More Information About AfroSolo Arts Festival: Black Voices Series

Description

<p>The AfroSolo Arts Festival has presented celebrity guests, such as the award-winning Broadway actor Ruby Dee; political humorist and activist Dick Gregory; the late blues and jazz legend Charles Brown; the beloved poet, writer, and teacher June Jordan; Hall of Fame member Mavis Staples; and gospel artist Emmit Powell. In addition, the AfroSolo Arts Festival has presented the works of over 115 emerging solo artists.

Jeannine Anderson - A Recital: Jeannine Anderson is an instructor and Program Administrative Assistant, at the esteemed Young Musicians Program (YMP) in Berkeley. She is also a graduate of YMP. While a student, Anderson studied with David Tigner. After graduation, she attended and received a Bachelor of Music degree from the Cleveland Institute of Music. She then attended the Mannes College of Music. Anderson returned to the San Francisco Bay Area in 2003, where she sings and works. During the summer, she is the Artistic Director of YMP's Opera/Musical Theatre and teaches diction.

Tarance "T" Artis - Inside the Brain: Teenage dancer Artis, performs a piece exploring peace and violence, life and death, choices and decisions choreographed by Paco Gomes. It is a work about family love, loss and redemption. "T" is 17 years old and from Denver, Colorado. He has been dancing for seven years and has had the opportunity to train and perform with some of the world's top ballet, modern, contemporary, jazz and lyrical teachers and choreographers. He will be attending Alonzo King Lines Ballet summer intensive in July on a full scholarship.

Paco Gomes - Before and After Fifty: Afro-Brazilian, Paco Gomes comes out of retirement to premiere Before and After Fifty, an exhilarating autobiographical work exploring the passage from youth to adulthood, admiration to love and good health to concern for others. It is a moving tribute to his grandfather. Gomes has studied folkloric and religious dances since his childhood in Bahia, Brazil and holds a degree in dance and a Masters in education from the Federal University in Bahia. In addition, he has been a guest faculty member at Stanford University. His Dance Company, Paco Gomes and Dancers founded in 2004, has performed in various venues in San Francisco and Bahia, Brazil.

Wayne Harris - Mother's Milk: Veteran AfroSolo artist returns with his loving, uplifting story about his visits home to take care of his mother. With humor, compassion and dignity, he performs the story of her battle with breast cancer. An up and coming Bay Area storyteller, Harris is currently at work on The May Day Parade in conjunction with director David Ford.

Jacqueline B. Hairston - The Black Voice - A Healing Presence: Hairston will take the audience on a healing musical journey based on sound, breath, and movement. She will use authentic associations from ancient cultures combined with musical tones emanating from the African-American experience that positively enhance the well-being of the body, mind, and spirit. Hairston is a professional pianist, multi-talented ASCAP composer/arranger and vocal coach. She is a noted authority on Black spirituals and has arranged spirituals for or written tributes to renowned singers such as Leontyne Price and Kathleen Battle.

Keith Knight - Untitled: Keith is an award-winning San Francisco-based cartoonist and rapper. His two weekly comic strips, the K Chronicles (seen on Salon.com) and (th)ink (currently seen in the San Francisco Chronicle’s 96 Hours), offer an irreverent combination of race, politics, family and cutting-edge humor. His work has received praise from cartoonists Garry Trudeau (Doonesbury) and Aaron McGruder (the Boondocks), writers Adam Mansbach and Dave Eggers, among others. Using his keen observation, insight, life experiences and cultural heritage, Knight will present a comic strip slideshow performance exploring health issues in the African American community. He will address these issues with wit, sensitivity, outrage and homage.</p> <p>Also Note:</p> <p>The Gala Performance on Saturday, August 19th also includes a special tribute to the late musician, teacher, producer and mentor, Johnny Land, which begins at 7:30pm.

Land was a retired music director at San Francisco's Lowell High School, where he inspired many students to pursue singing and performing long after graduation. He also worked as the musical director at San Francisco's Polytechnic High, where he taught Martha Wash, who later became half of the Weather Girls, best known for singing It's Raining Men. Also a singer and pianist, Land directed choirs, staged plays and musicals for over 30 years. He took his music groups around the world, recorded albums with them, and won several awards. Land was a Josephine Baker aficionado. He had a large collection of her music and memorabilia. He also opened a soul food restaurant named after her in the Inner Richmond in the early 1970s.</p>

About the Ticket Supplier: Afrosolo Theatre Company

AfroSolo Theatre Company's mission is to nurture, promote, and present African American and African Diaspora art and culture through solo performances and the visual arts. Since 1993, we have provided a forum to give an authentic voice to the diverse experiences of Black people in the Americas. Through art, we bring people of different ethnicities together to explore and share the human spirit that binds us all.

Because of the disparity in health matter in the African American community, we made a bold decision to make Black Health the focus of 2006. Our solo artists will unite with health professionals to promote health, prevent disease and provide incentives to develop healthy habits in the African American Community. We will focus on health in general, but pay particular attention to breast cancer, diabetes, HIV/AIDS and prostate cancer.