While I had vaguely heard of the Maypole dance over the years, the first one I experienced in person involved schoolchildren in Brooklyn’s Prospect Park. My son had enrolled as a fifth grader in ...

I wish I had danced around a Maypole with my mother. I’m not sure why it didn’t happen at least once in her 101 years. At the very least, I wish I had told her I wanted to. “Mom let’s celebrate my ...

In a nod to the past — the very old past — the village of Orland Park hosted a May Day celebration Saturday. The spring celebration can be traced back to Roman times, but the village’s historical ...

TRADITIONALLY, on May 1 communities perform a maypole dance, around a tall pole hung with ribbons that are woven into patterns by the dancers. Such dances are survivals of ancient dances around a tree ...

Stephanie Block picks out flowers for a crown during La Primavera Festival, a spring celebration at Marjorie Park on Saturday, April 25, 2026. The festival included flower crowns, a maypole dance, and ...