Kupferberg Center for the Arts: Spring 2023 Season Brochure

Samara Joy | JAN 15 (Photo by Meredith Truax)

“

a deeply emotive vocalist, with power that usually takes a lot of living to master. - Downbeat

Samara Joy (Photo by Meredith Truax)

QC ANNUAL

MLK DAY CELEBRATION WITH SAMARA JOY & EVENT HONOREE DR. JELANI COBB

SUN, JAN 15, 3 PM LeFrak Concert Hall

Tickets: $20

JAN 15

Come share the dream at KCA’s annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Celebration. Every January since 2017, KCA and Queens College have held a special event in honor and memory of Dr. King’s legacy and connection to Queens College, where he delivered a powerful speech in 1965. The program will feature a special performance by Grammy-nominated jazz songstress Samara Joy, a keynote address by the event’s honoree, Dr. Jelani Cobb, a recognition ceremony, and a post-show reception.

Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company (Photo by Anthony Alvarez)

Celebrate and welcome the New Year of the Water Rabbit at KCA with a colorful, spectacular program of dance, music, and more! The world renowned Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company is known for fusing American modern dance with the grace, splendor and discipline of Asian art. Come meet majestic dragons, elegant peacocks, stunning acrobats, twirling ribbons, bamboo instruments, and a new lion dance with a hip hop beat – all included in a thrilling program that’s designed to enthrall the entire family and honor the festive tradition.

The dance unwinds like an ancient Chinese painting on a scroll, one section at a time.

- The Star Ledger

Ira Glass is the creator, producer, and host of This American Life, the iconic weekly public radio program with millions of listeners around the world. Under his editorial direction, the show has been awarded the highest honors for broadcasting and journalistic excellence, including six Peabody Awards. In this unique live talk at KCA, Glass uses a mix of audio clips, music, and video to pull back the curtain on his process, life, and career as one of America’s foremost storytellers.

Ira Glass (Photo by Sandy Honig)

Matthew Whitaker… played like the second coming of Ray Charles. - CBS Sunday Morning

The Louis Armstrong House Museum & Archives holds one of the most significant Black archival collections in the world, and one of the most substantial of any jazz musician. Join this year’s Armstrong Now artists-in-residence drummer Ulysses Owens, Jr., pianist Matthew Whitaker, and dancer Alain Lauture, and their collaborators, for an inspiring evening of new and reimagined compositions and interpretations from the Armstrong canon.

Matthew Whitaker (Photo by Taylor Brandt)

LITERATURE TO LIFE: THE LATEHOMECOMER

FRI, MAY 5, 8 PM

LeFrak Concert Hall

Tickets: $15

MAY

5

The impossible happens every day in the life of the refugee. Minnesota writer Kao Kalia Yang captured that experience in her gripping memoir. Accomplished actress and traditional Flower Singer Gaosong Heu brings it to life in this moving stage production. Told with the immediacy of the author as a young girl, born in the Ban Vinai Refugee Camp in Thailand, the story follows her journey to a new land and a new life.

Gaosong Heu (Photo by Nara Garber)

bottom) Tlen Huicani, Ensamble Huasteco, Ballet Folklorico Mexicano de Nueva York, Mariachi Real De Mexico

QUEENS

BRAHMS’ REQUIEM MAY

Written with all humanity in mind, Brahms’s Requiem is truly a sublime work, transcending cultural boundaries through music that is majestic, uplifting and deeply moving. Come experience the beauty of one of the most beloved choral orchestral masterpieces of all time.

Johannes Brahms (Image by New York Public Library)

Martin Majkut (Photo by Christopher Briscoe)

Photo courtesy of artist

Join us for an unforgettable night of R&B classics as the multi-award winning En Vogue performs a set filled with top 10 hits that have helped the group sell more than 30 million records worldwide and crowned them one of Billboard’s top female groups of all time.

Legendary is a status very few groups ever attain, but for 30 years and counting, En Vogue has achieved this pinnacle on their talent and passion. And they are not letting up now. Still riding high off the global release of 2018’s Electric Café , their first album in 14 years, En Vogue continues to soar as Terry Ellis, Cindy Herron-Braggs, and Rhona Bennett take the group to even greater heights.

REVELATIONS SCHOOLTIME PERFORMANCES

For more than thirty years, our Revelations arts education program has showcased world-renowned music, dance, and theater performances for students in grades PreK-12. Please join us in connecting students with powerful and joyful learning experiences through the arts.

Doktor Kaboom (photo by Martin Albert)

NAI-NI CHEN DANCE COMPANY: CELEBRATING THE LUNAR NEW YEAR

MON, FEB 6 & TUE, FEB 7 (SOLD OUT) FEB

FROM CUBOP TO HIP-HOP! THE HISTORY OF AFRO LATIN MUSIC IN NYC

THU, FEB 16, 10:30 AM

MAD RIVER THEATER WORKS: FREEDOM FLIGHT

TUE, MAR 7, 10:30 AM

5,10:30

TAIKOZA

10:30 AM

WED, MAY 10, 10:30 AM

Taikoza

by

Greenfield)

JUN 3

QUEENS RISING 2023 KICK-OFF AT QUEENS NIGHT MARKET

SAT, JUN 3, 5 PM

Celebrating the best of Queens arts and culture with special performance and activities throughout the evening.

QUEENS RISING AT THE GANTRIES

SAT, JUN 10, 3 PM

Join us in a free day of outdoor music and dance at Gantry Plaza State Park in Long Island City.

Gantry Plaza State Park

QUEENS COLLEGE SCHOOL OF ARTS

Newly launched in 2022, the Queens College School of Arts aims to form a new generation of arts leaders and practitioners through a rigorous yet nourishing learning environment, innovative collaboration between artists, and thorough action toward diversifying and increasing inclusivity in the production and appreciation of art.

GODWIN-TERNBACH MUSEUM

THE

GIFT:

QUEENS COLLEGE COLLECTS

THU, FEB 23 – THU, JUN 29 Klapper Hall 405

This initiative of Queens College School of Arts will highlight the richness of the Queens College holdings brought together for the first time, including works from the Godwin-Ternbach Museum, Queens College Fashion and Textiles Collection, Art Department, Queens College Library, Louis Armstrong House Museum, and Daghlian Collection. Free admission.

Queens College Fashion and Textiles Collection | (right) Mr. Burns

DEPARTMENT OF DRAMA, THEATRE & DANCE

TRACES

MAR 9 – 19

THU – SAT at 7 PM; SUN at 3 PM Goldstein Theatre Tickets: $5 - $15

Traces is a new documentary theater piece commissioned by Queens College and created by What Will the Neighbors Say? It is a story about the lives lived in one small apartment in Queens, on a block built at the turn of the 20th century.

MR. BURNS: A POST-ELECTRIC PLAY

APR 20 – 30

THU – SAT at 7 PM; SUN at 3 PM Goldstein Theatre Tickets: $5 - $15

Anne Washburn’s award-winning play explores the craft of storytelling, and what remains when everything we know is gone, through the lens of America’s favorite family—the Simpsons.

STUDENT CHOREOGRAPHY SHOWCASE

MAY 10 – 14

WED – SAT at 7 PM; SUN at 3 PM The Performance Space at M – 11

Tickets: $5 - $10

AARON COPLAND SCHOOL OF MUSIC

The Aaron Copland School of Music (ACSM) is one of the most prestigious and active music schools in any public university system in the country. ACSM presents concerts by its faculty, students, and ensembles, including recitals, orchestra, choir, ensembles, new music, early music concerts, and opera productions.

QUEENS COLLEGE ORCHESTRA

MON, FEB 27, 12:15 PM

MON, APR 4, 12:15 PM

QC OPERA

STUDIO PRESENTS:

THE TURN OF THE SCREW –BENJAMIN BRITTEN

MAR 16 – 19

THU – SAT at 7:30 PM; SUN at 3 PM

QUEENS COLLEGE WIND ENSEMBLE

THU, MAY 4, 7:30 PM

Learn more at qcpages.qc.cuny.edu/music/

Queens College Orchestra

LOUIS ARMSTRONG HOUSE MUSEUM

It’s a wonderful world at the Louis Armstrong House Museum. The house on 107th Street in Corona, Queens is a gem frozen in time, as if the Armstrongs have just stepped out. The museum offers guided tours to visitors from around the world and features a variety of programs, including concerts, lectures, and seminars.

Learn more at louisarmstronghouse.org

Photo by Louis Armstrong House Museum

RENT

PLAN YOUR VISIT TODAY!

Ulysses Owens Jr. (Photo by Felicia Bass)

HOW TO ORDER TICKETS

KupferbergCenter.org or (718) 793–8080

Box Office Hours: TUE-FRI, 12-6 PM & SAT, 12-4 PM In-person tickets are available at the door beginning 1 hour prior to performances. Fees may apply.

DISCOUNT OFFERS

NEW! 50% OFF for Queens College Students! Various discounts available for groups, students, seniors, first responders, healthcare workers, and Queens College staff and faculty members. For more information, contact our Box Office or visit kupferbergcenter.org/box-office.

CONVENIENT LOCATION & FREE PARKING

All KCA event venues are located on the Queens College campus at the corner of the Long Island Expressway and Kissena Blvd. in Flushing. Parking lots are conveniently located directly across from the pedestrian entrance, between Reeves Avenue and the Horace Harding Expwy.

COVID-19 POLICY

For the most recent and up-to-date COVID-19 policy for audiences, please visit our website or contact our box office.

2022-2023 SEASON SPONSORS

Kupferberg Center for the Arts’ 2022-2023 Season is sponsored by New York Community Bank - A Division of Flagstar Bank, N.A. Major support is provided by the Max and Selma Kupferberg Family Foundation, the Kupferberg Foundation, and the Howard Gilman Foundation. Additional funding is provided by Resorts World NYC. Kupferberg Center’s presenting and outreach programs are supported, in part, by public funds from the NYC Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the NY City Council.