Sakura Matsuri at BBG Brings Japanese Culture to Brooklyn
BROOKLYN BOTANIC GARDEN — One of Brooklyn’s most anticipated weekend events will return in late April for the 31st time: Sakura Matsuri at Brooklyn Botanic Garden (April 28 and 29, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.).
Tens of thousands of visitors come every year to enjoy a dynamic weekend of traditional and contemporary Japanese culture inspired by BBG’s famous collection of flowering cherry trees. Visitors will experience a program of more than 60 events and performances including dance, martial arts, manga, costume play (“cosplay”), workshops, demonstrations and guided tours of the Garden’s Japanese plant collections.
Among the dozens of offerings on the schedule for 2012 are a special performance by renowned jazz pianist Kuni Mikami and his band, who will interpret traditional Japanese folk songs using jazz forms. Morning Musuko, a 15-member big band, returns by popular demand, playing a standalone set in addition to scoring the dazzling Cosplay Fashion Show.