My Image Studios under construction

The journey Back in 2007, I met with the developers of the Kalahari. Carlton Brown and Walter Edwards, of Full Spectrum, were extremely excited about the opening of their first green residential development in Harlem.  The development was to include space for a custom-designed, state-of-the-art movie theater, dedicated to showing independent black and Latino films.… [Read more…]

Under a Microscope: Stick Fly on Broadway

Kenny Leon is on fire. Just ask him. Two plays he directed are currently playing on Broadway to packed houses, featuring star performers, and are being considered in the context of his past work which include a slew of August Wilson’s plays, and Lorraine Hansbury’s classic, A Raisin in the Sun. When it comes to… [Read more…]

Renaissance has a Name: Harlem

Every show has an audience. The question is: does the environment make the artist, or vice versa? It is critical that my neighbors in Harlem make an effort to join this conversation, and this play is a firecracker to ignite the process. When I attended Renaissance in the Belly of a Killer Whale last Sunday,… [Read more…]

Classical Theatre of Harlem and Hip Hop Theatre Festival present SEED, a Love Letter to Harlem

If you see one show this season, go see SEED. If you are a Harlem resident, you have absolutely no excuse not to see it. The show is playing at the National Black Theatre on 126th and 5th Ave right across the street from Applebees. This new play by Radha Blank is produced by the… [Read more…]

Tape Revival: At What Point is it Rape?

The first question that came into my head after watching Knife Edge Production’s remount of Stephen Belber’s Tape, was “Why this play? Why now?” Even as the query formed in my mind, I had already arrived upon the answer. Here is a play produced by actors, to give themselves meaty roles that would showcase them… [Read more…]

50 Bats. $10 Tix. 5 Plays. 3 Survivors. 1 Free Beer.

How do you get a bunch of twenty-somethings to go to the theater? With beer of course. The Bats, The Flea Theatre’s resident company of emerging artists, keeps their audiences coming back for more in their ongoing summer showcase #the SERIALS @ The Flea. For only $10 you get a ticket and a beer. And… [Read more…]

Mario Fratti’s Quartet: Symmetry and Equality in Four Movements

The walls of Mario Fratti’s apartment on West 55th St. are padded with the kind of well worn antiques, posters, and mementos that have witnessed a life in the theater. His living room window looks into the window that Tennessee Williams used to sit at in the mornings and write. They would wave to each… [Read more…]

Daniel Beaty’s ‘Tearing Down the Walls’ Sings of Harlem’s Challenges and Hope

As a proud Harlem resident, I considered it a privilege to be witness to the triumph of Daniel Beaty’s latest work, “Tearing Down the Walls,” now playing at the Riverside Theatre through May 29th. To attend this world premiere musical about Harlem is to take part in a community forum, where the audience’s reaction and… [Read more…]

Harlem School of the Arts Raises the Bar

Last month, from April 9-16, the Harlem School of the Arts Theater Department presented “Flyin’ West” written by Pearl Cleage and directed by HAS faculty member, Willie Teacher. Set in Nicodemus, Kansas in 1898, the play follows the lives of African-American homesteaders in the American West. Immersed in the rapidly changing and cataclysmic landscape of… [Read more…]

El Gato Teatro Makes Her Home in Harlem

El Gato Teatro, a dance theater collective led by Harlem resident, Gabriella Barnstone premiered its latest work Nuevo Laredo at Dixon Place last week. El Gato Teatro fuses dance, theater, text, music, and sheer entertainment to create powerful works of art and magic. The production features stunning mask work, sharp design, and a sound track… [Read more…]

Tearing down the walls

Review of The Killing Room by Daniel Keene

Darkly comical and creepy, Australian playwright, Daniel Keene pays a visit to the end of the world and finds that the ancient themes of blood feud, brotherly competition, and greed still dominate. In the opening scene, a scraggly man in a dingy brown nightgown sits up on his hospital gurney and asks, “How can you… [Read more…]

Anthony & Cleopatra

Haiti’s Children of God

Infused with music, art and magic, Haiti’s Children of God is an inspiring, uplifting portrait of hope that follows two young lovers struggling to navigate the forces of their society and their love of country and humanity. Directed by Fulton C. Hodges Lighting Ken Harper Sets by Tony Davidson Stage Manager Judy Codrington Technical Director… [Read more…]

James Earl Jones and Vanessa Redgrave in roles of a lifetime: Driving Miss Daisy

By JJ El-Far I had the privilege of watching two of the greatest working actors on Monday night in Alfred Uhry’s Driving Miss Daisy at the Golden Theatre. Both James Earl Jones and Vanessa Redgrave alone could carry their own show, drawing in crowds and filling the house each night. Together, their ability was simply… [Read more…]

Driving Miss Daisy Actors Fund Special Performance

By: J.J. El-Far The Broadway company of “Driving Miss Daisy” has announced that their Special Benefit Performance for The Actors Fund will be dedicated to the memory of Vanessa Redgrave’s siblings, Lynn and Corin Redgrave. The benefit performance is scheduled for Monday, February 7 at 8pm. All proceeds will go to The Actors Fund. “With… [Read more…]

National Black Theater in Harlem in danger of foreclosure

Today’s New York Times featured the troubled story about the National Black Theater and its financial woes. The building, with a fully functional theater with space to spare and retail space galore, takes up an entire block along 5th Avenue between 125th and 126th Street. As a cruel twist of irony, the area is finally… [Read more…]

Theater Review: Harlem Renaissance Celebrity Wedding

Review of The New Federal Theatre’s production of Knock Me a Kiss Play By Charles Smith, Directed by Chuck Smith December 8, 2010 By: J.J. El-Far I had the pleasure of seeing the New Federalist Theatre’s joyful production of Knock Me a Kiss this past week at Abrons Art Center at the Henry Street Settlement.… [Read more…]

‘Knock Me a Kiss’ premieres in NYC

KnockMe a Kiss’ premieres in NYC – NYPOST.com. Read also: NY Times

Theatre Special: Passing Strange

The City College of New York is revitalizing theater in the heights of Harlem. See the musical production of Passing Strange recently on Broadway at Aaron Davis Hall. Book and lyrics by Stew; Music by Stew and Heidi Rodewald; created in collaboration with Annie Dorsen and directed by Alfred Preisser. It’s a heartfelt and hilarious… [Read more…]

Little Rock at The Dwyer

The true story of The Little Rock Nine – – their sacrifices, struggles and triumphs told on stage for the first time. Written and directed by Rajendra Ramoon Maharaj, catch Little Rock in Harlem during the culmination of Harlem Week 2010 along its journey to Broadway. All seats are complimentary. Due to limited seating, RSVP’s… [Read more…]

Homage 3:Illmatic

HOMAGE 3: ILLMATIC is an original play written by Harlem based playwright Shaun Neblett. Paying homage to the spirit of rapper NaS’ classic album, Neblett’s play tells the story of a man who must focus on doing something with his life or fall victim to the covert evils around him. A selection in this year’s… [Read more…]

For Color Girls filming in Harlem

THE COLORED GIRL, originally uploaded by NARMER.

Harlem School of the Arts runs out of funds; Forced to shut doors

In 1985, Jane Henry led Shukrani Brown, Hussain Walker and Malik Lewis in a violin class at the Harlem School of the Arts. By TRYMAINE LEE/New York Times: April 2, 2010 For nearly 50 years, the Harlem School of the Arts has given generations of mostly black and Latino children entree into worlds often otherwise… [Read more…]

3 Mo’ Divas at The Apollo

3 Mo’ Divas Created by Marion J. Caffey Sunday, December 27, 2009 @ 600 pm Apollo Theater Marion J. Caffey’s celebrated production returns to the Apollo by popular demand. Starring Nova Payton, Laurice Lanier and Jamet Pitman, 3 Mo’ Divas is a musical extravaganza that captivates audiences with thrilling performances that include soul, opera, jazz,… [Read more…]

MacBeth at the National Black Theatre

MACBETH Written By William Shakespeare Directed by Timothy D. Stickney Monday, December 14, 2009 @ 7:00 pm The National Black Theatre Take Wing And Soar Productions closes its 6th Annual Classical Lab Reading Series with Shakespeare’s tragic tale MACBETH. Associate Artistic Director Timothy D. Stickney leads special guest stars John D. Thompson and Stephanie Berry… [Read more…]

Celebrate 95 Golden Years!

Pioneer dancer Marion Coles, 94, dies

Marion Coles, who danced in the Apollo Theater chorus line in the 1930s and was still dancing seven decades later in the tap ensemble the Silver Belles, died Friday. She was 94. Read more… [NYDN]

FELA!

October will welcome a number of highly anticipated musical theatre transfers to Broadway.  Following an acclaimed Off-Broadway engagement at 37 Arts, Fela! arrives at the Eugene O’Neill Theatre Oct. 19. The work explores the extravagant, decadent and rebellious world of Afrobeat legend Fela Anikulapo Kuti using his pioneering music (a blend of jazz, funk and… [Read more…]

A Midsummer Night’s Dream

The critically acclaimed PULSE ENSEMBLE THEATRE, now celebrating its 20th season, will present its 5th season of HARLEM SUMMER SHAKESPEARE with free performances of Shakespeare’s “A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM“ beginning on August 6th, 2009. The company will perform in various venues all over Harlem during the month of August. On August 6th at 6 PM… [Read more…]

The Wiz presented by the Harlem Rep Theatre

Hurricane Season at the National Black Theatre

Entitled

Amen Sister! One week left

THE H.A.D.L.E.Y. PLAYERS present Roger Parris’ award-winning play AMEN SISTER Written and Directed by Roger Parris, AMEN SISTER is a play with comedic surprises and dramatic revelations. Five members of the Women’s Executive Board of Shiloh Baptist Church face a challenging dilemma when they have to select a new member for their board. An exciting… [Read more…]

Much Ado About Nothing in Harlem

Shakespeare’s tart-tongued romantic comedy about two longtime enemies and their friends’ plot to reconcile them gets a modern twist in TheaterSmarts latest show: Instead of war heroes returning in victory, several of the lead characters are now smart-mouthed baseball players returning from a win at the World Series. Ages 6 and up. Thu June 25th… [Read more…]

Meet Billy Mitchell aka Mr. Apollo

AGE: 59 JOB: Tour director, greeter and historian TIME ON THE JOB: 44 years There’ll be a huge cluster of stars out tomorrow when the Apollo Theater celebrates its 75th birthday with a night of music, comedy and heartfelt tributes. But though he’s never performed onstage, Billy Mitchell — the Apollo’s longtime historian, tour guide… [Read more…]

Amen Sister by Roger Parris

History: Basin St. Revue at The Apollo

WATCH IT! 1956 – B&W – 40 min This video was created at the Apollo Theatre in Harlem. Some of the greatest of all time including Sarah Vaughan, Lionel Hampton, Martha Davis, Nipsey Russell, and Cab Calloway are featured.

Staged reading of Diana at the Schomberg

Diana Sands was an iconic woman of daring and superlative craft, dazzled Broadway in the 1960s with her theatrical majesty. The playwright, P.J. Gibson was commissioned by The Classical Theatre of Harlem to write this play about Diana Sands. The Reading is directed by award-winning director, Regge Life, former Production Executive and Director for The… [Read more…]

Culture: Harlem