Jazz And Dance Collide At Flushing Town Hall Global Mashup
By MOHAMED FARGHALY
mfarghaly@queensledger.com
Flushing Town Hall will merge ballroom swing and Afro-Latin mambo in a rare, one-night collaboration Feb. 7, pairing the George Gee Swing Orchestra with Arturo O’Farrill’s Afro-Latin Octet in a concert designed as both performance and dance party.
The event is part of the venue’s long-running Global Mashup series, known for bringing together artists from different traditions and inviting audiences to participate through dance. Organizers say the program builds on more than a decade of mashups that have drawn large crowds by blending cultures and genres in unexpected ways.
“This is a historic global mashup,” said Clyde Bullard, Flushing Town Hall’s producer-in-residence, who curated the concert. “The concept of global mashups is always having two bands, usually from different geographical locations. In this instance, we have two bands not from two different countries, but from two different musical genres. It’s ballroom dancing meets mambo.”
The evening begins with a dance lesson at 6:30 p.m. led by instructor Vanda Polakova, welcoming dancers of all experience levels. At 7 p.m., each ensemble will perform a set showcasing its signature style before joining for a collaborative finale that blends swing and Afro-Latin rhythms. Audience members are encouraged to use the open dance floor, though seating remains available for those who prefer to listen.
“Surprisingly enough, a lot of people come out for the dance lessons,” Bullard said. “They want to dance, and they want to understand something about these different cultural nuances in the music. If someone doesn’t want to dance, you can still just sit in the audience and enjoy the music, because the music itself will be beautiful.”
Bullard said the mashup reflects Flushing Town Hall’s mission to present music as a living cultural exchange. Authenticity, he said, is a guiding principle when selecting performers.
“We try to bring musicians to the stage that can bring an authenticity to what they’re performing,” he said. “They’re not just learning it and memorizing it. These are people who grew up in these traditions. Music is culture expressed through sound.”
O’Farrill, who leads the Afro-Latin Octet, is a multi-Grammy Award-winning pianist, composer and educator widely recognized as a leading voice in Afro-Latin jazz. DownBeat magazine has called him “one of our greatest living pianists.” Born in Mexico and raised in New York, O’Farrill began his career with the Carla Bley Band and later collaborated with artists including Dizzy Gillespie, Wynton Marsalis and Harry Belafonte.
His work blends Afro-Cuban roots with contemporary jazz composition. He won Grammy Awards in 2016 for Afro Latin Jazz Suite, in 2018 for Three Revolutions, and in 2023 for Fandango at the Wall in New York. His most recent album, Mundoagua, received a 2026 Grammy nomination. O’Farrill is also founder and artistic director of Belongó, formerly known as the Afro-Latin Jazz Alliance, an organization dedicated to preserving and expanding Afro-Latin jazz traditions.
Sharing the stage is the George Gee Swing Orchestra, led by Queens native George Gee, whose big band sound draws inspiration from classic swing masters such as Duke Ellington and Lionel Hampton. Gee traces his professional turning point to a 1979 meeting with Count Basie, after which he committed to forming his own orchestra.
After refining his ensemble in Pittsburgh, Gee returned to New York City in 2000. His orchestra has since become a cornerstone of the city’s swing scene, most notably through its long-running weekly residency at Swing 46 in Times Square. The group is known for preserving the energy of traditional big band dance music while introducing it to new generations of listeners and dancers.
The Feb. 7 concert will place roughly 16 to 20 musicians on stage, culminating in a joint performance Bullard described as a musical experiment shaped in real time.
“That’s going to produce an interesting concoction of music that we’ve never heard before,” he said.
Bullard, who joined Flushing Town Hall in 1998, said his role involves conceiving concert concepts and matching them with artists capable of bringing those ideas to life. The ballroom-and-mambo pairing emerged quickly once he began considering options for this season’s mashup.
“There’s no one better to call” for Afro-Latin mambo than O’Farrill, Bullard said, and “no one better” for ballroom swing than Gee and his orchestra. “Both of these gentlemen have been doing this music for years. It’s second nature to them.”
He hopes audiences leave with more than just an appreciation for the technical skill of the performers.
“They’re going to walk away with joy. They’re going to walk away with happiness,” Bullard said. “When you are encapsulated with music, you forget about your problems and enter into an imaginary world of sound and feeling.”
For those unable to attend in person, Bullard said the performance will be available through Flushing Town Hall’s Culture Stream platform, allowing viewers to watch online for a nominal fee.
“Flushing Town Hall is honored to provide a stage where these outstanding jazz artists can perform together for the first time, continuing our long and celebrated tradition of presenting great jazz in Queens,” says Ellen Kodadek, Executive and Artistic Director of Flushing Town Hall. “Our Global Mashups concert series provides once-in-a-lifetime opportunities to experience unique performance pairings between your favorite artists. There’s truly nothing else like it in all of New York City! Put on your dancing shoes and get ready to dance the night away and enjoy these two powerhouse bands!”
General admission is $30 for adults and $25 for members. 7 PM Dance Lessons with Vanda Polakova, 8 PM Performance. Tickets and additional information are available at the Flushing Town Hall website.
