Terrence
Howard and Phylicia Rashad in A Cat
on a Hot Tin Roof
Terrence
Howard, Phylicia Rashad, Anika Noni Rose, James Earl Jones, and
Giancarlo Esposito will play in the new production of Tennessee
Williams' Pulitzer Prize winning play Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
directed by multiple Emmy winner and two-time Tony nominee Debbie
Allen. Cat will begin
performances Tuesday, February 12, 2008 and
will open on Thursday, March 6, 2008. Tickets are on sale through
Sunday, April 13, 2008 at Broadway's Broadhurst Theatre.
Cat
has been revived on Broadway four times before. This production
marks the first African American production approved by Williams’
estate for the Broadway stage. This revival of Cat is not only making Broadway
history it is making American theater and Black theater history.
Hypocrisy,
greed and secret passions threaten to tear apart a wealthy but
dysfunctional Mississippi family in Williams' American
masterpiece. Cat portrays the
larger than life characters of Maggie "the Cat" (Anika Noni Rose), her
alcoholic husband, Brick (Terrence Howard), and the dominating family
patriarch, Big Daddy (James Earl Jones). Rashad plays opposite
James as Big Mama. Click
here for tickets or call (212) 239- 6200.
Color Purple's Associate Conductor
Release Debut CD
Victor Simonson
released his first CD: Victory!
Simonson embraces a
variety of music ranging from smooth jazz, classical, gospel, and organ
music to opera, acoustic jazz, and inspirational songs. "I have always
wanted to showcase a wide variety of music," said Simonson, who
currently serves as the Associate Conductor of Oprah Winfrey's national
production, The Color Purple.
"We live in a challenging and diverse society. It is fitting to offer
different sounds."
The Eastman trained baritone titled the self-produced thirteen track
project "Victory!" as a play
on words of his first name, but also as a hopeful triumph to help break
the mold of single focused music styles. In addition to his
degree in voice, he attended Howard University for piano and organ. He
also studied the trombone during his earlier years.
Concert-goers will see Simonson play the piano, conduct, sing, and play
the organ at CD release celebrations in early 2008 at New York City
area performances. Friday, Feb. 1
Memorial Presbyterian Church, 189 Babylon Turnpike, Roosevelt, NY at 7p. Saturday, Feb 2
Calvary Baptist Church, 11110 Guy R Brewer Blvd, Jamaica, NY at 7p. Sunday, Feb 3
Emmanuel Baptist Church, 279 Lafayette Ave, Brooklyn, NY - during
Sunday
morning services at 8a and 11a.
Concerts are free-to-the-public with a free will offering. Look
for future DC area concerts in upcoming releases of Snippets.
The just released
quarterly issue of Port of Harlem
explores the connection between our health, the environment and our
genetic make-up. In the cover story, Nigerian-born Dr.
Olufunmilayo Olopade discusses her award-winning breast cancer
research
that has changed the way doctors treat Black women with the disease at
home and abroad. The lead story also looks at BiDil, the first
drug the U.S. government has specifically approved for Blacks,
hypertension and race, and a new drug that uses genetic testing for
better HIV management. In addition, the 13-year-old
magazine includes its regular departments including Money Talks,
Travel, Health, Book Review, Recipe, and Entertainment.
Here are some bytes from the current issue:
Healing the
Body: Laying on of Hands - “The laying on of hands
is an ancient healing ritual. In recent years it has been
exemplified in a technique called Therapeutic Touch,” writes Dr.
Frederic Flach, MD, KHS. My Ex-Husband, The Church,
and I - “The hardest part was losing all of my church friends;
some of them thought that I was disobedient to the Gospel . . .” Allison Millertells POH’s Gregory Bearstop her
story of
survival. First Black Autos -
A runaway slave with no formal education, C.R. Patterson created the
first and only
documented Black-owned and operated automobile manufacturer in the
world. Ed Dwight - The Henry O.
Flipper of Space - Mae Jamison (1992) became the first Black
female astronaut. Frederick Gregory (1998) was the first
African-American shuttle commander. But, it was Kansas City,
Kansas native Ed Dwight who paved their way. An exclusive
interview with Dwight from his studio in Denver,
Colorado.
Tariq Alexander,
the Harlem born model whose face has appeared on the Tariq MasterCard
debit card is proving to be more than just a handsome face.
Alexander talks about his new film and his love for Harlem.
Honfleur Gallery
Celebrates
1st Anniversary in Anacostia, DC
Honfleur Gallery’s
One Year Retrospective opens with a bang Saturday, January 26 at
7p. This celebratory soiree doubles as a fundraiser
for the
not-for-profit art space, which is the first main street gallery in the
Historic Anacostia in more than 40 years.
The Retrospective will feature Honfleur’s Artists Group, a selection of
cutting edge emerging artists from the DC Metropolitan area. They
include Darren Smith, Port of
Harlem’sJonathan French,
Renee Woodward,
Justin Couch, Seneca Wells, Alison Spain, Fred Joiner and Jon
Royce. The collection spans media from photography, industrial
design, mixed media, painting, and literary works. Honfleur will
also include selected pieces from its internationally represented
artists, Delphine Perlstein (France), Arie Mandelbaum (Belgium) and
Mervyn Smyth ( Northern Ireland). The Retrospective will
highlight the Artists Group and include pieces from each of the
exhibitions of 2007.
On January 26, expect to hear live music from local talent. The gallery
will raffle three major prize packages. These prizes include
artwork, spa services, an evening on the Odyssey and more.
Tickets for the event are $25 (a tax deductible contribution) and
include one raffle ticket and admittance to the Anniversary
Celebration, which will feature the best live local Jazz, Fine Art,
Honfleur Prize Raffle, catered food, and fine wine courtesy of the Iron
Bridge Wine Company. Tickets are available through the gallery,
via phone (202-536-8994), email
or in person during normal gallery hours at 1241 Good Hope Road SE, W
DC 20020.
Photo: A
naturally Child from the South Pacific.
By Jonathan French.
POH
Meets with Gambian Ambassador
Port of Harlem
publisher Wayne
Young recently meet with outgoing Gambian Ambassador to the United
States H.E. Dodou Bammy Jagne about Port
of Harlem’s ongoing involvement with the Gambia. One of
the programs, Port of Harlem’s
Gambian Education Partnership, provides educational support for about
40 of the 240 students at Nyato Nursery School at Nema Kunku in
suburban Banjul. Port of Harlem
readers support the program by providing $149 which buys four years of
education for each student. Click here
to read more about Port of Harlem’s
Gambia Programs.
Top Photo: POH
publisher Wayne Young and outgoing Gambia Ambassador to the United
States H.E. Dodou Bammy
Jagne
Photo above: Bakary Jadama and Omar
Ceesay, members of the Port of Harlem
Soccer Team, are all smiles
with their T-shirts printed by Unitees of
Washington, D.C. (The team will get new
T-shirts this year)
Advertisement
Palacio
Dies in Belize
Andy Palacio, an
iconic musician and cultural activist in his native Belize and
impassioned spokesperson for the Garifuna people of Central America,
died after a massive and extensive stroke to the brain, a heart attack
and respiratory failure due to the previous two conditions. Palacio was
a national hero in Belize for his popular music and advocacy of
Garifuna language and culture.
After
visits to two hospitals is Belize, he was placed on an air ambulance to
Chicago where he was expected to get treatment at one of the premier
neurological facilities in the country. En route to Chicago, the plane
stopped in Mobile, Alabama to clear immigration. At that point, Palacio
was unconscious and it was determined that he was too ill to continue
on the flight to Chicago. He was rushed to a hospital in Mobile, and
placed on life support. There, doctors determined that the damage to
his brain function was severe, and that his chances of recovery were
slim. On January 18, his family requested that he be flown back to
Belize so that he might die in his homeland.
DC / Philly Galleries Feature POH Photographer
The
Parish Gallery in Georgetown, D.C. presents a juried photographic
exhibition entitled “Emotions.” Exhibiting will be a select group
of eleven photographers including Port
of Harlem contributing photographer Oggi Ogburn. This
exhibition will open with a reception from 6p – 8p on Friday, February
1 and will run through Friday, February 29, 2008.
The African American Museum of
Philadelphia will exhibit “Backstage Pass,” a photography
exhibit by Ogburn Friday, February 1 through Sunday, March 16.
Ogburn’s contribution in the latest issue of Port of Harlem is on page 16 and
part of the health article “Healing the Body: Laying of Hands,” by
Frederic Flach, MD KHS.
T
Honfleur Gallery’s
One Year Retrospective opens with a bang 
Port of Harlem
