Playing at Mill River Park & Greenway

The summer season of activities gets off to a rollicking start at the Mill River Park & Greenway this weekend with the Mill River Playground Birthday Party.

The popular family band 'Swingset Mamas' will perform and there will be face painters and crafts activities for children from 10 a.m. to noon, Saturday, June 1. And from 10:30 a.m. to noon, there will be an educational walk through the park from Broad Street to Pulaski Street.

The Movies in the Park program continues June 4 with the Spielberg at Sunset series, presented with the Avon Theatre. Each evening there will be a DJ providing music at 6:30 p.m., following by the showing of a Steven Spielberg movie at sunset on the Grand Steps of the park.

• June 4: 'ET'
  
• July 2: 'Gremlins'
  
• Aug. 6: 'Jaws'
  
• Sept. 3: 'Goonies'
  

And for the Family Movie Nights at the Mill River River Playground, there will be a kids dance party each evening at 7 p.m. following by a sunset screening of a movie.

• June 25: 'Wreck It Ralp'
  
• July 16: 'Despicable Me'
  
• Aug. 20: 'Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted'
  

Also scheduled for June are Fun Saturday Mornings at the Playground on June 8, 22 and 29 at 11 a.m.

For July, the main event will be 'Pork in the Park,' a ticketed event that is the Kansas City Barbecue Society's official competition and festival that's being planned by the Mayor's Youth Services Bureau and Bar Q Stamford. The cookoff is set for July 13 and 14.

For more information, visit www.millriverpark.com.