Outdoor activities continue around the borough with the addition of kayaking, a foam party, opera, and found-object art this week. Stay indoors for storytelling and Bastille Day fun. Please read on.
July 17, Summerstage: De La Soul, 6 pm. This Grammy-winning group offers a show with Pete Rock and DJ Hannibal Buress. The Fountain of Planets, east of the Unisphere, Flushing Meadows Corona Park.
July 17, Summer Fridays, 4:30 pm. After-hours access to the Science Playground and a foam party. A specialized cannon transforms the area into a landscape of light, fluffy foam. New York Hall of Science, 47-01 111th St., Flushing Meadows Corona Park.
July 18, Queens Day Festival, 10 am. Countless free activities, including dance, rowing, Zumba, tennis, skating, and music by DJ Rekha. Flushing Meadows Corona Park.
July 18, Let’s Get Moving, 10:30 am. Treehouse Shakers presents this immersive young-audience show that combines folklore, music, and the magic of soccer. Storyteller Mara McEwin and percussionist Roderick Jackson weave together tales that celebrate teamwork, collaboration, and resilience. Flushing Town Hall, 137-35 Northern Blvd.
July 18, Mixed-Media with Harumi Ori, 11 am. Shape clay and gather found objects across the park to build mixed-media sculptures with an educator from The Noguchi Museum. Socrates Sculpture Park, 32-01 Vernon Blvd., Long Island City.
July 18, Kayaking, noon. LIC Community Boathouse offers free kayaking, weather permitting. No prior boating experience required; and equipment provided. Hallet’s Cove, vicinity of Vernon Boulevard and 31st Street, Long Island City.
July 18, Bastille Day Concert, 4 pm. French Jazz and the chance to meet artist Larceria Brown, who has an exhibition in the gallery. Maple Grove Cemetery, vicinity of 129th Street and Kew Gardens Road.
July 18, Hallet’s Cove in the American Revolution, 2 pm. A walking tour looking at the American Revolution and a side of Astoria that few people know. Repeats on July 26. Meet at the entrance of Socrates Sculpture Park at Broadway and Vernon Boulevard, Long Island City.
July 18, Independence Celebration, noon. Refreshments, crafts, outdoor games, guided tours, and historical readings. Bowne House, 37-01 Bowne St., Flushing.
July 18, Queens Dance Festival, 6 pm. Ah-Molla Dance Collective, Jatary Sunchy Danza y Proyección Escénica, Kofago Taraji, Cordillera Cultural Ensemble, Drye/Marinaro Dance Company, and Flamenco Latino. Gantry State Plaza Park, vicinity of Center Boulevard and Borden Avenue, Long Island City.
July 19, World Cup Finals, 3 pm. Watch the big game on large LED screens with activations and food in partnership with the Street Vendor Project. Steps of Queens Borough Hall, 120-55 Queens Blvd., Kew Gardens.
July 19, World Cup Finals, 3 pm. Watch the big game outside on a large screen and check out a new exhibition. MoMA PS1’s Courtyard, 22-25 Jackson Ave., Long Island City.
July 19, Free Final Match Watch Party, noon. Circus, music, food, face-painting, tabling, and the big game. LaGuardia Performing Arts Center, 45-50 Van Dam St., Long Island City.
July 19, Queens Get The Cup, 12:30 pm. A free World Cup viewing experience along with a community art activity. Jamaica Performing Arts Center, 153-10 Jamaica Ave.
July 19, World’s Fair Lecture & Presentation, 2 pm. Ruth D. Nelson discusses her history book Our Lady of the World’s Fair. Maple Grove Cemetery Celebration Hall, vicinity of 129th Street and Kew Gardens Road.
July 19, Bayside 5K, 9 am. Organized by Queens Distance Runners, this annual, two-loop run includes a trot through Crocheron Park and a post-race brunch at OSP Bayside. Meet at 41st Avenue and Bell Boulevard.
July 21, Insun Park & Generals, 7 pm. The Live at the Gantries Summer Concert Series continues with Insun Park & Generals, who fuse Korean traditional music and mask dance rhythms with contemporary music to create a bold, high-energy sound. Gantry Plaza State Park, vicinity of Center Boulevard and Borden Avenue, Long Island City.
July 21, Queens Dance Festival, 6 pm. Sheep Meadow Dance Theatre, Silvana Brizuela Weigel, Robert Mark Dance, Allpayana danza tradicional ecuatoriana, Caporales San Simon Cochabamba NY, and Drye/Marinaro Dance Company. Athens Square Park, 30th Street and 30th Avenue, Astoria.
July 22, Italian Nights 2026, 7 pm. Diane Marie Paunetto & Friends perform opera and Italian popular music, followed the McManus Irish Dance Group. Presented by Michael DeVito in loving memory of Felix DeVito. Athens Square Park, 30th Street and 30th Avenue, Astoria.
July 23, Queens Jazz Series, 7 pm. A night with Grammy-winning Afro-Latin Jazz pianist and bandleader Arturo O’Farrill. Forest Park Bandshell.
July 23, Epicenter Book Club, 6:30 pm. India-born writer Megha Majumdar discusses A Guardian and a Thief, which tells the story of Ma’s frantic search for a thief while keeping hunger at bay; and the story of Boomba, a thief, whose desperation to care for his family drives him to commit a series of escalating crimes. The World’s Borough Bookshop, 34-06 73rd St., Jackson Heights.
July 23, COVERS: Korean Diaspora, 6 pm. An evening of music, memory, and intergenerational storytelling centered around art that carried Korean communities as they built new homes across the Diaspora. Culture Lab LIC, 5-25 46th Ave., Long Island City.