In the 20 years since the Long Island Children’s Museum (LICM) first opened its doors, it has grown from a small demonstration site housed in donated space to a large, nationally-recognized museum anchoring Nassau County’s Museum Row. In two decades, nearly 3.5 million visitors have explored, built, created, performed, and learned in the museum’s 14 indoor and outdoor exhibit galleries and year-round theater. On Saturday, Nov. 23 and Sunday, Nov. 24, LICM will throw a weekend-long birthday party to celebrate this milestone featuring popular performers, themed crafts, face painting and of course, birthday cake.
Do you know why children wear crowns on their birthday? What do you do if evil spirits are looking for an invitation to your party? What cultures give a key as a prized birthday present? Visitors will learn the answer to these questions as they learn about birthday traditions around the world throughout the weekend. Activities and performances will look at customs that have originated from Germany, Greece, Denmark, South Africa, and Ireland, among others.
In addition to themed activities, visitors will enjoy live performances in the LICM Theater and around the museum. LICM has asked some of its most popular performers to join them to celebrate its 20th birthday. Liz Joyce, the first performer to sell out the LICM Theater will be bringing her “golden” touch to the birthday weekend with performances of King Midas on Saturday at 11:30 a.m. and 2 p.m. On Sunday, the popular band Milkshake, familiar to millions of American households through their music videos (PBS KIDS, NOGGIN/NICK JR., and DISCOVERY KIDS) and their award-winning recordings, returns to entertain LICM audiences. Members of National Circus Project will be present on both days to entertain and delight with their remarkable display of circus skills from around the world.
What’s a party without dancing? In Latin American and African cultures, dancing is an important custom at teen’s birthdays, signifying a rite of passage from childhood to adulthood. Visitors will witness demonstrations of these traditional dances presented by Ballroom Palace Dance Studio (Roslyn, NY) and Zeta Phi Beta Sorority (Rho Omega Zeta Chapter).
Admission to the museum during the weekend is priced, appropriate at a “2 for $20” rate and free for museum members.
