the Mad Hatter’s Dance Party.
Meet the Characters of Wonderland
Saturdays, Sundays, & Holiday Mondays; 12–3 p.m.
“It’s no use going back to yesterday, because I was a different person then.”
Welcome to the Garden, Alice—you’re not alone here! Have you seen a Queen and her playing cards? A White Rabbit and his pocket watch? Head below to learn more about the actors playing your favorite Wonderland characters, and when and where to meet them.
Photo: We Players by Mark Kitaoka
About the Performers
American Circus Theatre is a New York City-based circus theater company traveling worldwide and brought to life by Richard & Ashlee, trained ballet dancers and Cirque du Soleil alumni.
We Players has spent over 20 years staging dynamic, engaging, and thought-provoking performances in iconic civic landscapes. Led by Founding Artistic Director Ava Roy, We Players explores both classic tales and brand-new narratives. The troupe connects people with place through kinesthetic experience that invites audiences to engage fully and awaken to the spectacular world around us.
Lehman Stages, a theater company based within CUNY’s Lehman College, brings our beloved furry friends to life with their signature theatrical antics—and a bit of Bronx flair. Lehman Stages is a professional arts component of Lehman College, the City University of New York. They create original performances and events for the Bronx, using their own home-grown community of performing artists.
Ian Moore is a fiddler, a dancer, and a singer. He was raised in NYC and after college spent 18 years living in Southern Appalachia. Recently returned to the lower Hudson Valley, he plays fiddle and sings songs that represent as wild and wide a mix as the folk that came here to live on the eastern seaboard of North America, all of it free range and made fresh every day.
Hit The Lights! Company is a multi-disciplinary ensemble based in Astoria, Queens. Together, they devise hand-crafted stories and educational programming centering innovation, accessibility, and fun.
Thistle Dance is positively mad about joining NYBG as they present Wonderland: Curious Nature. Based in NYC, Thistle uses movement as their primary language, conjuring wonderfully strange creations that challenge perceptions of history and lore. Partnering with institutions as large as the three-floor expanse of the Jefferson Market New York Public Library or as intimate as the booths in Bathtub Gin, Thistle Dance builds bespoke, immersive experiences that invite curiosity and engage audiences at every level of play.
The Caterpillar’s Poetry Corner
October 5, 6, 12, 13, 14, 19, 20, 26, & 27
Conservatory Lawn; 2 – 3 p.m.
Think quickly to out-quote Wonderland’s quippiest wandering wordsmith, The Caterpillar. Make sure to bring your annunciation skills to recite exactically!
“Double Trouble” with Tweedledee & Tweedledum
September 7, 8, 14, 15, 21, 22, 28, & 29
Garden Grounds; 2–3 p.m.
Dive into the zany world of the Tweedles, where laughter and adventure await. Enjoy their uproarious escapades, humorous hijinks, and delightfully chaotic fun. Learn the Tweedle Twist, and give directions in the most confusing way possible. Get ready for a whirlwind of joy and giggles!
Misadventures with the
Mad Hatter
August 3, 4, 10, 11, 17, 18, 24, 25, 31
& September 1 & 2* (*Holiday Monday)
Conservatory Plaza; 2–3 p.m.
When you’re mad as a hatter, a series of musical tea-time adventures can quickly become misadventures.
Curiouser and Curiouser
July 6, 7, 13, 14, 20, 21, 27, & 28
Conservatory Plaza; 2–3 p.m.
“We’re all mad here! I’m mad. You’re mad.”
Bring your imagination (and a big pinch of silliness) to the Garden for an afternoon spent with the White Rabbit and the Cheshire Cat as they trade riddles! Can you beat them at their own guessing game? Join in on the fun with your favorite Wonderland pair.
For Families
Your little ones discover the joy of imagination during special events and pop-ups! Explore a caterpillar topiary buzzing with pollinators, visit Humpty Dumpty on his wall of mushroom-based bricks, and join us for games, caucus races, and colorful hands-on crafts that are sure to inspire their creativity.
A Great Big Game
Saturday, Sundays, & Holiday Mondays; 11 a.m.–3 p.m.
Conservatory Lawn
Enjoy an assortment of games—big and small—from Jenga, Connect 4, and Cornhole to chess, croquet, and hopscotch! Games are available on a first-come, first-served basis.
Curious Allies: Exploring Relationships in Fungi, Parasites, & Carnivores
Through October 27; 10 a.m.–6 p.m.
Ross Gallery
The fungi, lichens, and plants featured in this show rely on ingenious mechanisms of symbiosis—sometimes mutual, sometimes parasitic—to get what they need to thrive. See some of the year’s most incredible botanical art in the Fifth Triennial of the American Society of Botanical Artists.
Wonderland Symposium
June 8; 10 a.m.–12:30 p.m.
Ross Hall
To celebrate the enchanting exhibition, this symposium will explore the themes, concepts, and alluring wonder of the English garden in two compelling sessions featuring writer and historian Ambra Edwards and creator of the UK’s Wildside, Keith Wiley.