FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM JUNE 6, 2019 • THE QUEENS COURIER 47
Over the course of the next decade,
Shulman allocated $8 million toward full,
gut renovations, which eventually transformed
the building into the beautiful
cultural facility it is today. We proudly
offer the public a state-of-the-art 308-seat
theater, an art gallery, garden, administrative
offices, and gift shop.
Architect Howard Graf, who became
FCCA board president in 1992, supervised
the renovations, along with Peter
Calvacca. In 1996, due to the efforts
of Jones and Shulman, Flushing Town
Hall was one of the last organizations to
be added to New York City’s “Cultural
Institutions Group” (CIG).
The “Jazz Live” series, begun in 1993,
put Flushing Town Hall (FTH) on the
map. Clarence “CB” Bullard, a former
Atlantic Records executive on FCCA’s
board, and Cobi Narita, director of the
Universal Jazz Coalition, worked with
Jo-Ann Jones to bring the biggest names
in Jazz to Flushing Town Hall, including
artists such as Abbey Lincoln, Clark
Terry, Jimmy Heath, Lou Donaldson,
Junior Mance, Valerie Capers, Ron
Carter, Papo Vazquez, Max Roach, and
Chico O’Farrill.
After CB passed away in 1997, his
son Clyde Bullard took over as Flushing
Town Hall’s jazz producer and curator.
In 1998 FTH produced the Queens Jazz
Trail, highlighting the rich history of Jazz
artists who lived in Queens. In 2008,
under the direction of NEA Jazz Master
Jimmy Heath, FTH created the Queens
Jazz Orchestra.
The inclusive, multi-cultural approach
started by Jo-Ann Jones continues to
be the hallmark of FTH even after she
retired in 2003 (and died in 2005), in
part thanks to the many relationships
Jones had built in the community. She
brought in an Asian arts specialist, Dr.
Hsing-Lih Chou, a native of Taiwan
and an expert in numerous disciplines
including calligraphy, music, and dance,
who, with his rich community connections
helped to expand the reach into the
growing Chinese-speaking populations
of Flushing. The partnerships FCCA cultivated
with other Queens arts organizations
continues to this day, and FTH
joined the Smithsonian Institution as an
affiliate in 2004.
*****
Queens and Flushing have continued to
change rapidly in the last several decades,
with new immigrants from all over the
Philippine Dancers at the 1986 Queens Festival at FMC Park
CB Bullard & Lou Donaldson
Flushing Town Hall with Cherry Blossoms Global Mashup featuring Falu & Hazmat Modine
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