During this unprecedented and challenging year, Flushing Town Hall has been able to present 132 hours of online programming for its viewers amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
In the new year, the cultural institution will be continuing its online programming with more updates to come in early January.
In the meantime, here’s a preview of some upcoming events:
Flushing Town Hall’s monthly Jazz Jam: Celebrating the Legacy of Louis Armstrong will continue online with a new theme each month, kicking off on Wednesday, Jan. 13, at 7 p.m. with an early celebration of Martin Luther King Day and a theme of “racial justice.”
Up to 15 musicians may register for each jam to play or sing a tune on the theme by emailing education@flushingtownhall.org.
The jazz jam’s reputation has steadily grown since it first went virtual and has attracted longtime, local participants as well as new ones from all over the world, including Italy, Australia and Guyana.
Looking ahead, the February theme will be “love songs and funny valentines.”
Flushing Town Hall’s Education Department will replay the first season of its beloved arts education series, Global Arts for Global Kids, re-releasing the original videos with accompanying activity worksheets newly translated into four additional languages: Spanish, Hindi, Chinese and Korean.
Beginning Jan. 11 and running for nine weeks, videos featuring Flushing Town Hall’s Teaching Artists will be posted daily, Monday through Thursday, and culminate in family matinee performances on Fridays. Each week covers a new topic and region of the world and includes explorations of Colombian music, Indian and Chinese dance, African drumming and more. The translated materials are designed to support English language learners across generations and cultures.
Flushing Town Hall is planning its first-ever virtual Temple Bazaar to celebrate the Lunar New Year. It will stream on YouTube on Sunday, Feb. 14, at 2 p.m.
2021 is the Year of the Ox, characterized by traits of strength and determination, a perfect theme for honoring the community’s resilience through the pandemic and the hardship it has caused. For centuries in China, people have celebrated the Lunar New Year in temple fairs with performances, food and crafts to conclude the final stretch of a harsh winter and celebrate the pending arrival of spring.
In February, Flushing Town Hall will also revive its outdoor, community art exhibition, Call and Response: Grief, Resiliency and Hope, which was first mounted in the summer of 2020. To be displayed alongside its Northern Boulevard fence, professional and amateur artists are invited to submit works for hanging, beginning Feb. 1. Children and adults may participate. Artworks should engage with these questions: How can I live a courageous life? How can I help build a resilient community? What gives me hope?
