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This guy is turning the LA River into a dance floor
People dance along to music at one of the L.A. River Dance parties.
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Michael Marshall
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Michael Marshall
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The LA River... as a dance floor
Daniel Martinez takes you to the L.A. River dance party.
There’s a fair amount of recreational activities Angelenos can do in and around the Los Angeles River like biking, walking, even kayaking, but did you know you can also dance in the dry river bed of a Los Angeles icon?
Adam Weiss, founder of the Gratitude Group leans over and DJs a set at his Los Angeles River dance party.
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Michael Marshall
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Michael Marshall
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Dancing in the sun
Adam Weiss is the founder of the Gratitude Group, a club that hosts various events across Los Angeles like dance parties at the River, a screen-free reading club at the Central Library and meditative sound baths at Elysian Park. That’s just this weekend alone.
Weiss has been hosting the free dance parties for about two years now. The locations vary. Previously he’s held them at the Elysian Park helipad.
“Everybody wants to dance, they're just waiting to be invited to dance, and then if you're a good DJ, you just keep the floor packed,” said Weiss, who also deejays these events. Lately it's been a lot of disco, funk and soul. Weiss also likes to keep the gatherings dry, meaning no drugs or alcohol. He thinks it makes people engage with each other more.
“So the focus really is on connection and dancing,” Weiss said.
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Attendees of the Los Angeles River dance party move to the music.
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Michael Marshall
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Michael Marshall
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Ariana Valencia lives in Burbank and attended last month's dance party, also at the L.A. River. She says dancing in the middle of the concrete riverbed made the city feel like a playground that she could explore.
“I’d never been to the L.A. River prior to that. You think it’s just a little swampy little pond, but it was actually really full,” said Valencia. “I would have never thought that was in the middle of the city.”
Uniquely Los Angeles
Weiss says part of the appeal is not just getting people outside but to get them to experience Los Angeles differently.
At the last event, people walking or biking along the river path joined on a whim — some even brought their kids. Weiss says that’s exactly the kind of reaction he hopes for.
“ I want it to be family friendly. I want it to feel welcoming. I want it to be inclusive,” Weiss said. “My main thing is I just want people to actually dance. I think it feels good to dance.”
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A woman and two children join in on the dance party.
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Michael Marshall
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Michael Marshall
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For Valencia that inclusiveness is part of the draw. She says she’ll be joining again this Sunday.
“Even though it wasn’t advertised as a dry event I think the fact that it was a family friendly kind of thing was appealing to me,” said Valencia.
Join the party
After the last dance party went viral, Weiss says more than 1,500 people have RSVP-ed for tomorrow's event. This compelled him to close reservations.
Weiss plans to hold the event every other week this Spring and Summer — taking place either at the River or the Elysian Field Helipad with its amazing view of the city.
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Weiss wants to start branching out too, and is eyeing the Culver City Stairs as a possible location.
“ I just wanna bring people to cool interesting places to dance,” Weiss said.
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You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
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