News From The Queens Tourism Council
Only in Queens! The borough hosts an Oktoberfest featuring kimchi, a Korean pickled cabbage dish, as well as two Oktobefests in September. (Wait until next month for many more.)
This week also brings the return of George Burns, a dance extravaganza, top-notch classical music, fall festivals, a lecture on Hasidism and even classes on glass-painting and silk flowermaking.
Here’s the rundown.
– Friday, Sept. 26, New York Classical Players, 8 p.m. Itamar Zorman performs Beethoven’s Violin Concerto, and NYCP introduces Bartok’s masterwork, “Divertimento for String Orchestra,” and “Vocalise” by Rachmaninoff. Flushing Town Hall, 137-35 Northern Blvd., www.flushingtownhall.org.
– Friday, Sept. 26, Café Lumière, 7 p.m. The Museum of the Moving Image (MMI) is presenting a series on Hou Hsiaohsien, the leading figure of the Taiwanese New Cinema movement. In Café Lumière, a writer investigates the life of a Japanese composer of the 1930s. She is pregnant by a man she does not want to marry, and has found a kindred spirit in a usedbookstore owner who aids her research. Plus, The Electric Princess Picture House, Hou’s three-minute contribution to the 2007 anthology film To Each His Own Cinema. MMI, 36-01 35th Ave., Kaufman Arts District, www.movingimage.us.
– Saturday, Sept. 27, Say Goodnight Gracie, 2 and 8 p.m. (also Sunday, Sept. 28 at 3 p.m.). This Tony-nominated play, starring Alan Safier as George Burns, was written by Rupert Holmes (The Mystery of Edwin Drood). Holmes, Safier, and WABC entertainment reporter Sandy Kenyon chat after the Sunday performance. $25-$42. Queens Theatre, 14 United Nations Ave. S., Flushing Meadows-Corona Park, www.queenstheatre.org.
– Saturday, Sept. 27, Making Moves Dance Festival, 2 and 7 p.m. This fifth annual event features emerging dance companies. During the 2 p.m. show (free), expect performances by Ballet Inc., CelloPointe Chamber Music & Dance Co., and Jazz Roots Dance Co. The 7 p.m show ($15, $12 for seniors and students) includes 360º Dance Co., In-Sight Dance Co., and Dai Jian, who creates improvisations, performance installations, and visual art. Jamaica Performing Arts Center, 153-10 Jamaica Ave., www.jcal.org.
– Saturday, Sept. 27, Oktoberfest Flushing Style: Kimchi and Sauerkraut, 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. Oktoberfest began as a wedding party for Crown Prince Ludwig of Bavaria in 1810. The Voelker OrthMuseum honors this tradition with music with David Block and a Queens twist: plenty of kimchi, the Korean dish featuring pickled cabbage. $30, please reserve in advance. VOM, 149-19 38th Ave., Flushing, www.vomuseum.org.
– Saturday, Sept. 27, Oktoberfest in Glendale, 3 to 8 p.m. (also Sunday, Sept. 28, noon to 5 p.m.). The Shops at Atlas Park andManor Oktoberfest team up for two days. Bobby Heckman and the Bavarians perform on Saturday. Das Schlauberger plays on Sunday. Die Erste Gottscheer Tanzgruppe performs both days. Free. TSAP, 80-00 Cooper Ave., Glendale, www.shopatlaspark.com.
– Saturday, Sept. 27, Care for the Caregiver, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Topics include: Staying Healthy As We Care for Others; Legal/Financial Matters; and Getting Professional Help. Free. Macedonia AME Church, 37-22 Union St., Flushing. Contact Marion Brown at 718-353-5870.
– Saturday, Sept. 27, Museum Day Live, 2:30 to 4:30 p.m. This is an annual event hosted by Smithsonian magazine in which participating museums across the country open their doors for free to anyone presenting a Museum Day Live! ticket. Queens Historical Society, Weeping Beech Park, 143-35 37th Ave., Flushing, www.queenshistoricalsociety.org.
– Saturday, Sept. 27, Queens Cancer Walk, noon (registration) and 1 p.m. (kickoff). This event supports the nonprofit SHAREing & CAREing. $15 recommended donation per registrant; free for children under 12. Meet at Phil Rizutto Park, 125th Street and 95th Avenue, Richmond Hill. Contact Mohamed at 917-853-7262.
– Saturday, Sept. 27, The Green, Green Grass of Home, 2:30 p.m. The Museum of the Moving Image is presenting a series on Hou Hsiao-hsien, the leading figure of the Taiwanese New Cinema movement. Green Grass is a musical starring pop sensation Kenny Bee, who plays a substitute teacher newly arrived from Taipei to a country village, where he begins a romance with a fellow teacher, much to the chagrin of his city girlfriend who drags him back. MMI, 36-01 35th Ave., Kaufman Arts District, www.movingimage.us.
– Sunday, Sept. 28, Con Brio Ensemble, 4:30 p.m. Piano quartet works by Schubert, Dubois, and Dvorak. $12/$10 for seniors & students/free for children under 13. The Churchin the-Gardens, 50 Ascan Ave., Forest Hills Gardens, www.thecitg.org.
– Sunday, Sept. 28, American Littoral Society Coastal Clean Up, 10 a.m. Free, and students can receive community service hours for their efforts. Meet at boardwalk at Beach 59th Street, Rockaway Beach, www.rwalliance.org.
– Sunday, Sept. 28, From Ashes to Flowers: Designing a World’s Fair Garden, 2:30 p.m. A look into Queens Botanical Garden’s origins at the 1939 World’s Fair with MargaretAnne Tockarshewsky, a former QBG staff member who is an expert on this topic and executive director of the New Haven Museum. Free with garden admission, but registration required at rforlenza@queensbotanical.org. Queens Botanical Garden, 43-50 Main St., Flushing, www.queensbotanical.org.
– Sunday, Sept. 28, Glass Painting Art, 1:30 and 3 p.m. Learn about glass painting and making silk flowers. $25, registration required at 1-347- 558-5338. Lewis H. Latimer House, 34-41 137th St., Flushing.
– Sunday, Sept. 28, 2014 Fall Festival, noon to 6 p.m. Expect more than 200 vendors, crafts, kiddy rides, and fun for the whole family. Free. Austin Street between 69th and 72nd roads, Forest Hills, www.foresthillschamber.org.
– Sunday, Sept. 28, Flight of the Red Balloon, 4:30 p.m.; A Borrowed Life, 7 p.m. The Museum of the Moving Image is presenting a series on Hou Hsiaohsien, the leading figure of the Taiwanese New Cinema movement. In Red Balloon, seven-year-old Simon and his life with mother Suzanne, a performance artist, are seen through the eyes of a Chinese student hired as Simon’s nanny. A Borrowed Life follows a working-class Taiwanese family from the aftermath of independence from Japanese rule to the 1980s, centering on the relationship between father and son. MMI, 36-01 35th Ave., Kaufman Arts District, www.movingimage.us.
– Sunday, Sept. 28, Bell Boulevard Sunday Stroll, noon to 5 p.m. Bayside’s main shopping strip is transformed into a pedestrian plaza from 39th to 41st avenues. Enjoy live music, free giveaways, games, and sidewalk dining. Free, www.baysidevillage.net.
– Monday, Sept. 29, Lecture on Hasidism, 1:30 p.m. New York Times reporter Joseph Berger discusses his new book, “The Pious Ones: The World of the Hasidim and Their Battles with America.” In this book, he explores Hasidim’s beliefs and struggles and the social and political implications of their expanding presence in the U.S. $8 suggested donation. Central Queens YM & YWHA, 67-09 108th St., Forest Hills, www.cqy.org.
– Tuesday, Sept. 30, Opening for Elaine Hajian: The Evolution of an Artist, runs through Jan. 17, 2015. From landscapes to portraits to modern abstraction, Hajian’s work has consistently expressed her vision through myriad styles and mediums, while refusing to be constrained by the dictates of the art establishment. An artist’s reception is set for Oct. 26 at 2 p.m. Queens Botanical Garden, 43-50 Main St., Flushing, www.queensbotanical.org.
– Wednesday, Oct. 1, Monthly Jazz Jam, 7 p.m. All are invited to join the Queens Jazz OverGround as they lead the house band in this monthly jam session. Held on the first Wednesday of every month, Jazz Jams are a fun way to hone skills, jam with peers, or listen. Flushing Town Hall, 137-35 Northern Blvd., www.flushingtownhall.org.
– Wednesday through Saturday, Oct. 1-4, Michal Samama: Background Materials, 8 p.m. This performance art piece explores the temporal and spatial aspects of bodily experience. Its focus is what could be labeled as the “background noise” of our daily existence, the sensual data that ties us to the world precisely by not coming under focus. $15. Chocolate Factory Theatre, 5-49 49th Ave., LIC, 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 many attractions. More info available online at www.itsinqueens.com.
