News From The Queens Tourism Council
Valentine’s Day makes a match with Chinese Lunar New Year this week in Queens. Locals can enjoy Peking Opera or Chinese sword performances just as they can take advantage of chocolate tastings and Jewish love songs.
But this high-octane week also includes poetry slams, art openings, concerts and a bar hop for charity.
Here’s the rundown.
– Tonight (Thursday), Feb. 7, Peking Opera, 6 p.m. Celebrate the Chinese Lunar New Year with arias and episodes from two famous Peking Operas, Filial Visit of the Fourth Son and Henpecked King, presented by the New York Chinese Opera Society. Free. Flushing Library, 41-17 Main St., www.queenslibrary.org.
– Friday, Feb. 8, Ebony Embers, 8 p.m. Poetry from the Harlem Renaissance is brought to life with a musical trio of cello, piano and percussion. This work examines the lives of the outstanding African- American poets Langston Hughes, Countee Cullen and Claude McKay as seen through the eyes of the great painter and muralist Aaron Douglas. $10/$20 York College Performing Arts Center, 94-45 Guy R. Brewer Blvd., Jamaica, 1-718-262-2281, www.york.cuny.edu.
– Friday, Feb. 8, Chocolate Lovers Tasting, 7:30 p.m., 8:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. Featured desserts are the following: Flourless Chocolate Cake with Milk Chocolate Sabayon; Red Velvet Whoopie Pie with Cream Cheese Filling; Chocolate Cheesecake with Fresh Raspberries; Dark Chocolate Covered Strawberry with White Chocolate Drizzle; and Milk Chocolate Panna Cotta with Vanilla Whipped Cream. $15. Rudy’s Pastry Shop, 905 Seneca Ave., Ridgewood, 1-718-821-5890.
– Friday, Feb. 8, Emerging Artists Group Shows, 6 to 9 p.m; Saturday, Feb. 9, 1 to 6 p.m. Six local artists will display painting, photography and even a book. Free with light refreshments. Gear Storefront, 61-08 Myrtle Ave., Glendale, 1-718-386-2812.
– Friday, Feb. 8, Blaze Craze 10 Open Mic, 7 p.m. Calling all poets rappers, singers, business people and vendors. The featured poets will include Dr. Gerald Deas and Monique Nazon. The featured rapper will include Rahim. $10. Afrikan Poetry Theatre, 176-03 Jamaica Ave., Jamaica, 1-646-571-5589, www.afrikanpoetrytheatre.org.
– Friday, Feb. 8, Chinese New Year, 9 a.m. Celebrate the Year of the Snake with martial arts demonstrations, massages, refreshments, a raffle drawing, health information and more. Free. Al Oerter Recreation Center, 131-40 Fowler Ave., Flushing Meadows-Corona Park.
– Saturday, Feb. 9, Saturday Afternoon at the Movies, 1 p.m. This year marks the 40th Anniversary of the death of actor Edward G. Robinson, who is buried in Ridgewood. Little Caesar (1931) is Robinson’s breakout movie. It tells the story of a hoodlum who ascends the ranks of organized crime before his inevitable downfall. Greater Astoria Historical Society, 35-20 Broadway, Astoria, www.astorialic.org.
– Saturday, Feb. 9, New York Chinese Cultural Center Lunar New Year Festival 2013. At 1 p.m, learn about paper cutting, dough figurines and calligraphy in hands-on activities led by traditional artists. At 2 p.m, join in for a 70-minute performance of traditional Chinese sword, ribbon and folk dance. Experience Peking Opera and Chinese rock with the classical music instrument, the Erhu. Queens Theatre, 14 United Nations Ave. S., Flushing Meadows-Corona Park, www.queenstheatre.org.
– Saturday, Feb. 9, Carnival on Skillman Bar Hop, 3:30 p.m. Enjoy great drink specials and live music all evening. Bring $5 donation of canned/dried food. (Profits will go to local charities). Places participating in Bar Hop: Claret Wine Bar, Flynn’s Garden Inn, Quaint, Murphy’s, Cafe Marlene, The Brogue, Aubergine Cafe, and Copper Kettle. Starts at The Dog And Duck, 45-20 Skillman Ave., Sunnyside, www.thedogandduckny.com.
– Saturday, Feb. 9, Jay Black Live, 8 p.m. The original voice of “Cara Mia,” “Come a Little Bit Closer” and “This Magic Moment” will sing these hits in one great show. The Happenings featuring Bob Miranda will perform too. $45-$65. Kupferberg Center, Colden Auditorium, 65-30 Kissena Blvd., Flushing, www.kupferbergcenter.org.
– Satuday, Feb. 9, Hands-on History: I Love Rufus & Mary, noon. Learn about the King family and how much they loved their family and friends. Enjoy crafts, stories and more. Free. King Manor Museum, Rufus King Park, 153rd Street at Jamaica Avenue, Jamaica, www.kingmanor.org.
– Saturday, Feb. 9, You’ve Got Hate Mail!, 8 p.m. A hilarious broadband comedy of errors that takes a hysterical look at the world of on-line hook-ups and break-ups. Love “bytes” all when an extra-marital affair goes horribly wrong, thanks to a juicy e-mail left sitting on a desktop. The story is told entirely in e-mails from laptop computers, although the play still manages to have an unforgettable chase scene fueled by cell phones. Mature audiences. $35. Queensborough Performing Arts Center, 222-05 56th Ave., Bayside, 1-718-631-6311, www.qcc.cuny.edu/ qpac.
– Saturday, Feb. 9, Love Never Dies, 2 p.m. Hear heartwarming tales of loss and triumph, honoring all the great love stories gathered and collected by historian Carl Ballenas from the archives of those interred at the cemetery. $5. Maple Grove Cemetery, 83-15 Kew Gardens Rd., Kew Gardens, 1-718-544-3600, www.maplegrove.biz.
– Saturday, Feb. 9, Ebony Hillbillies, 8 p.m. One of the last African- American string bands in the U.S., the Ebony Hillbillies keep an important legacy alive with a rootsy, homegrown style of All American music: Jazz, Blues, Bluegrass, Rockabilly, Rock & Roll and Country. Inspiring heart-string tugs and toe-taps in fans of all types of music using Violin, Mountain Dulcimer, Banjo, Washboard, percussion, bones and vocals. $15. Flushing Town Hall, 137-35 Northern Blvd., Flushing, 1-718-463-7700, www.flushingtownhall.org.
– Saturday and Sunday, Feb. 9-10, Lunar New Year Celebration, noon to 4 p.m. Crafts, storytelling and animal encounters with a boa constrictor and black rat snake will be part of the fun. Staffers will tell snake-themed stories at 1, 2:15, and 3 p.m. each day. The first 100 children each day will receive a traditional red envelope surprise. Free with zoo admission ($5-$8). Queens Zoo, 53-51 111th St., Flushing Meadows-Corona Park, www.queenszoo.com.
– Sunday, Feb. 10, Open Mic for Poets, 2 p.m. Sarah Stetson, the leader, studied poetry at Queens College, where she won the Giro S. Cestaro III Award for her thesis, “Barefoot in the Package Store.” Free. Queens Central Library, 89-11 Merrick Blvd., Jamaica, www.queenslibrary.org.
– Sunday, Feb. 10, The Ugly Duckling, 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. Light Wire Theater and Corbian Visual Arts and Dance bring new life to Hans Christian Andersen’s classic tale of an ugly young duckling that becomes a beautiful swan. With dazzling electroluminescent puppetry, poignant choreography and a musical score that ranges from classical to jazz and pop, this visually stunning production will amaze audiences young and old. Ages 5 & up. $14. Queens Theatre, 14 United Nations Ave. S., Flushing Meadows-Corona Park, www.queenstheatre.org.
– Monday, Feb. 11, Forest Hills Celebrates 5,000 Years of Chinese Culture, 1:30 p.m. Wenyi Wang will discuss Chinese history, culture and current events. Light kosher Chinese refreshments will be served. Free with $6 suggested donation. Central Queens Y, 67-09 108th St., Forest Hills, 718-268-5011, www.cqy.org.
– Tuesday, Feb. 12, Jewish Love Songs: from the Shtetl to Second Avenue, 2:30 p.m. The Capital Heights Lyric Opera presents this tribute to the Jewish love song, from the traditional (“Tum Balalaika”) to the immigrant era (“My Yiddishe Mame”) to the golden years of Yiddish Theater (“Bei Mir Bist Du Sheyn”). Free. Forest Hills Library, 108-19 71st Ave., www.queenslibrary.org.
The “It’s In Queens” column is produced by the Queens Tourism Council with the hope that readers will enjoy the borough’s attractions.
