42 THE QUEENS COURIER • SUMMER IN THE BORO • MAY 24, 2018 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
summer in the boro
Photo via Flickr/ Anirudh Koul
Kool & The Gang and other big artists to
perform at Queens parks for free this summer
BY ANGELA MATUA
CityParks Foundation has just
announced its SummerStage 2018 lineup
where more than 100 performances
will take place throughout public parkland,
including many in Queens.
Queens residents will be treated to
indie-rock, hip-hop, Latin, jazz, R&B,
salsa, opera, contemporary dance and
spoken word performances in June
and July. SummerStage will also focus
on bringing international artists to
neighborhoods where immigrant communities
from the musician’s home
live.
In collaboration with the Alvin Ailey
American Dance Theater, Queens residents
will also be able to participate in
free and open to all levels dance workshops
from Ailey instructors. They will
teach participants choreography from
the company’s signature work.
VOICES, a non-profit arts, education
and social justice organization
founded by Howard Zinn and Anthony
Arnove, will invite contemporary artists
and authors to discuss “rebels,dissenters
and visionaries” from the past
and present to “educate and inspire a
new generation working for social justice,”
according to a press release.
“At CityParks Foundation our mission
is to invigorate communities through
high-quality, dynamic programming
in neighborhoods across the fi ve boroughs,
and this year’s SummerStage
lineup is most certainly that,”said Erika
Elliott, executive artistic director of City
Parks Foundation. “Th is season’s lineup
brings together an immensely talented
and diverse mix of performers who
are representative of the cultural mosaic
that is New York City, and whose artistry
will turn the city’s neighborhood parks
into places of community conversation
and celebration all summer long.”
Th e fi rst performance will take place at
Flushing Meadows Corona Park as part
of the Only in Queens SummerStage
Concert. Kool & Th e Gang, a New
Jersey-based band that formed in 1964,
will kick off the slate of events in Queens
this summer. Some of their most popular
songs include “Jungle Boogie” and
“Hollywood Swinging.”
On June 29, members of the
Metropolitan Opera will perform a
summer recital at Socrates Sculpture
Park in Long Island City at 7 p.m.
Members who will perform include
Gerard Schneider, Gabriella Reyes de
Ramírez and hyAdrian Timpau.
Springfield Park in Springfield
Gardens will host three shows on July 5,
6, 7 and 8. On Th ursday, SummerStage
will collaborate with the Afro-Latino
Festival to bring RAM, Paul Beauburn
and DJ Hard Hittin Harry at 7 p.m.
On Friday, Th e Legendary Ladies of
Skyy will perform aft er a dance party
hosted by Rhythm Revue and Felix
Hernandez warms up the crowd. On
Saturday at 4 p.m., Kranium, Federation
Sound and DJ Polish will perform and
on Sunday, EPMD and DJ Syllk will
close out the four-day event.
In Queensbridge Park, SummerStage
will partner with the Latin Alternative
Music Conference to bring Systema
Solar and Very Be Careful to the park
in Long Island City starting at 7 p.m.
on July 12.
Th e Calpulli Mexican Dance Company
will perform at the park on July 13 at 7
p.m. while a show at the park on July 15
at 4 p.m. will be jam packed with hiphop
legends Jungle Brothers, O.C., Kool
DJ Red Alert, DJ Kool Flash and more.
Workshops at Queens parks will begin
in July with a freestyle dance workshop
taking place at Queensbridge Park on
July 6 at 6 p.m. at Springfi eld Park.
Th e CityParks Puppet Mobile will perform
“Th e Big Good Wolf” at Springfi eld
Park on July 7 at 4 p.m. Th ey will perform
the same play at Queensbridge
Park on July 14 at 4 p.m.
Alvin Ailey’s Revelations Celebration
Community Workshop will take place
at Queensbridge Park on July 13 at 7
p.m.
Voices Of A People’s History featuring
Dres, a rapper who grew up in
the Astoria Houses, will take place at
Queensbridge Park on July 15 at 4 p.m.
For a full list of events, visit the
CityParks Foundation website.