It’s In Queens! Events from April 24th to April 30th

Let’s dance… or let’s watch highly acclaimed, highly trained dance troupes, since a few are coming to Queens this week. There are also plenty of outdoor activities—hiking, biking, doing the luge, bird-watching, celebrating Earth Day—as well as the Osmond Brothers, comic Steve Solomon, and the borough’s premiere food-and-networking event, Queens Taste 2014. Here’s the rundown, broken down into music, dance, comedy, education, outdoors, arts and food events. If you have an event you’d like to see featured here, please email it to emily@brownstoner.com.

MUSIC
April 24, Tone and Color Concert, 1 pm. The Quintet of the Americas, a woodwind group widely known for its expertise in South American music, performs Latin jazz, tango and other genres. Free. Community Mediation Services, 89-64 163rd St., Jamaica, www.quintet.org.

April 27, The Osmond Brothers, 3 pm. The Osmond Brothers have been thrilling packed houses across the world for over five decades and still continue to wow crowds with their warm tones and comedy. Whether you love jazz, barbershop, rock, country, pop or something else, the Brothers present a knock-out performance of Osmond talent at its finest. $35. Queensborough Performing Arts Center, 222-05 56th Ave., Bayside, www.visitqpac.org.

DANCE
April 25, Pleading Against Prophecy, 8 pm. In-Sight Dance Company presents its third Millennial Ballet, an original dance work set to “Water in a Whale,” the debut album of critically acclaimed singer/songwriter Jillette Johnson. $15/$10 in advance. Jamaica Performing Arts Center, 153-10 Jamaica Ave., Jamaica, www.insightdance.org.

April 25-May 18, Calpulli Mexican Dance Company, times vary. This troupe pays tribute to the joys and soul of Mexico. The program includes the debut of Flores Chiapanecas (Flowers from Chiapas) with live marimba accompaniment. Fridays and Saturdays, 8 pm, and Sundays, 4 pm. $35/$32 for students and seniors/$30 on Fridays. Thalía Spanish Theatre, 41-17 Greenpoint Ave., Sunnyside, www.thaliatheatre.org.

April 26, Take Root, 8 pm. ClancyWorks Dance Company presents two works choreographed by Adrienne Clancy. Driven [by the female heartbeat] examines the roles women take on in the 21st century. Benchmarks celebrates the value of daily interactions and challenges by bringing the audience on a choreographic journey. Benches are continuously redesigned in different formations to refresh the stage visually and create new landscapes where various dramatic situations can unfold. $15. Green Space, 37-24 24th St., LIC, www.GreenSpaceStudio.org.

April 27, Fertile Ground, 7 pm. Now in its eighth season, this monthly showcase for emerging and established artists produces the work of more than 50 choreographers each year. This non-curated performance event features five-six choreographers each evening, and includes a post-performance discussion with wine and cheese, moderated by Artistic Director Valerie Green. $10. Green Space, 37-24 24th St., LIC, www.GreenSpaceStudio.org.

COMEDY
April 26, My Mother’s Italian, My Father’s Jewish, and I’m in Therapy, 2 pm and 8 pm (April 27 at 3 pm). Steve Solomon provides an evening of hysterical comedy with the voices about 30 hilarious characters and situations. $35/$25 for rear seating. Queens Theatre, 14 United Nations Ave. S., Flushing Meadows Corona Park, www.queenstheatre.org.

EDUCATION
April 26, Rufus King’s Reading in London: Using the History of Rome to Understand the French Revolution, 4 pm. A lecture by David J. Gary, the Kaplanoff Librarian for American History at Yale University, about Rufus King’s time as minister to Great Britain from 1799-1803. King read The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire and recorded excerpts from this book and others in two notebooks. In this lecture, Gary shows how an examination of these notebooks allows us to understand King’s fears, anxieties, and challenges as a statesman and diplomat. King Manor Museum, 150-03 Jamaica Ave., Jamaica, www.kingmanor.org.

OUTDOORS
April 26-27, USA Luge Slider Search, all day. An official, nationwide recruitment tour by USA Luge targeting ages 9-13. The goal is to identify young athletes for the USA Luge Junior Development Team. Free, and all participants receive a USA Luge tee shirt. Crocheron Park, vicinity of 214th Place, 214th Lane, 215th Place, Cross Island Parkway and 35th Avenue, Bayside. Sign up online at www.usaluge.org/search.

April 26, Bike and Hike Fort Tilden, 10 am to noon. Enjoy the sights of Fort Tilden on this two-mile biking and hiking trip with a park ranger. Bring water, sunscreen, bike and helmet, and dress for the weather. Free, but reservations are required, call 718-338-3799. Jacob Riis Park, Rockaway Beach.

April 26, NYC Audubon Spring Migration Bird Walk, 10 am to 1 pm. Take a three-mile hike around ponds and gardens with naturalist Don Riepe and identify Jamaica Bay’s spring migrants. Free, but contact Riepe at 718-474-0896 or donriepe@gmail.com to reserve a spot. Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge, Broad Channel.

April 26, Earth Day in Jamaica Bay, 10 am to 3 pm. Join the American Littoral Society, Jamaica Bay Ecowatchers and the Broad Channel Civic Association for a day of service in honor of Earth Day. Events include beach cleanups, plantings and an ecology walk in Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge. Free, but for more information email cathy@littoralsociety.org or call 718-474-0896, www.littoralsociety.org.

ARTS
April 24, Celebrate Queens 2014, 6 pm to 8:30 pm. Join the Queens Fellowship and our community partners for a night of networking, live entertainment, and celebrating young artists. All proceeds from the event support the One Queens grant for youth organizations in Queens. General tickets cost $20, kids cost $10. Flushing Town Hall, 137-35 Northern Boulevard, Flushing, www.onequeens.org.

April 25–May 11, King Lear, times vary. Queens-based Titan Theater Company concludes its critically acclaimed, award-winning second season with its take on Shakespeare’s intimate family drama about an aging king and his three daughters. Queens Theatre, 14 United Nations Ave. S., Flushing Meadows Corona Park, www.queenstheatre.org.

April 27, Glass Painting Workshop, noon. This class introduces the basics of glass painting: how to trace a design and coloring with transparent, water-based paints. $25 (materials fee). Bayside Historical Society, 208 Totten Ave., Bayside, www.baysidehistorical.org.

April 28, Art Show Opening, 5:30 pm to 8 pm (runs to June 21). Author, playwright, senator and artist Abdias Nascimento was a critical political figure in Brazil and a founding force for the South American country’s black movement. Queens College will exhibit 40 large-scale, brilliantly colored digital prints of Nascimento’s art based on the theme of the forces of nature and mediators between heaven and earth, humans and the gods. The opening includes a roundtable on Nascimento and African-based religions in the Americas. Free. Godwin-Ternbach Museum (open Monday through Thursday from 11 am to 7 pm; and Saturday from 11 am to 5 pm), 405 Klapper Hall, 65-30 Kissena Blvd., Flushing, www.qc.cuny.edu/godwin_ternbach.

FOOD
April 29, Queens Taste 2014, 6 pm to 9 pm. The borough’s premiere food-and-networking event with about 50 restaurants and beverage purveyors providing samples of their products. $100/$175 for two. Sheraton LaGuardia East Hotel, 135-20 39th Ave., Flushing, www.itsinqueens.com/queenstaste.

The “It’s In Queens” column is produced by the Queens Tourism Council with the hope that readers will enjoy the borough’s wonderful attractions. More info at www.itsinqueens.com.