News From The Queens Tourism Council
There’s a theme to some upcoming activities. A world famous playwright will debut his new work in Queens. Plus, world famous filmmakers will participate in retrospectives on their careers. A world famous chamber orchestra will perform and an annual concert series will pay homage to a world famous pianist who recently died.
Makes you think the World’s Fair is coming back.
There’s more of course. Here’s the rundown.
– Tonight (Thursday), Mar. 7, World premiere of Robert Wuhl’s HIT-LIT, 7:30 p.m. World famous playwright Robert Wuhl debuts HITLIT, a mistaken-identity screwball comedy about an ambitious young editor who is searching for the next best seller. Runs until Mar. 17: Wed. through Fri. at 7:30 p.m.; Sat. at 8 p.m.; Wed. and Sat. at 2 p.m.; and Sun. at 3 p.m. $42 weekday/$49 weekend. Queens Theatre, 14 United Nations Ave. S., Flushing Meadows- Corona Park, 1-718-760-0064, www.queenstheatre.org.
– Thursday, Mar. 7, Opening Reception for Ashley Garrett’s Slate House Exhibition, 6 p.m. Garrett’s new body of work explores the uncanny qualities in common household objects. Growing up in a slate-mining town in Pennsylvania with its now silenced quarry holes and obsolete tools, her work is infused with a sense of still contemplation and memory. On display until Apr. 17. Acumen Project Space, 37- 18 Northern Blvd., Long Island City, 1-718-360-9500, www.acumenny.com.
– Friday, Mar. 8, The Lautreamont String Quartet, 6:30 p.m. The Lhevinne Classical Concert Series returns to Maple Grove Cemetery with a special twist honoring the life of Van Cliburn. At 6:30 p.m., there will be a viewing of the 2003 documentary, The Legacy of Rosina Lhevinne, featuring interviews with Cliburn. At 7:30 p.m., wine and cheese will be served. At 8 p.m., the tribute concert to Cliburn and his devotion to his beloved teacher Lhevinne will begin. Principal performers will be The Lautreamont String Quartet playing pieces by Brahms and Bach. $15/$25. MGC community room, 127-15 Kew Gardens Rd., Kew Gardens, 1-718- 544-3600, www.friendsofmaplegrove.org.
– Friday, Mar. 8, Spring Breakers with director as part of retrospective, 7 p.m. Director, screenwriter and artist Harmony Korine made his name as the screenwriter of the nihilistic teen movie Kids, but came into his own with Gummo. Running until Mar. 22, the Museum of the Moving Image will present a retrospective of Korine’s five feature films, including Mister Lonely, Julien Donkey-boy and the cult hit Trash Humpers. MMI, 36-01 35th Ave., Astoria/ Long Island City, 1-718-777- 6888, www.movingimage.us.
– Friday, Mar. 8, Humps and Bumps. The Jamaica Center for Arts & Learning presents a large-scale public art installation commissioned with the NYC Department of Transportation. Free. The Sidewalk on Archer Avenue at 158th Street, Jamaica, www.jcal.org.
– Saturday, Mar. 9, Nature Photography Workshops, 1 p.m., and again on Mar. 16. Learn how to take better nature photos with professionals Rosalie Frost and H. David Stein. Workshops include approximately 45 minutes of outdoor photography, a slide show of examples and pointers on light and composition. Registration required at 1-718-886-3800, ext. 230. $10/one workshop; $15/both workshops. Queens Botanical Garden, 43-50 Main St., Flushing, www.queensbotanical.org.
– Saturday, Mar. 9, HSBC Children’s Garden Family Day, 2 p.m. A sneak peek of the HSBC Children’s Garden with a hands-on program for children, ages 5-12, that teaches about plants, gardens and nature. Free and the Parking Garden will be open for $5 per vehicle. Queens Botanical Garden, 43-50 Main St., Flushing, 1-718-886-3800, www.queensbotanical.org.
– Saturday, Mar. 9, Hands-on History: Pastime Fun & Games, noon to 3 p.m. Free. King Manor Museum, Rufus King Park, 153rd Street at Jamaica Avenue, Jamaica, www.kingmanor.org.
– Saturday, Mar. 9, Empty Bowls Ceramics Workshop, 3 p.m. Beginners, artists, potters, friends and families are welcome. Make bowls which will be finished, fired, glazed and sold at a fundraiser for LIC Empty Bowls to support inner-city, churchbased soup kitchens and food pantries. Free. 10-34 44th Dr., Long Island City, ellen.day@brickhouseny.com, 1-718- 784-4907, www.brickhouseny.com.
– Saturday, Mar. 9, Bursting, 4 p.m. South Korean artist Hayoon Jay- Lee’s installation consists of 13 large sacks of rice hung on the wall, some left intact, some slashed so that the rice falls onto the floor of the space. Hayoon will perform among the rice accompanied by musicians. The audience will help dismantle her installation and bring the rice home, thereby sharing in the art’s physical, visual and spiritual sustenance. The Clocktower, 29-27 41st Ave., Queens Plaza North, 1-646-645-5506, www.nolongerempty.org.
– Saturday, Mar. 9, Discover Amazake! Japanese Food Demo, 7 p.m. A deliciously sweet and creamy natural beverage, Amazake is made with cultured rice that has been incubated overnight to produce a lightly fermented food rich in enzymes and nutrients. Learn to make your own Amazake. $15. Resobox , 41-26 27th St., Long Island City, info@resobox.com, 1-718-784-3680, www.resobox.com.
– Saturday, Mar. 9, Homage to musicians Louis Armstrong and Bix Beiderbecke, 8 p.m Join musician Randy Sandke for live music and Beiderbecke Birthday Celebration Flushing Town Hall, 137-35 Northern Blvd., Flushing, 1-718-463-7700 www.flushingtownhall.org. – Saturday and Sunday, Mar. 9- 10, Lewis Klahr at screenings of his collage films, 3 p.m. Experience the dreamlike and iconoclastic work of Lewis Klahr, the prolific stop-motion filmmaker who has been making “collage” films for more than two decades. He will be present for all screenings. Plus, the Museum of the Moving Image will screen Otto Preminger’s 1945 noir classic, Fallen Angel, which inspired Klahr. MMI, 36-01 35th Ave., Astoria/LIC, 1-718- 777-6888, www.movingimage.us.
– Sunday, Mar. 10, Con Brio Ensemble presents Twilight Concert, 2 p.m. Now it its 34th season, the Con Brio Ensemble will perform works by Schumann, Franck and Franz Mittler. $12/$10 students and senior citizens. Voelker-Orth Museum, 149-19 38th Ave., Flushing, dianamittler@aol.com, 1-718-459-1277, www.vomuseum.org.
– Sunday, Mar. 10, Academy of St. Martin in the Fields, 3 p.m. The Academy of St. Martin in the Fields is regarded as one of the finest chamber orchestras in the world. The Kupferberg Center for the Arts presents an exclusive performance with Alisa Wellerstein, cello, and Inon Barnatan, piano. The program includes: Britten, Variations on a Theme of Frank Bridge, Op.10; Haydn, Cello Concerto No. 1 in C Major; J.S. Bach, Piano Concerto No. 1 in D minor, BWV 1052; Haydn, Symphony No.45 in F-sharp minor Farewell. $32-54. KCA, 65-30 Kissena Blvd., Flushing, 1-718-544- 2996, www.kupferbergcenter.org.
– Sunday and Monday, Mar. 10- 11, Fifth Annual Reel-Abilities Film Festival, times vary. The country’s largest film festival by and about people with disabilities kicks off with international short documentaries. On Mar. 11, the Central Queens Y will screen Still Standing about singer Anita Hollander, who has performed at the White House, Carnegie Hall, and the Kennedy Center despite having lost a leg to cancer. Prices vary. CQY, 67-09 108th St., Forest Hills, 1-718-268-5011, www.cqy.org.
– Wednesday, Mar. 13, Keely Garfield Dance: Telling The Bees, 8 p.m, runs until Mar. 16. The custom of telling bees after their beekeeper died was believed to keep them from absconding or dying and encourage their affiliation with a new beekeeper. This tradition assumes a reciprocal relationship between animals and humans, between past, present and future and between the lines of life and death. Performer Keely Garfield forages links between the waggle and round dances of the honeybees, the sweet results of their toil and the sting of breakdown in our own organizing principles. $15. The Chocolate Factory Theatre, 5-49 49th Ave., Long Island City, 1-718-482-7069, www.chocolatefactorytheater.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.
