Jamaica Performing Arts Center
JAMAICA PERFORMING ARTS CENTER AND
JAMAICA CENTER FOR ARTS & LEARNING
Founded in 1972, Jamaica Center for Arts & Learning is the only
multidisciplinary arts center in Southeast Queens. The campus
begins at a five-story, 45,000-square-foot, neo-Renaissance
headquarters: a landmark 1890s building with two art galleries
and a 99-seat proscenium theater; two floors of studios for dance,
music, ceramics and animation; a digital art lab; and two more
floors of classrooms and offices.
Nearby, the Jamaica Performing Arts Center, a sister agency, is
a state-of-the-art, 400-seat theater that operates in a landmark
1858 Romanesque-revival building.
Inside scoop: JCAL’s venue was a First Dutch Reformed Church.
JPAC is the only Southeast Queens member of the historic
public-private partnership, the Cultural Institutions Group.
Address: 153-10 Jamaica Ave. for JPAC, 161-04 Jamaica Ave. for
JCAL, and www.jcal.org for both.
KNOCKDOWN CENTER
Cutting-edge, thought-provoking, button-pushing — Knockdown
Center is a huge arts space that aims to create a radically crossdisciplinary
environment with concerts, dance, exhibitions, panel
discussions, and just about everything else.
The 50,000-square-foot building with sky-high ceilings is
located in an industrial zone and a shuttle service runs there from
Brooklyn’s Bushwick. Big enough for several thousand patrons
at the same time, Knockdown Center also hosts occasional
weddings and flea markets.
58 QUEENS IN YOUR POCKET • www.its inqueens .com
/www.jcal.org
/www.its
/www.jcal.org
/www.its
