FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM APRIL 23, 2020 • BUZZ • THE QUEENS COURIER 25
buzz
As its doors remain closed, Queens
Theatre shifts to online programming
BY QNS STAFF
editorial@qns.com
@QNS
Finding new ways to engage the public
in the arts in the wake of the coronavirus
crisis, Queens Th eatre announced new
online programming designed to provide
entertainment, instruction and connection
USTA CEO: US Open still on for August
BY JOE PANTORNO
editorial@qns.com
@QNS
For now, the U.S. Open is still a go for
its Aug. 24 start this summer, USTA CEO
Mike Dowse told the media on a conference
call on Th ursday, April 16.
Dowse noted that he is working closely
with medical professionals and a small
advisory group to monitor the coronavirus
pandemic and make a proper call
on the viability of playing out the tournament
in the coming months.
An offi cial announcement for the major
tennis tournament hosted in Queens is
expected to come in June.
“Time is on our side at this point,”
Dowse added. Th e U.S. Open is usually
the last Grand Slam tournament on a professional
tennis’ schedule each year, but
the outbreak of COVID-19 has dramatically
altered the sports’ landscape in 2020.
On April 1, Wimbledon was canceled
for the fi rst time since World War II while
the French Open was pushed back from a
May 24 start, to Sept. 20.
Th e 2020 Australia Open was completed
just before the outbreak, running
from Jan. 20 to Feb. 2. Novak Djokovic
and Naomi Osaka won the singles tournaments.
While the fate of this year’s U.S. Open
remains up in the air, the tournament’s
home at the Billie Jean King National
Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows
has been transformed as centers to help
New York combat the spread of coronavirus.
An indoor training area has been converted
into a 350-bed medical facility
while the 14,000-seat Louis Armstrong
was made into a commissary in which
25,000 meals will be prepared daily for
medical patients and healthcare workers
along with schoolchildren.
Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
Louis Armstrong Stadium at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.
during an otherwise bleak time.
“During this unprecedented moment
in our nation’s and city’s history, cultural
institutions may be temporarily closed,
but we all remain committed to providing
our communities with opportunities
to discover and enjoy the arts,” said Taryn
Sacramone, the theater’s executive director.
“Queens Th eatre is no exception.”
Th e Flushing Meadows Corona Parkbased
cultural center will broadcast previously
recorded performances online, hold
Zoom workshops for school teachers and
off er programs for people at seniors centers.
Additionally, the theater announced
two ongoing workshops aimed at fostering
connection and learning.
On Fridays at 1 p.m., Queens Th eatre
will host Digital Story Circles, during
which 20 participants will answer rapid
fi re prompts, including questions
about what we’ve been eating or watching
during quarantine.
Additionally, each Wednesday at 1
p.m., Queens Th eatre will host the Maker
Series, a program that off ers step-by-step
instructions to learn some basic cooking,
baking and craft ing techniques with common
household items and ingredients.
Beginning on April 22, participants will
learn how to make no-knead bread. In the
coming month, participants will be off ered
lessons on how to make French citrus cake,
fl our tortillas and garbage cookies.
“In both of these series, we are providing
opportunities to connect with others,
to share stories, to off er ideas, and also to
have some fun,” Sacramone said. “Even
as we socially distance ourselves, Queens
Th eatre wants to be in your living room,
in your kitchen and in your heart.”
Both the Maker Series and Digital Story
Circles will be limited to the fi rst 20 participants.
Queens Th eatre’s online programming
is made possible by a new grant from
NYC’s COVID-19 Response and Impact
Fund in the New York Community Trust.
To reserve a spot in either workshop or
to donate to the theatre, head to queenstheatre.
org.
File photo.
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