Local Events in and around Long Island City: May 19th – 24th

Steve Blanco Trio, Bar Domaine a Vins, Tonight & Friday @ 9pm, LIC

Tuesday 5/19

• Bar Domaine hosts the local Steve Blanco Trio twice a week on Tuesday and Friday. 9p-midnight. 50-04 Vernon Blvd, LIC, 718.784.2350

• Artists test out new performances in Chocolate Factory‘s bi-monthly series, THROW, this time featuring new work by Ana Kielson, Sarah A.O. Rosner, and Antoinetta Vicario. After each experiment, guest curator Sarah Maxfield moderates an informal conversation between artist and audience. 7pm, FREE. 5-49 49th Ave, LIC, 718.482.7069

• Is this Astoria’s answer to the Taste of LIC? Dish du Jour Magazine presents their 8th annual food & wine tasting, The Cuisine of Queens & Beyond. Featuring over 50 tasting tables! 6-9pm, $65 at the door (cash only). Astoria World Manor, 25-22 Astoria Blvd, Astoria

Wednesday 5/20

• LICBDC hosts their Annual Real Estate Breakfast. Hear from leading experts about current developments in the NYC and LIC real estate markets. 8-10am, tickets are $35 for members & $45 for nonmembers, RSVP or register online. Waters Edge Restaurant, 44th Drive & East River, LIC, 718.482.0033

Thursday 5/21

• Manducatis Rustica is hosting live music from 7:30-10pm in the form of a jazz/funk band recreating classic old Italian songs. 46-33 Vernon Blvd, LIC, 718.937.1312

• Craig Stewart‘s exhibition opens at Dean Project in conjunction with Queens Council on the Arts. Opening reception coming up on May 29, 6-9pm. 45-43 21 St, LIC, 718.706.1462

Friday 5/22

• Bar Domaine hosts the local Steve Blanco Trio twice a week on Tuesday and Friday. 9p-midnight. 50-04 Vernon Blvd, LIC, 718.784.2350

Saturday 5/23

• Socrates Sculpture Park has launched their various weekend fitness programs from now until September. On Saturdays, you can check out Yoga in the Park from 9:30-10:30am (1st session) and 11am-12pm (2nd session), as well as Capoeira in the Park from 12-1:30pm. Both programs are rain or shine and run through September 19. FREE. 32-01 Vernon Blvd, LIC, 718.956.1819

• LIC gallery and performance space, Texas Firehouse, kicks off its successful Iron Pour-related events. Indeed, you heard right – a good ol’ fashioned iron pour right here in LIC. Begin with mold-making workshops ($50) from May 23-25, and “the pour” is May 30. Deadline to register is May 20. Everyone is welcome, email for more info. 36-29 Vernon Blvd, LIC

• Astoria’s Hell Gate Social presents DJ Belladonna and DJ Scandal’s monthly classic alternative party, SubKulture. These local DJs take turns spinning punk, new wave, goth, glam, rockabilly, metal, britpop and much more, with retro music videos and cult flicks playing on the walls. 10pm-4am, FREE. 12-21 Astoria Blvd (b/w 12th & 14th Sts), Astoria

• Roosevelt Island’s Gallery RIVAA presents an exhibition of contemporary photos, paintings, drawings, constructions and sculptures offering varied perspectives of the Queensboro Bridge, in celebration of the bridge’s 100th birthday. Running through June 28, FREE. An exhibition of photographs of Queensboro Bridge trolleys and trolley memorabilia is also on display at the nearby Visitor Center kiosk. 327 Main St, Roosevelt Island, 212.308.6630

Sunday 5/24

• Socrates Sculpture Park has launched their various weekend fitness programs from now until September. On Sundays, you can check out Pilates in the Park from 10-11am, as well as Tai Chi in the Park from 11am-12pm. Both programs are rain or shine and run through September 20. FREE. 32-01 Vernon Blvd, LIC, 718.956.1819

• In partnership with Long Island City Community Boathouse (LICCB) and Partnerships for Parks, Socrates Sculpture Park also hosts FREE boating in Hallets Cove run by LICCB. Participants are invited to kayak and canoe from Socrates Sculpture Park’s beach. Adults must accompany participants under 18 years old. For more info, check LICCB’s website or call 718. 228.9214. Through October 25.

Continuing

• Art-O-Mat L.I.C. presents Zeitgeist 2009, an exhibition of 10 artists. “The next generation of our culture is already here and is sending out complex and sometimes disturbing signals. This new spirit has yet to be defined and is rapidly changing and shaping the culture, politics, communications, the planet and us. ‘Zeitgeist 2009′ is a creative attempt to witness, understand and participate in this spirit of our time.” Running through May 31.

• Now Playing at Chocolate Factory: Target Margin Theater’s ‘The Theater of Tomorrow.’ Running through June 6. 7pm, $15. 5-49 49th Ave, LIC, 718.482.7069

• Socrates Sculpture Park‘s State Fair exhibition is “themed around American rural life and uses the platform of the state fair as a means to examine topics such as animal husbandry, specialized horticulture, small scale farming, culinary arts, and the pageantry within these fields that occurs at fairgrounds across the country.” Running through August 2. 32-01 Vernon Blvd, LIC, 718.956.1819

• Ber Murphy‘s LIC-themed photography exhibition ‘Sleeping Giant: 11101 Rezoned’ is showing at the Art Gallery at FXFOWLE Architects. Running through June 9. 22 W. 19 St, 11th FL, NYC, 212.627.1700

Beyond

The 4th Annual Taste of LIC, June 9th

• Fourth Annual Taste of LIC, June 9th, 6:30pm, Gantry Park. “Join us on the waterfront to celebrate Long Island City’s best food & drink venues, shops, spas and more as we raise funds for The Chocolate Factory Theater’s year-round cultural programming.”

• Queens Council on the Arts presents Queens Art Express, a multi-day multi-venue art extravaganza that will take place on three weekends in Spring 2009 (May 30 through June 14). The QAE will feature exhibitions, performances, and special events clustered around the 7 train.

• Over 150 artists at multiple studio complexes open their studios to the public in conjunction with borough-wide Centennial Celebrations during the LIC Artists (LICA) organization’s Open Studios, over the weekend of May 30-31, 1-6pm.

As always, feel free to add more local events in the comments. Cheers