Look! Up in the sky! It’s a bird. It’s a plane. It’s … an elephant? A legion of toy elephants will parachute gracefully from rooftops in DUMBO on Thursday as part of the Great DUMBO Drop, an inaugural fundraiser put on by the neighborhood’s improvement district.
Small toy elephants will be up for “adoption” for $20 apiece before Thursday’s block party, and they’ll be released from the rooftops onto Washington Street at 6 p.m. The owner whose elephant lands closest to a set target will win a $500 shopping spree at stores in the neighborhood, according to event organizers.
The drop is meant to be a fundraiser for two of the area’s schools – P.S. 307, the Daniel Hale Williams School in Vinegar Hill, and the Dock Street School for STEAM Studies, a middle school that opened in 2016 with a focus on science, technology, engineering, arts and math. There will also be a silent auction of local goods.
“We’re very excited about the block party, and it’s going to be totally epic on Brooklyn’s most famous block,” said Alexandria Sica, the executive director of the DUMBO Improvement District. “There are a lot of new residents in the neighborhood, and we wanted to bring everybody out. We love the idea of flying elephants. It’s going to be DUMBO’s new annual tradition.”
Principals at the schools did not immediately return requests for comment.
Slated to start at 5 p.m. on Washington Street between Front and Plymouth streets, the party kicks off with female drumline FogoAzul and Michael Napolitano from “Preschool of Rock” and “Michael and the Rockness Monsters.”
P.S. 307’s nationally recognized cheerleaders, The Diamonds, and the Dock Street Dancers will perform before the DUMBO drop at 6 p.m. Throughout, local restaurants and bakers – including Front Street Pizza, Melt Bakery and Untamed Sandwiches – will serve up food, plus you’ll find arts and crafts by Creatively Wild Art Studio, temporary tattoos with Recess DUMBO, a rock climbing wall and music by 13-year-old DJ Kai Song.
Live at the Archway will also have music, including a set by the DUMBO-based Japanese pop band Gaijin à Go-Go and DJ Pablo.
The DUMBO Improvement District, founded in 2006, has advocated for public art, free Wi-Fi, events at Archway and more, according to its website.
Elephants can be purchased online and must be entered into the drop by 5 p.m. Sept. 27.
