Moey's Music Party

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August 1-15
FUN IN THE SANDBOX
[AGES 3-8]

Kids can dance, sing, and listen to fairy tales during this summer’s session of free Sandbox Programs in Central Park. Every weekday through August 15, kids can attend sessions with one of four artists. Moey of Moey’s Music Party hosts a singalong in which kids can rock out with maracas, pom-poms, and other props. Kids can clap, bang, and sing along with celebrated brass quintet Central Park Brass. GlobalArts to Go encourages kids to dance and sing while learning about music of different cultures. And storyteller Dan Kitrosser spins multicultural tales of goblins, shoemakers, princesses, and regular folk. For locations and schedule, call 212-860-1370 or visit www.centralparknyc.org.


Time Out New York Kids / Issue 30 : Mar 15–Apr 15, 2008

Changing tune

After years of creating adult music, a mom finds her calling writing songs for the sing-along set. By Susan Avery
   Melissa Levis takes her place in front of her adoring fans and begins belting out original tunes as the crowd readily sings along. In years past, she has performed in concerts at downtown venues like Mercury Lounge, and even had a successful run Off Broadway as the lyricist for the musical The Joys of Sex. Now, under the jolly stage moniker “Moey,” Levis plays kid birthday parties and regular gigs at Gymtime Rhythm & Glues and P.S. 158. Her inventive songs cover topics like hygiene (the bluesy “Pierre Wouldn’t Wash His Hair”) and meal time (the a cappella “Sushi Symphony”). While her short-statured fans jump around, no doubt a few of their parents have wondered how Levis came to the role of kiddie entertainer.

Melissa Levis poses with her new
fan base.
Photograph: Cecilia Ohlssen
   A childhood talent for writing humorous songs led her to a career in the 1990s crafting cleverly worded custom ditties—at $5,000 a pop—for politicians and business execs (“Here’s to the best of CEOs, / The man who brought highs to Loews. / Blow out your candle and make a wish, / Now that you’re 40-ish. / Happy birthday, Jonathan Tisch”).

   In 1995, she formed a band, Melissa and the Moguls, with a few high-powered friends she’d met through her uncle Bruce Wasserstein, the investment banker and magazine owner, and aunt Wendy Wasserstein, the late Pulitzer-winning playwright. The group still gets together to jam once in a while on songs like “A-list”: “For big benefits, we write big checks. / We’re in Peggy Siegal’s Rolodex. / We got a trophy wife and an angry ex. / A-list, A-list.”

   In 2002, while spending time in her native Vermont with her son, Monty, now four, Levis began plotting her next move. In an effort to get Monty into a sold-out Vermont nursery school, she volunteered as a music teacher. The rest is mommy-rock history. “I gave up the A-list to sing the ABCs,” she laughs. “But my family thinks I’m a celebrity.”

cookiemag.com
Moey's Music Party
Music teacher Levis's peppy alter ego delivers classic-sounding tunes that will turn any under-5 shindig into a mini American Bandstand.

Moey's Music Party

Cookie Magazine; March 2008

urban baby

Weekend Events

Sandbox Sing-along
Moey’s Music Party passes out pompoms, maracas and inflatable guitars to jam along to citified children’s tunes.
When: Thurs. 7/24, 11am; Free.
Where: Central Park, East 100th St. Playground, centralparknyc.org.

mommypoppins.com

The Central Park Sandbox Program is a kids music festival that takes place in 16 playgrounds throughout the Park from July 7th through August 15th. With two concerts a day, every day, it's your best bet for free kids entertainment without the crowds. The performers are all teaching artists and include the Central Park Brass and GlobalArts to Go, story-
teller Dan Kitrosser, and the not to be missed Moey’s Music Party with hits like New York City Kid and I Gotta Go Potty.

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