What’s on stage this season

Live shows of all kinds await

by Mark Lord

Chronicle Contributor

It would be hard to dispute the borough’s claim as the most diverse place on Earth — both when it comes to its population and, as it’s shaping up once again for the fall, in the varied forms of entertainment available now through the end of the year.

The last out-of-doors attraction presented by Queensborough Performing Arts Center before its newly renovated theater reopens in February is “The Movin’ Out Band,” a tribute to Billy Joel that will take place at Fort Totten Park on Sept. 18 at 5 p.m.

It stars Wade Preston as the Piano Man himself, a role he played on Broadway during the long run of the musical “Movin’ Out.” Of course, audiences can expect him to perform many time-honored Joel favorites. The event is free, and attendees are advised to bring their own chairs.

Fort Totten is located at Totten Avenue and 15th Road in Bayside.

As for the theater’s reopening, it will happen on Feb. 4, with “The MJ Experience,” which preserves the legacy of pop icon Michael Jackson.

And that’s just for starters. QPAC’s executive and artistic director, Susan Agin, promises, “Boy, do we have a lot of exciting programs.”

More: Visit qpac.qcc.cuny.edu or call (718) 631-6311.

Kupferberg Center for the Arts, on the Queens College campus, has top salsa performer Victor Manuelle making a return concert appearance at Colden Auditorium on Oct. 22 at 8 p.m. Tickets are $59 to $109.

A couple of weeks later, on Nov. 6 at 3 p.m., the venue will offer “Dia de Los Muertos” (“Day of the Dead”), billed as a bilingual, family-friendly, interactive multimedia performance, interweaving traditional Mexican music and dance with stories, myths and legends of Mexico’s ancestors. Tickets: $15.

Colden is located at 153-49 Reeves Ave., Flushing.

More: Visit kupferbergcenter.org or call (718) 793-8080.

Queens Theatre, located indoors in Flushing Meadows Corona Park, has an unusually packed calendar, including the Queensboro Dance Festival, its season finale weekend taking place Sept. 30 to Oct. 2. It will feature 26 Queens-based professional companies over the three days, offering diverse dance cultures and techniques, ranging from tap and hula to ballroom and hip-hop.

Performances begin on Sept. 30 and Oct. 1 at 7:30 p.m. and on Oct. 2 at 5 p.m.

Tickets: $25 each performance or all three for $60.

The Acting Company takes up residence at the theater with its version of “The Three Musketeers,” based on the novel by Alexandre Dumas, on Oct. 13 at 7:30 p.m., Oct. 15 at 8 p.m. and Oct. 16 at 3 p.m., marking this production’s first public performance. According to advance word, the adaptation will “shed new light on this swashbuckling adventure,” serving as a “reminder that courage, honesty and valor can change the world.” The same company’s production of Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet” is scheduled for Oct. 14 at 8 p.m. Tickets for each show are $25 to $35.

Classical Kids Fair, a music festival featuring performances, radio and dance workshops and more, is a free event that will happen on Oct. 23 from 1 to 4 p.m.

Parsons Dance, a troupe known for its energized, athletic and joyous style of contemporary American dance, takes center stage on Oct. 29 at 2 and 8 p.m. Tickets are $25 to $35.

“In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson,” a play adapted from a novel by Bette Bao Lord, comes via the Honolulu Theatre for Youth, a group founded in 1955 to serve young people, families and educators across the Hawaiian islands. Based on memories of Lord’s immigration to the United States, the play is told through humor and a multimedia staging, celebrating those who bring new perspectives to this country.

Performances are on Nov. 13 at 1 and 3 p.m. Tickets: $18.

Queens Theatre is located at 14 United Nations Ave. South.

More: Visit queenstheatre.org.

The Secret Theatre, operating out of its new home base in Woodside, kicks off another season of its long-running attraction “Pirate Pete’s Parrot,” featuring original cast members Richard Mazda and Rick Benson, who have been with the show since its premiere in 2005.

An homage to English Panto, a type of theatrical spectacle popular in England, the show follows the story of Pirate Pete, who needs to find some treasure in order to keep him and his family from being evicted by landlord Baron Bigbutt.

“It’s a tossup as to who is laughing more, the kids and parents in the audience or the actors,” Mazda said.

Performances take place the second Saturday of each month. Tickets are $20 for adults 16 and up; and $12.50 for children 3 and up.

More: Visit secrettheatre.com.

A new company making its debut at the Secret is “Shakespeare On the Fly,” described by producer/performer Carolyne Gallo as “spontaneous, unrehearsed Shakespeare, performed in Bare Bard style and exploring contemporary issues.”

The troupe will offer its version of “Much Ado About Nothing,” which, according to a release from the company, allows us “to laugh at ourselves and our implicit biases.”

According to Gallo, the aim of the company is to focus on the power of the text by keeping costumes and props to a minimum. The troupe’s director, David Demke, will direct this production, as well.

Performances are on Oct. 28 and 29 at 7 p.m., Oct. 30 at 2 p.m., and Nov. 3, 4 and 5 at 7 p.m. Tickets are $30. To order, visit gumshoemurder mystery.com/much-ado-about-nothing. Include promo code “hero” for $10 off.

More: (646) 820-7751.

Also coming to the Secret is another relatively new company, City Gate Productions, which made its debut in 2021.

While the dates for its latest endeavor are set (Oct. 14, 15, 21 and 22 at 8 p.m. and Oct. 16 and 23 at 3 p.m.), the final selection of a play is to be determined. Tickets will be priced at $20.

But Thom Harmon, who will direct the piece, promises it will be in keeping with the company’s commitment to “challenge the mind, inspire the heart, and reflect the diversity of the borough.”

More: Visit citygateproductions.org.

The Secret Theatre is located at 38-01 61 St.

Historic Flushing Town Hall presents New York Classical Players: Stella Plays Mozart on

“Dia de Los Muertos,” or “Day of the Dead,” is a bilingual, interactive performance interweaving Mexican music and dance with stories, myths and legends. PHOTO BY CHRISTOPHER DUGGAN

Sept. 11 at 2 p.m. Tickets are free with online RSVP. The Honey Dewdrops, an experimental folk band, will offer a concert on Sept. 16 at 8 p.m., preceded by a harmony singing workshop at 7 p.m. Tickets are $18. Sept. 23 brings An Evening of Music with Queens native and jazz fusion drummer Lenny White & Friends at 8 p.m. Tickets: $40. The Louis Armstrong Legacy Monthly Jazz Jam sessions continue on Sept. 14 at 7 p.m., with the house band and jam sessions led by Carol Sudhalter. The jams are open to professional jazz musicians, graduate

Taking students studying jazz, music educators and serious center stage hobbyists, as well as audiences of music enthusiasts. Tickets are $10, but it is free to join in with the band. Town Hall is located at 137-35 Northern Blvd. in Flushing. More: Visit flushingtownhall.org or call (718) 463-7700. The Thalia Spanish Theatre presents the bilingual world premiere of “Life Lessons,” a dramedy by Spanish playwright Eduardo Galan, under the direction of Angel Gil Orrios. The play, centering around a cultivated teacher and an uneducated fishmonger who engage in a duel of personalities, will be performed by two alternating casts. Performances in English will take place on Friday nights at 8 p.m. and Saturday matinees at 3 p.m. Spanish versions will be on Saturday evenings at 8 p.m. and Sunday matinees at 4 p.m. The show runs Sept. 9 to Oct. 12. Tickets are $35; or $32 for students and seniors. Next up will be a world premiere musical, “Christmas/Navidad in Colombia,” highlighting family traditions through music and dance. It will run Nov. 11 to Dec. 11. The Thalia is located at 41-17 Greenpoint Ave., Sunnyside. More: Visit thaliatheatre.org or call (718) 729-3880. Q