National Black Arts Festival lineup is jam-packed
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
The National Black Arts Festival has been shortened to five days this year because of tight finances, but the just-released schedule for the July 29-Aug. 2 event nonetheless appears jam-packed.
While the festival may not boast a long list of household names — singer Dianne Reeves, filmmaker Robert Townsend, actress Robin Givens and author Nelson George being perhaps the biggest — there’s plenty of talent worth getting to know. Plus, for the budget-minded, there are many free events at the main site, the Woodruff Arts Center.
In fact, 15th Street will be shut down for three days of free concerts on July 31-Aug. 2. Artists in an array of genres provide the block party soundtrack, including neo-soul with Soul Kitchen featuring Vinx, jazz by Russell Gunn with Elektrik Butterfly and Afro-Cuban by Pepito Gomez.
Also free at the Woodruff during those three days: the International Marketplace, featuring clothing, jewelry and sculpture from artists and vendors; and the Literary Salon, a day of sessions with writers such as George (“City Kid: A Writer’s Memoir of Ghetto Life and Post-Soul Success”) on July 31.
For families and children, the NBAF launches a free multi-year, multimedia project, “Growing the Dream,” exploring life and legacy of Martin Luther King Jr., Aug. 1-2. Children (ages 3-12) will tour an interactive-scale replica of King’s boyhood home.
The festival’s signature Legend Celebration on July 31 will pay homage to Nina Simone and feature Reeves, Lizz Wright, Lisa Simone Kelly (Nina’s daughter) and Joi sharing the stage with Simone’s band led by music director-guitarist Al Shackman.
In “Lush Life: The Music of Billy Strayhorn” on Aug. 1, the Atlanta Gay Men’s Chorus honors the work of the openly gay African-American composer (“Take the ‘A’ Train”). Another ticketed show is R&B singer Rahsaan Patterson and soul singer Choklate on July 25 at Center Stage.
Other free concerts include Latin players Rio Negro and jazz singer Kathleen Bertrand.
The Pan African Film Festival returns with a slate of features, documentaries and shorts from countries including South Africa, Ghana and Brazil. Michael Rivoira’s docu “Icons Among Us: Jazz in the Present Tense” will be screened, and actor-director-producer Townsend (“Hollywood Shuffle”) will be honored.
One of the major visual arts offerings is at the Woodruff, at the ACA Gallery of SCAD, which hosts “Mercy, Patience & Destiny: The Women of Whitfield Lovell’s Tableaux.” The New Yorker and MacArthur fellow combines artifacts with drawings on found boards, capturing African-American women as pillars of domestic and civic life.
Additional exhibitions will take place at Hagedorn Foundation Gallery, Hammonds House Galleries, Mason Murer Fine Art, Atlanta Contemporary Art Center, Avisca Fine Art Gallery, Sandler Hudson Gallery and Madison Morgan Cultural Center.
Theater troupes staging under NBAF’s banner include True Colors Theatre Company’s “for colored girls who have considered suicide when the rainbow is enuf,” starring Givens and directed by Jasmine Guy at Southwest Arts Center; and Horizon Theatre’s “A Cool Drink of Water.”
Finally, if you’re not feeling inspired, there’s a talk by motivational speaker Les Brown on Aug. 1 at the Woodruff’s Rich Theatre.
Information: www.nbaf.org.
