Friday, February 19, 2010

The Washinton Informer Features Intersections

“Intersections: A New America Arts Festival” at the Atlas Performing Arts Center
Arts & Entertainment
By Larry Saxton
Thursday, February 18, 2010

Southeast, D.C. native Christylez (r) performs in the arts extravaganza, Intersections: A New American Arts Festival, at the Atlas Theater. The performances fuse live music, dance and drama and run each weekend between Fri., Feb. 19, through Sun., March 7.Courtesy Photo
The Atlas Performing Arts Center in Northwest presents Intersections: A New American Arts Festival, a cornucopia of artistic creativity that promises to energize even the most winter-weary among us through music, theater, visual arts, film, poetry and dance.

The multi-disciplinary celebration of the arts which opens Fri., Feb. 19, will showcase events in six different venues each weekend through Sun., March 7.

The festival includes a world premiere by Washington hip-hop artist Christyles Bacon; performances of Scott Joplin’s opera “Treemonisha” by the Washington Savoyards; a documentary exploration of identity through drumming by Nigerian-American filmmaker, Ekene Okobi; songs and stories by H Street community elders known as The Northeast Senior Singers and the Delta Players; plus a play, “The Bridge of Bodies,” written and performed by Haitian-American, Kathleen Gonzales.

“If you think about it, people come to see a theater performance or hear music. You are taken to a new place when you come and experience an arts event emotionally and mentally. I think that creates an energy and opportunity for people to see one another in a new light, stand in each other’s shoes, and achieve new understandings,” said Mary Hall Surface, 51, the festival’s artistic director.

A new perspective is exactly what playwright Kathleen Gonzales, 34, hopes that Washington audiences walk away with after seeing her one-woman play about her beloved homeland recently devastated by a cataclysmic earthquake in January.

Her monologue, “The Bridge of Bodies,” she said, dispels myths and stereotypes about the people of Haiti. Proceeds from her performances will benefit Haitian earthquake relief efforts and recovery.

“As an artist I have always felt that it was my responsibility to help people who are not Haitian understand about Haiti, and what it is to be Haitian,” Gonzales said.

“For me, writing about Haiti is something that I am passionate about, something that I am moved by. In many instances the play wrote itself through me,” the artist said.
The vision for Intersections originated with Jane Lang, founder and chair of the Atlas Center’s board of directors. Lang said that she wanted to host a festival that would bring artists of different genres and audiences of different ages, races and cultures together.

That’s why she enlisted Surface, the award-winning playwright and director who lives in the District to pull the festival together. Once on board, Lang said that Surface jumped right in. Last summer, Surface put out calls to artists about the project. She received more than 80 proposals for the festival and narrowed them down to the 57 actual performances.

Surface has spent most of her artistic career creating art experiences that are inter-generational, events that both young people and adults are able to enjoy together.

“Being able to gather in a forum that the art provides lets us do something that is to wrestle with some things that might be harder to talk about in other circumstances.

But the arts give you a place where you can meet on common ground and most importantly you can imagine together,” Surface said.

Visit the Washington Informer to view the article.

Photo: Christylez (on right)

Intersections in The Washington Post Today!

Atlas Performing Arts Center stages diverse Intersections arts festival

The Washington Post
By Lavanya Ramanathan
Friday, February 19, 2010

The Atlas Performing Arts Center's new Intersections arts festival -- a three-week event with more than 50 performances beginning Friday at the H Street NE complex -- celebrates a nation characterized by myriad convergences of culture.

But for inspiration, the organizers had to look only so far as the Atlas District itself.

"H Street has historically been an intersection," says Mary Hall Surface, the festival's artistic director, citing the various communities -- Italian, Jewish, African American -- that have called the neighborhood east of Union Station home.

To stage the festival, which continues weekends through March 7, Surface and Atlas put out a call for shows that combine genres or cross the boundaries of race, age and class. The Washington Savoyards responded with "Treemonisha," a rarely performed opera by Scott Joplin; Speakeasy DC culled a diverse cast for the monologue show "Wetbacks, Aliens and Towelheads: Stories From the First Generation"; and Haitian American Kathleen Gonzales offered her one-woman show about homecomings, "The Bridge of Bodies," with a pledge to donate proceeds to Haiti relief efforts. There are also plenty of free concerts, children's performances and even visual art as part of the festival, of which The Post is a sponsor.

"You think about it as a menu," Surface says. "We really were looking for pieces that had an intersection of styles, or we were looking for collaborations, where companies were coming together in a way they have never done before.

"So you've got your fusion cuisine, then you've got your contrasting things -- ones that taste better when you put them together -- and your classic dishes."

To read the entire Washington Post article, Click HERE
~~

To read our article in The Washington Informer

SpeakeasyDC

SpeakeasyDC
Wetbacks, Aliens and Towelheads: Stories from the First Generation, Come hear humorous and edgy autobiographical offerings by DC's popular company of storytellers.Five artists tell true stories about being children of immigrant parents or immigrants themselves. In true SpeakeasyDC style, the stories are expertly crafted and combine humor, honesty, and insight to create an unforgettable night of riveting entertainment.
Friday, Feb 26 at 9:30 PM
Saturday, Feb 27 at 7:30 PM

Sprenger Theater
Tickets: $18.50
For audiences ages 16 and up.
Click HERE to buy tickets.
http://www.speakeasydc.org
~~~
ABOUT THE STORIES AND STORYTELLERS
Poet Regie Cabico tells the story of trying to fulfill the American Dream for his Filipino mother in "My H'Oprah."

TV News Reporter Delia Perry tells her story about negotiating the New and Old World rules of her Cape Verdean parents in "Tough Love."

Activist Claire Nelson tells her story about changing her plans of becoming Jamaica's first female prime minister in "Counting Myself American."

Video artist and graphic designer Ayo Okunseinde tells his story about being a Nigerian transplant trying to be cool in suburban New Jersey high school in "International Day."

Comedian and solo performer, Vijai Nathan tells her story of trying to balance life as an Indian girl in Potomac, MD in "Beware."
~~~

Get a feel for the Speakeasy. Watch Vijai Nathan's story.

All Our Neighbors, This Sunday

Rachel Grossman with Mitch Mattson
All our Neighbors, a hands-on experience for artists who work in schools focusing on classroom cultural awareness.
Sunday, Feb 21 from 10:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Lab I
Registration: $10

"We believe the festival to be the perfect platform for a larger conversation about the relationships Teaching Artists, particularly white ones, have with the youth they interact with in area schools. We're both passionate about theatre and civic dialogue, and are on the look-out for more conversations about race and culture." -Rachel Grossman

http://www.intersectionsdc.org/

Thursday, February 18, 2010

INTERSECTIONS: Opening Weekend Specials -- 24 hours only!

Start your festival engine and roar into INTERSECTIONS with $10 tickets to:
Jason Ignacio Garcia's, The Mountain (2/19 @ 7:30 PM)
Grabielismo Productions' Bemcha Latin Jazz Band (2/19 @ 9:30 PM)
Kathleen Gonzales's, The Bridge of Bodies (2/19 @ 7:30 PM & 2/20 @ 7:30 PM)
Use promo code: "READY"

For $15 adult/$10 student see Coyaba Dance Theater/Tappers With Attitude/Urban Artistry's, ORIGINS (2/20 @ 2PM & 2/21 @ 7 PM).
Use promo code: "SET"

For $20 (adult) see Washington Savoyard's, Treemonisha by Scott Joplin (2/20 @ 8 PM & 2/21 @ 2 PM shows only).
Use promo code: "GO"

Order on-line only by 6pm on Thursday, February 18th. http://www.intersectionsdc.org/

Race you ... to INTERSECTIONS!

The Sound of Ekene Okobi

The Sound of the Drums, a documentary exploration of identity through drumming by a first-generation Nigerian-American filmmaker, with special guest performers including choreographer and master of African Dance, Melvin Deal.
Sunday, Feb 21 at 5:00 PM
Lang Theatre
Tickets: $5
For ages 12+

http://www.ekeneokobi.com/

Click HERE to watch The Sound of the Drums trailer online.

Photos:
Top Right: Ekene's mother shows her how to tie a wrapper (pronounced "lappa").
Bottom Left: Footage recorded at a Return to Goree dance class in Baltimore, MD.

Capital City Symphony: It's More Than You Think

Capital City Symphony and the Young Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra
Classical Connections, a concert highlighting connections among diverse classical composers – including Pulitzer Prize winning, Washington native George Walker.
Sunday, Feb 21 at 4:30 PM
Sprenger Theater
Ticket: $5 suggested donation
For audiences ages 5 and up.

"I hope to show that classical music is made up of more than just dead white guys. "
--Victoria Gau

http://www.capitalcitysymphony.org/
http://www.dcyop.org/

NY Times best-selling author, Steven Roberts

"I am a storyteller, and I focus on the people who had the heart and heroism to leave their home countries and make new lives in a new and often strange land.

I speak of my own grandfather, Abe Rogow, who stole money from his father to became an early pioneer in Israel and then settled in the working class town of Bayonne, N.J. I speak of my parents, who lived one block away from each other when they met on my mother's 17th birthday, but wrote letters to convey their feelings because they were too shy to talk in person. I speak of Pablo Romero, who dropped out of school in rural Mexico at age 11, came to America as a farm worker, and eventually became a doctor in Salinas CA where most of his patients are farm workers, the children and grandchildren of the immigrants he worked with in the fields years ago.

When I tell these stories, I hope to open a conversation with my audience. I hope you will be moved to celebrate the heroes in your own families who made the journey to America, and to gather and preserve their stories for generations to come."
--Steve Roberts

Politics and Prose Bookstore
From Every End of This Earth, a reading and book signing by the New York Times best-selling author, Steven Roberts, capturing the stories of thirteen immigrant families and their lives in the new America.
Saturday, Feb 20 at 5pm
Lang Theatre
Tickets: $5
For ages 14+

http://www.politics-prose.com/

Audiocasts:
Interview on WOR News Talk Radio
Interview on The Diane Rhem Show

TV Appearances:
Riz Kahn Interviews Steve Roberts
Politico.com Video Clip
This America Interview (Once there, scroll down page)

Book Review:
The Washington Post Reviews, From Every End of This Earth

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

The Reverb is Wild this Saturday!

Reverb
Harmony Crossing, an a cappella romp from gospel to “road-tunes” from DC’s Wammie-winning sextet.

Saturday, Feb 20 at 2:30 PM
Lab II
Tickets: $5
For audiences ages 5 and up

Hip Hop and Bollywood? Come see for yourself!

JOMDC’s Hip Hop, Bollywood Studio to Stage Performance Class will perform a piece choreographed by JOMDC faculty and DCypher Dance member, Nikki Gambhir at DCypher 10.2:Co-Ed.

Here is what Nikki had to say about her piece:

"The piece I’m presenting at Intersections is a fusion of Hip Hop and Bollywood dance set to music that remixes the more traditional Hindi and Punjabi sounds with American Hip Hop. The costumes reflect that intersection using flavors of India combined with Western styles while the movement comes from blending the signature moves of Bollywood with Hip Hop choreography.

I am an intersection of American & Indian culture. My father is from India and my mother is American. I’ve grown up enjoying the advantages of such a cultural mix, overcoming the challenges it sometimes presented and sincerely appreciating how it has made me who I am today. Dance is an innate part of Indian culture, at Indian celebrations everyone dances and kids are on the dance floor alongside their parents, aunts and uncles! I connected with Hip Hop because of its appeal through pop culture, I grew up with its influences through music and dance and I love its original messages of peace, love, unity and having fun!

I truly believe that the arts are an essential part of the community, of creating and maintaining us as people and I hope that my teaching and performing will help to promote positive and healthy expression through dance. The intersections of diverse dance styles and cultures, broadens understanding, speaks to a greater variety of people and heightens the enjoyment of the audience."

http://intersectionsdc.org/

Watch a compilation of our Adult and Youth Companies who you'll see at Intersections this year:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L-7MhDEBblc

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

A Message from Marva Hicks

"I have been blessed to be in on the ground floor of a production that was in it’s developmental stages. I was in CAROLINE OR CHANGE, by Tony Kushner and Jeanine Tesori for a total of two and half years. That time period covered the workshops, the Off-Broadway run and the Broadway production. Talk about exciting! The work was hard, and the process was extremely informative.

I now find myself in the development of my own project and I must say, having experienced this process in the past, have made it easier for me. What will ultimately end up on the stage is an unknown factor. There are daily rewrites and other production aspects to consider in building a show. And you must stay on track with telling the story you want to tell. I love it! During the first workshop last month, that was held in the Drama Department of the Division of Fine Arts at Howard University, I had an amazing time. I looked forward to showing up at rehearsal everyday. And to return to my HU roots was energizing and so very special. The interaction with the staff and our production team was priceless. This journey as it turns out is now about more than developing a show to encourage others, but it has become a vehicle of inclusiveness that informs and continues to teach us all, about how special the world of theatre is." --Marva Hicks
~~

Arena Stage's Musical Artist Marva Hicks
An Evening with Marva: Celebrating the Gospel Truth, a rich musical journey through song with singer Marva Hicks from her gospel roots to Broadway and beyond.
Saturday, Feb 20 at 7:30 PM
Sunday, Feb 21 at 2:00 PM
Sunday, Feb 21 at 7:30 PM

Sprenger Theatre
Tickets: $25
For ages 13+

http://www.arenastage.org/


Photos:
Top Left--Marva Hicks
Bottom Right--Composer, E. Harper and Director, Denise Burse Fernandez

Don't miss Bemcha Latin Jazz Band

Bemcha is a Latin jazz ensemble that prides itself in both adding the feeling, rhythm and language of jazz to latin standards as well as in adding the latin and afro-cuban rhythms and feeling to jazz standards. The group is known for playing a variety of styles and for it's all star lineup of DC's finest.

Saturday 2/19 9:30pm
Sprenger Theatre
Tickets: $15 (Cash bar)
For ages 15+
~~

Ensemble Members:
Pablo Grabiel - Guitar
Duff Davis - Guitar
Josh Carr - Tenor Sax
Elijah Balbed - Alto Sax
Alvin Trask - Trumpet
Roderick Johnson - Drums
Mark Merella - Percussion
Justin Parrot - Bass

Bemcha video clips you shouldn't miss:
Mambo Influenciado - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xp1S8xrWZxs
My Little Suede Shoes - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hoQvpz2RR2I

Check out these links:
www.grabielismo.com/bemcha
http://www.bemcha.net/
Facebook Page

Your "BodyMoves" This Saturday!

Dance Through the Decades, a lively journey through the history of black dance presented by this Maryland-based youth performance company.
Saturday, Feb 20 at 4:30 PM
Saturday, Feb 27 at 4:30 PM

Sprenger Theater
Tickets: $10
For audiences of all ages.

"This production depicts the history of black dance, its richness & culture; and pays tribute & homage to those who have paved the way for all people to be free to dance." --Katherine Smith
www.bodymovesfitness.com

Monday, February 15, 2010

Washington Savoyards

Treemonisha by Scott Joplin, an intersection of classical opera form and the ragtime genius in a new production of a rarely performed American treasure, presented by DC’s favorite light opera company.
Friday, Feb 19 at 8pm
Saturday, Feb 20 at 8pm
Sunday, Feb 21 at 2pm
Friday, Feb 26 at 8pm
Saturday, Feb 27 at 8pm
Sunday, Feb 28 at 2pm
Friday, Mar 5 at 8pm
Saturday, Mar 6 at 8pm
Sunday, Mar 7 at 2pm

Lang Theatre
Tickets: $40/Adult, $35/Senior, $15/Child, $10 Student rush
For audiences ages 8 and up.

Heralded as “an entirely new phase of musical art” when Scott Joplin played for its first performance in 1915, Treemonisha was rediscovered in the 1970s and went on to triumph on Broadway. Last seen in DC in 1976, the Washington Savoyards will present an all-new production of this “thoroughly American opera” for a new generation, under the direction of Michael J. Bobbitt. Set in late 19th century Arkansas, the opera follows Treemonisha, a young, educated African American woman, in her quest to free her community from fearful superstitions. A story filled with conjurers, capturers and the power of love rings out from a romantic, ragtime-inspired score. Embrace the opportunity to see this charming production by a giant of American music, Scott Joplin.

www.savoyards.org

Jason Garcia Ignacio / City Dance Ensemble


The Mountain, a dance fusion of east and west by an award-winning Filipino choreographer.
Friday, Feb 19 at 7:30pm
Sprenger Theatre
Tickets: $15
For audiences ages 14 and up.

Commissioned and premiered by the Kennedy Center, The Mountain is a choreographic intersection of art and science – of the traditional and the contemporary. This provocative work for fifteen dancers was envisioned and realized by Philippine-born choreographer, Jason Garcia Ignacio, winner of the 2009 Mayor’s Arts Award for Outstanding Emerging Artist. A veteran of the American Repertory Ballet and the Martha Graham Ensemble, Mr. Ignacio fuses Filipino mythology with contemporary choreography to capture the 1998 eruption of Mount Pinatubo in Manila. Set to music inspired by the patterns in volcanic activity, The Mountain vividly explores our evolving relationship to the environment. The program will feature other works by Mr. Ignacio as well as an audience talk-back following the performance.

www.volcanodance.org

Coyaba Dance Theater, Tappers With Attitude & Urban Artistry

ORIGINS, a joyful collaboration among three top DC dance companies celebrating the heritage and soul of African American dance.
Saturday, Feb 20 at 2pm
Sunday, Feb 21 at 7pm

Lang Theatre
Tickets: $15 student / $20 adult
For audiences of all ages.

Joining forces for a one-of-a-kind dance celebration, three DC Dance companies will intersect their distinctive powerhouse styles to tell the story of African American dance. Take Coyaba Dance Theater’s high energy drumming and traditional West African dance. Add Tappers With Attitude’s sassy blend of popular percussive dance steps from the past. Mix with Urban Artistry’s hot funk, pop, lock and hip-hop. Season with Latin flavors, and you have a recipe for an unforgettable retrospective of the dance that defines America. Ideal for the whole family, this show will get you on your feet!
www.coyabadance.org
www.tapperswithattitude.org
www.urbanartistry.org






Sunday, February 14, 2010

INTERSECTIONS: A New America Arts Festival

Program Notes

“Each of us is on our own journey. But as we travel, we reach crossroads—the points at which our journeys meet—launching the possibility that we will go in new directions as individuals, as a community, as a society.” Festival Curator, Mary Hall Surface

Welcome to the debut of “INTERSECTIONS: A New America Arts Festival” at The Atlas Performing Arts Center ("the Atlas"). This boundary-breaking festival showcases the power of the arts to cultivate understanding, to unite communities, and to honor the dignity of the human experience, while empowering the individual. INTERSECTIONS offers a rich and varied body of artistic styles. In addition to works of visual art, film screenings, literary readings, dance performances, musical showcases, and dramatic productions, INTERSECTIONS will also provide audiences with the opportunity to engage directly with the artistic process through workshops, discussions and informal performances.

With these unique performances and presentations, INTERSECTIONS not only delights, educates, and entertains, but it also asks us important questions about the America identity: Who is America? What does it mean to be an American? How do we honor those who came before us? Who will America be in the future? INTERSECTIONS Festival addresses these provocative and deeply personal questions through an offering of artistic exploration and discovery that is absolutely exhilarating!

Throughout the festival, you will see works that are ethnically, racially, culturally, and stylistically diverse. So much so, that it is profound to find many common threads amongst the performances. Of course, America is a nation of immigrants. Whether they were forced here through slavery or they came by choice in search of new opportunities and independence, America is nation of people living along artistic and cultural continuums that links them from their own country of ethnic origin to their current home in America. In this Festival, you will learn about Austria, Southeast DC, the ghettos of Philadelphia, Puerto Rico, Colombia, Haiti, Philippines, the Ibo People of West Africa, Asia, and the Middle East through song, dance, spoken word, hip hop, and theater performances.

As the only community-based performing arts center in DC, the Atlas is the perfect venue to host a festival of this magnitude and significance. Located in a historic movie theatre, the Atlas opened its doors in November 2006 and since opening, has helped to revitalize the H Street Corridor, which was devastated by the riots of 1968. Part of its mission is to foster the artistic growth of professional and aspiring performing artists throughout the region. It is home to a diverse group of locally renowned theatre and dance companies, symphony orchestras, choral groups and arts education programs. In fact, several Atlas resident companies, such as the Capital City Symphony, Joy of Motion Dance Center and the Levine School of Music, are a part of the Festival.

Thank you for joining us today! We invite you to stay and see more performances!

Enjoy!
Jacqueline Lawton, Dramaturg