Dance to a revolutionary beat: DOTC

As part of our Independence Day weekend package, I spotlighted the Dancing on the Charles party tomorrow in our Four on the Fourth series. This is where to be:

These days, every party in Boston claims to be the biggest. While that’s fairly subjective, one thing is sure: Saturday’s Dancing on the Charles bash is certainly the longest.

The twice-monthly outdoor dance party has become a rite of passage during Boston’s summer season. This year, it has raised the Independence Day revelry stakes with a 12-hour-long dance party on the banks of the Charles River at the American Legion Marsh Post 442 in Cambridge.

The first beat drops at 1 p.m. Just call it four on the floor on the fourth.


“I think it needed to be done,” said organizer Charles Levine, half of the DJ/producer duo Soul Clap. “This is a whole new option that people wouldn’t have even considered in recent years. If it goes off and is slammed all day, it would be the longest party I’ve ever been involved in.”

Dancing on the Charles is certain to cater to more than just club kids - Levine ensures that the barbecue component will be taken care off (“There’s plenty of food to go around”) and guarantees affordable libations throughout the day.

Of course, an event with “dancing” in the title needs to keep the beat alive. Add the fact that this 12-hour throwdown is three times longer than the standard Boston dance party, and it’s an all-hands-on-the-decks affair.

So Levine, who has helped organize the event for three years and has been spinning Boston parties since the late ’90s, enlisted an all-star lineup of Boston DJs - Tanner Ross, Randy Deshaies, Miztah Lex, Bruno, Kon, Pat Fontes, Sergio Santos, Jay Prouty, Booster and of course, Soul Clap’s Levine and Eli Goldstein. The plan is to blast hip-hop and reggae under the sun then drop house and techno under the stars.

And while most of the party is outdoors - with tents to take a break, grab a drink or hide from the occasional sun shower - Levine isn’t sure if there’s a clear view of the fireworks display over the Esplanade.

Then again, he’s not worried.

“I’m sure we all have fireworks apps on our iPhones,” he said.

Dancing on the Charles, at American Legion Post 442, 4 Gerry’s Landing, Cambridge, Saturday, 1 p.m. to 1 a.m.; $20; dancingonthecharles.com.