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International Animation Spectacular!
Show Description
What do a singing fish, a Navajo folk tale, unrequited love in Oaxaca, and a hot air balloon ride in Buenos Aires have in common? They all are animated films featured in The Queen’s Cartoonists International Animation Spectacular! TQC presents contemporary animated films from every (permanently inhabited) continent on the planet in a concert that runs the gamut of serious, funny, virtuosic, and stunningly beautiful. The films are a tribute to the diversity and depth of both the world of animation, and of the Earth’s culture itself, with an emphasis on women filmmakers and animators from underprivileged backgrounds. Accompanying the films is TQC’s usual brand of humor, musical technique, and on-stage mayhem. While still generally appropriate for all ages, this show contains a few very brief (animated) images that might be upsetting to delicate patrons.
Projections of animated films dazzle the audience, while the band re-creates original soundtracks note-for-note, or writes their own fresh compositions to modern pieces, all the while breathing new light into two uniquely American forms of art: jazz and animation. Tying everything together is the TQC brand of comedy - anecdotes about the cartoons and the composers, stream-of-consciousness humor, and elements of a musical circus.
Since their inception in 2015, the six musicians, hailing from four continents, all reside in Queens, New York, and are a uniquely creative part of the New York jazz scene. The band has presented their innovative concert experience to performing arts centers, clubs, and festivals all across North America and Europe. The Queen’s Cartoonists have opened for the New York Philharmonic and are the only artist in the 40-plus year history of the Blue Note Jazz Club in New York City to sell out multiple all-ages shows. The have been featured in over 50 publications, including The Wall Street Journal, The Chicago Tribune, NPR, and Mashable.
Recent highlights include collaborations with the National Film Board of Canada and Aardman Studios, bringing the beloved films of Wallace & Gromit and Shaun the Sheep to audiences at the Edinburgh Film Festival.
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