WHAT’S HAPPENING 

#jcalPOPUP

classes
ONLINE

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#JCALonline

To help you and your families stay active and creative, we are offering #jcalPOPUPclasses online throughout the month of April. These programs are geared towards school-aged audiences but are made with all age groups in mind. Visit our Youtube page every week to participate.

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Weekly Schedule (Starting April 4th)

Saturdays @11am - STEM with special guests from The Mentor Project

Saturdays @ 1pm - MUSIC with Karina Parker

Tuesdays @4pm - DANCE with Janora Blackman

Wednesdays @4pm - ART with Anthony Carter

Thursdays @4pm - STEM with special guests from The Mentor Project

Fridays @4pm - DRAMA with Caroline Gombe

2019-2020
DANCE SEASON

#JCALonline

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While the regularly scheduled Dance Season has been postponed, JCAL Resident Artist Monstah Black is gracing the public with virtual performances in Back in the Closet w/ Monstah Black, a series co-presented by JCAL. Streamed from inside his closet-turned-studio, the series gives the viewer insight into how Monstah pieces together work from throughout his career. He will experiment with materials in preparation for his upcoming gallery exhibit, “The Lewk,” and “Extravaganza” performances at JCAL. Join us via Facebook Live Stream, Thursdays @7PM.

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April 9: Cotton

April 16th: Hyperbolic (The Last Spectacle) 

April 23rd: Submerged In Blue 

April 30th: This 

May 7th: Gatekeeper

2nd
THURSDAY NIGHT JAZZ

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#JCALonline

October 2019 - June 2020, 8PM [TUNE IN ON YOUTUBE!]
Jamaica Arts Center. 161-04 Jamaica Avenue 

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The 2019-2020 season series features some of today’s finest international emerging jazz musicians. Opening gig in October is the three-time Grammy Award winner Tivon Pennicott, with season include the best vocalist from Cuba Melvis Santa; the new Avant-garde voice Anna Webber; rising start drummer Jeremy Dutton; amazing improviser and pianist Luis Perdomo; Latvian singer Arta Jekabsone; Jamaican trumpet Giveton Gelin; vibraphonists Chris Dingman; and Thana Alexa, a Croatian jazz singer.

FRIDAY NIGHTS

@JAC

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#JCALonline

Friday Nights @JAC is an incubator series for creative individuals and emerging artists who need a stage to perform to new audiences. Artists of all disciplines are welcome to submit proposals of works-in-progress to be refined at Jamaica Arts Center (JAC) and performed in front of a live audience.
 

The next performance, featuring saxophonist Ashley Keiko, will be live streamed on our Youtube page on Friday, April 24th at 8PM. Join us!

All programs take place at 8PM and are FREE to the public
This series is supported by Councilman I. Daneek Miller, Dist. 27.

SCHOOL OF THE ARTS

SPRING SEMESTER

March 7 - June 6, 2020

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Saturdays at JCAL are days for exploring one’s creative side. JCAL’s School of the Arts offers weekly hour-long classes on everything from ceramics to Hip Hop dance to comic book creation to acting, singing, and so much more. Kids, teens, adults, and seniors all have options to hone their skills and have fun with dance, music, theater, digital arts, and visual arts.  

BUILDING EQUITY PROJECT

SPECIAL EVENTS

April 23 & 24, 7:30PM @JAC

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JCAL and Flamenco Latino co-present the Flamenco Latino 2020 Más Allá Series, an innovative project that combines flamenco and tap dance with music from Black America and the Caribbean. The culminating performances at the Jamaica Arts Center will featuring the premiere of Aurora Reyes' choreography, "Hand Me Down My Walking Cane." Click "Learn More" to see the full schedule of events.

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This program is part of JCAL's Building Equity Project, funded by the New York Community Trust. This program is also made possible in part by the Queens Library and Queens Council on the Arts.

SATURDAY FAMILY MATINEES

October 2019 - June 2020

Saturday 2:00 PM
$5 for all

The Saturday Family Matinee Series provides the family with much-needed quality theatrical and musical experiences. The series aims to introduce young kids to the magic of live performance with shows suitable for the whole family.  

JAMAICA FLUX

OPEN CALL

DEADLINE EXTENDED TO 

APRIL 30, 2020

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Not confined by gallery walls, Jamaica Flux is a contemporary public art project in which visual and performance art are displayed at a variety of locations along Jamaica Avenue. 

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Artist submissions for Jamaica Flux 2021 are now being accepted through April 30th.

2020 SOUTHEAST QUEENS BIENNIAL

February 14 - TBA [building closed]

Closing Reception: POSTPONED

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The second Southeast Queens Biennial will be a nine-week group exhibition at the York College Fine Arts Gallery and the Miller Gallery at the Jamaica Arts Center. Ten Queens-based artists address literacy, identity, and environment with work that investigates how their creative practice contributes to the life of the borough.

THE 'LEWK'

May 7 - June 8, 2020

Opening Reception: May 7, 7PM

Finale Performance: May 30, 8PM

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The 'Lewk' is an exhibition of The Illustrious Blacks' fashion, inspired by the ‘60’s onward. Along with the finale performance, it is a culminating presentation of Monstah's year-long "Peak Moments" residency at JCAL.

QUEER CARIBBEANS OF NYC | STONEWALL 50

June 19–August 1, 2020

Opening Reception: June 19, 6PM

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The first-ever multimedia historical retrospective, showcasing the racial and cultural intersections of Caribbean LGBTQ rights activists. The exhibition contributes to NYC's immigrant history by expanding on Caribbean immigrant and first-generation Caribbean-American experiences through exploring queer, trans-gender, and gender non-conforming advocacy.

THE TRANSIT SERIES

PAST EXHIBITION

February 1-29, 2020 

Artist Reception: Feb 14, 6-9PM

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The Transit Series is an exhibition of paintings by John Smith exploring the artist's daily experiences of subway and bus subculture: "It’s a microcosm of society.... Even when we don’t want to, we are forced to interact with one another."