Photo credit: Flushing Town Hall
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Flushing Town Hall is ringing in the start of warmer weather, blending Latin and Caribbean rhythm with their latest Global Mashup, Brooklyn Worldwide Comes to Queens, featuring performances by the acclaimed Guachinangos and the masterful Shiva Lakhan.
The event, located at 137-35 Northern Blvd. Flushing is produced in partnership with Jalopy Theatre for a one-night-only event on Saturday, April 11, starting at 7 p.m., bringing Guachinangos’ playful blend of Colombian cumbia and Mexican son jarocho to the stage paired with Shiva Lakhan’s enchanting renditions of Trinidadian chutney, bhajans, and Indian classical songs.
“We can’t wait to shake off our winter blues to the vibrant sounds of son jarocho, cumbia, chutney and beyond,” said Ellen Kodadek, the executive and artistic director of Flushing Town Hall. “Global Mashups are the musical heartbeat of Flushing Town Hall, and this time around, we’re partnering with our friends at Brooklyn’s Jalopy Theatre for the best of what today’s folk music has to offer, while continuing to pay homage to the creative diversity of Queens.”
Next week’s global mashup at Flushing Town Hallphoto credit: Flushing Town Hall
Guachinangos brings traditional and electric instrumentation together to create what they call “folk fusion from another dimension,” delivering incredible energy that makes it nearly impossible for guests not to move, turning every performance into a dance party. Their electric performance will be followed by Shiva Lakhan, an award-winning artist from Trinidad and Tobago, a master of chutney, bhajans, and Indian classical music. With a career spanning decades, his accolades include winning Trinidad’s Mastana Bahar (1999), the International Chutney Soca Monarch title in the USA (2006), and the Trinidad Nationwide Independence Classical Competition (2019). After each act takes to the stage on their own, they’ll return together for a grand finale featuring a one-night-only musical mashup and improvised set.
The mashup itself is a collaboration between Flushing Town Hall and Brooklyn’s Jalopy Theatre the host of Brooklyn World Wide, a two-day festival of music and culture celebrating the diversity of New York City through dance music, workshops, and lectures, including music from all over the globe including Iraqi maqam, Georgian harmonies, Korean percussion, Haitian Folk, traditional Chinese music, Son Huasteca, Guinean Afro-Jazz, and more.
The event kicks off with a dance class at 7 p.m., giving audiences the opportunity to learn the foundational steps of cumbia and chutney before the music starts at 8 p.m. Tickets, which are on sale now, may be purchased through the website.