THE HARLEM ARTS ALLIANCE FALL EVENTS
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"Harlem at the Crossroads:
Sustaining Our Arts and Cultural Resources"
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Vy Higginsen
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| Danny Glover |
“Harlem boasts some of the city’s most stellar arts organizations and artists, individuals and entities that are, in today’s economic climate, struggling to secure and maintain needed support,” said Voza Rivers, Chairman, HARLEM Arts Alliance. “The Harlem Arts Summit is being held to shine the light on the treasures in our midst and to help them secure and sustain the crucial resources needed to continue their missions.”
Glover will receive the HAA Humanitarian Award at the kickoff event at Aaron Davis Hall on Monday, October 1 and will address the importance of arts and culture to the health and vitality of communities of color in New York and around the world. New State Council on the Arts Executive Director Lisa Robb will give an overview of the status of state arts funding, followed by Kenneth J. Knuckles, Esq., CEO of the Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation, who will report on the current state of the arts in Harlem. The HAA will also honor legendary theatrical producer Vy Higginsen of the Mama Foundation with its Lifetime Achievement Award, and pioneering producer, presenter and arts consultant Mikki Shepard of the Apollo Theater Foundation with HAA’s 2012 Arts Leadership Award.
The Harlem Arts Summit brings together an exciting array of events showcasing Uptown arts institutions. Highlights include an opening reception hosted by The City College of New York at Aaron Davis Hall, 135th Street and Convent Avenue, on Monday October 1 at 5:30 p.m., directly followed by “A Conversation with Harlem Arts Leaders: Today’s Challenge, Tomorrow’s Promise.” Noted actress and Harlem resident Tamara Tunie (Law and Order SVU) will introduce the discussion, which will feature Dance Theatre of Harlem’s Artistic Director Virginia Johnson; Harlem School of the Arts President and CEO Yvette L. Campbell; and Patricia Cruz, executive director Harlem Stage/The Gatehouse. The panel will be moderated by multimedia journalist Katti Gray.
The Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, 515 Malcolm X Boulevard, opens its doors on Tuesday October 2 for two events. At 12 noon, it will host a screening of excerpts from the film The Savoy King: Chick Webb and the Music that Changed America. This cinematic work turns the spotlight on the Savoy Ballroom, home of the amazing Lindy Hop dancers, and the first venue in America where Blacks and Whites could dance and socialize together. The film focuses on band leader and drummer Chick Webb, who led the Savoy Ballroom’s house band; Webb virtually invented modern drumming and built the hottest band of the 1930’s. The film’s executive producer, Voza Rivers, will lead a discussion with Jeff Kaufman, producer/director of The Savoy King; Dr. Richard Gale, son of Moe Gale, owner of the Savoy Ballroom; Gertrude Jeannette, actress; Norma Miller, swing dance master; and special guests. At 6 p.m., the Schomburg will hold an open house in partnership with HARLEM Arts Alliance. Schomburg Director Dr. Khalil Gibran Muhammad will welcome attendees preceding an open forum and discussion entitled, “The Next Generation of Voices,” a discussion featuring international journalist and playwright Esther Armah, jazz journalist and producer Greg Thomas, and others.
Harlem’s emerging role as a film and technology center will be discussed at a luncheon at Manhattan Neighborhood Network’s new El Barrio Firehouse Community Media Center, 175 East 104th Street, on Wednesday, October 3. The luncheon will begin at 12:30 p.m. and will be hosted by Iris Morales, the center’s director, and feature a talk by Alyce Myatt, Director, Media Arts, of the National Endowment for the Arts. The panel discussion will be moderated by Jackie Glover, Vice President of Documentary Films, HBO, and feature representatives of Harlem’s film and media community including Marcia Smith, Firelight Media, Moikgantsi Kgama, ImageNation, Leslie Fields-Cruz, National Black Programming Consortium, Taneshia Nash Laird, My Image Studios Harlem (MIST Harlem) and Morales.
On Wednesday, October 3, participants are invited to the U.S. premiere screening of Otelo Burning, a beautiful, coming-of-age drama by award-winning filmmaker Sara Blecher, at MIST Cinemas, 40 West 116th Street. This new South African feature film presents a gripping story of township kids as they discover surfing—a newfound freedom through water. Winner of two of 13 nominations including Best Cinematography and Best Child Actor (Tshepang Mohlomi) at the 2012 African Movie Academy Awards, Otelo Burning was also nominated for the Golden Needle Award at the Seattle International Film Festival. The screening is presented by Autonomous Entertainment and The Turner Group and will be introduced by Rivers, chair of the Harlem Arts Alliance. Tickets are $30 and can be purchased HERE.
The Studio Museum in Harlem, 144 West 125thStreet, will host a special viewing and curatorial discussion on Thursday, October 4. The 6 p.m. event, which will include a reception, will focus on its current exhibition—the Caribbean Crossroads of the World—which was developed in collaboration with El Museo del Barrio and the Queens Museum.
Harlem arts and culture connect to the nation’s arts scene on Friday from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. as Imagining America (IA)—a consortium of universities and organizations dedicated to advancing the public and civic purposes of humanities, arts, and design—heads Uptown. This year’s IA conference involves site visits to Harlem arts institutions. A guided trolley tour will bring visitors and conference attendees to three renowned arts institutions—The Studio Museum in Harlem, The Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture and Harlem Stage/the Gatehouse. Participants will learn firsthand about the significance and impact of each institution, visit their exhibitions and engage in discussions highlighting the collaborations between the arts, business and education that are fueling Harlem’s current resurgence as a vibrant center for arts and commerce. Special guest speakers will include Patrice Walker-Powell, deputy chair, National Endowment for the Arts; Marcia Sells, vice president, Columbia University; Patricia Cruz, executive director, Harlem Stage/the Gatehouse; and Barbara Askins, president and CEO, 125th Street Business Improvement District.
The Summit continues on Friday at 6 p.m. with the opening reception of the fifth annual Strivers Art Circuit Art Tour at Aaron Davis Hall, 135th Street and Convent Avenue. The self-guided art/gallery tour of key galleries, studios and alternative spaces in and around Harlem’s famed Strivers Row district will take place on Saturday and Sunday, October 6 and 7.
On Friday, October 5 at 7 p.m., ImageNation presents “Art & Activism: Using Art for Social Change,” a panel discussion and sneak peek at scenes from the new film, Middle of Nowhere, at RAW SPACE (2031 Adam Clayton Powell Blvd., between 121st and 122nd Streets). Middle of Nowhere, directed by Ava DuVernay—who became the first black woman to win the best director prize at the Sundance Film Festival with the film—opens on October 12 in select cities nationwide. To RSVP, call 212-340-1874.
The New Heritage Theatre Group, in partnership with Community Matters NYC, Harlem Arts Alliance and The City College of New York, will present a concert—“In the Spirit: What’s Your Groove? Hip-Hop, R&B and Blues”—on Saturday, October 6 at 4:00 p.m. at Aaron Davis Hall (City College of New York). The event will feature performances by Legacy, Impact Repertory Theatre, Kwame and the Uptown Shakedown. To RSVP, call 212-926-2550.
The Summit will conclude on Sunday, October 7 at 3:00 p.m. at the Dwyer Cultural Center, 258 St. Nicholas Avenue, with a blues and jazz concert drawn from the plays, poems and narrative writings of jazz artist and poet Bill Harris. The presentation is by the New Heritage Theatre Company in association with New Federal Theatre and the HARLEM Arts Alliance. To RSVP, call 212-926-2550.
The Harlem Arts Summit 2012 is presented by the HARLEM Arts Alliance in collaboration with Columbia University, Greater Harlem Chamber of Commerce, 125th Street Business Improvement District, Studio Museum in Harlem, Aaron Davis Hall/City College of New York, The Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Harlem Business Alliance, Harlem Stage/The Gatehouse, Caribbean Cultural Center, Harlem Community Development Corporation, New Heritage Theatre Group, MIST Cinemas and Manhattan Neighborhood Network (MNN) – El Barrio Firehouse Community Media Center. Major support for the Summit is provided by the Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation, New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, New York State Council on the Arts and The National Endowment for the Arts.
All events are free and open to the public, except the MIST Harlem screening. For more information on the Harlem Arts Summit/Harlem Arts Advocacy Week 2012, visit harlemaa.org or call (347) 735-4280.
The HARLEM Arts Alliance is a not-for-profit arts service organization celebrating more than 10 years of service to a prestigious list of members such as the Apollo Theater, The Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Columbia University, Harlem Stage (Aaron Davis Hall), The Studio Museum in Harlem and more than 850 more cultural/arts institutions and individual artists.
HARLEM ARTS ADVOCACY WEEK 2012
HARLEM ARTS SUMMIT
Harlem at the Crossroads: Sustaining Our Arts and Cultural Resources
Schedule of Events
Monday, October 1
1000 AM
Summit Kickoff
Aaron Davis Hall, City College of New York, 160 Convent Avenue
“The Case for the Arts in New York State,” Lisa Robb, Executive Director, New York State Council on the Arts
“Harlem Now: The State of the Arts in Harlem” Ken Knuckles, CEO, Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation
Keynote, “Harlem, a Global Crucible for Arts and Culture,” Danny Glover, Actor/Activist
Presentation of Awards:
Humanitarian Award: Danny Glover
Lifetime Achievement: Vy Higginsen, Producer, Activist, Mama Foundation
Arts Leadership Award: Mikki Shepard, Producer, Presenter and Arts Consultant, Apollo Theater Foundation
Performances:
Noelle Higginson, vocalist, and Vincent Bohanon, pianist— “Lift Every Voice and Sing”
Michael Green, actor—monologue, “After Midnight” (Dr. King’s rebuke of the War in Vietnam)
Excerpt from Colman Domingo’s Wild with Happy, directed by Obie winner Robert O’Hara
Free admission
1:00 PM
“New Orleans in Harlem” Second Line Parade
Aaron Davis Hall, City College of New York, 160 Convent Avenue
5:30 PM
Harlem Art Summit Opening Reception
Hosted by The City College of New York
Aaron Davis Hall, City College of New York, 160 Convent Avenue
Free admission
6:30 PM
A Conversation with Harlem Arts Leaders: “Today’s Challenge, Tomorrow’s Promise”
Hosted by City College of New York
Aaron Davis Hall, City College of New York, 160 Convent Avenue
Introduction by Tamara Tunie, Actress, Philanthropist
Panelists:
Virginia Johnson, Artistic Director, Dance Theatre of Harlem
Yvette L. Campbell, President and CEO, Harlem School of the Arts
Patricia Cruz, Executive Director, Harlem Stage/The Gatehouse
Moderator: Katti Gray, Multimedia Journalist | Writing + Editing Consultant
Free admission
Tuesday, October 2
12:00 PM–2 PM
Film Screening and Discussion
The Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture
The Savoy King: Chick Webb and the Music that Changed America
515 Malcolm X Boulevard
The Savoy Ballroom was the home of the amazing Lindy Hop dancers, and the first venue in America where Blacks and Whites could dance and socialize together. It had a huge, but largely unheralded social impact. The film focuses on band leader and drummer Chick Webb, who led the Savoy Ballroom’s house band; Webb virtually invented modern drumming and built the hottest band of the 1930’s.
Excerpts from the film and panel discussion, featuring:
Jeff Kaufman – Director, The Savoy King
Dr. Richard Gale, son of Moe Gale owner of the Savoy Ballroom
Ms. Gertrude Jeannette, Actress
Norma Miller, Swing Dance Master
and special guests
Moderated by Savoy King Executive Producer Voza Rivers
Free admission
6:00 PM
OPEN HOUSE: The Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture
515 Malcolm X Boulevard
Welcome: Dr. Khalil Gibran Muhammad “Living Culture: Reconnecting our Young People”
The Next Generation of Voices: Discussion and Open Forum- Moderator, Esther Armah, International Journalist/ Playwright and special guests, including jazz journalist and producer Greg Thomas
Harlem Arts Showcase—Participating Organizations:
Dance Theatre of Harlem
Harlem School for the Arts
Apollo Theater Foundation (Stars of Tomorrow)
Harlem KW Project
Movement Theatre Company
Impact Repertory Theatre
Free admission
Wednesday, October 3
12:30–3:00 PM
Manhattan Neighborhood Network El Barrio Firehouse Community Media Center
175 East 104th Street
Luncheon and Panel Discussion
Harlem’s Film and Media Network: Cultivating New Voices, Telling Our Stories
A networking luncheon and panel discussion focused on Harlem-based film and media organizations that offer a new take on Harlem as a creative center. How do these organizations interact within the ecology of independent film/media development and distribution? Conversation will highlight efforts to provide access and resources for our community’s filmmakers, to offer training and mentoring opportunities for young people, and to give voice to fresh perspectives on issues that affect us all. Screening will include selected excerpts from the work of emerging filmmakers.
Host: Iris Morales, Director MNN’s Firehouse Community Media Center
Guest Speaker: Alyce Myatt, Director, Media Program, National Endowment for the Arts
Panelists: Marcia Smith, Firelight Media; Taneshia Nash Laird, Chief Marketing Officer, My Image Studios Harlem (MIST); Leslie Fields-Cruz, Vice President of Operations and Programming, National Black Programming Consortium; Moikgantsi Kgama, Founder/Director, ImageNation
Moderator: Jackie Glover, Vice President of Documentary Programming, Home Box Office
Free admission
6:30–8:00 PM
U.S. Premiere Film Screening
MIST Harlem, 40 W. 116th Street
Otelo Burning, a beautiful, coming-of-age drama by award-winning filmmaker Sara Blecher. This new South African feature film presents a gripping story of township kids as they discover surfing—a newfound freedom through water. Otelo Burning was chosen as the Opening Night selection at the Durban International Film Festival, and was nominated for the Golden Needle Award at the Seattle International Film Festival. The film won two of 13 nominations including Best Cinematography and Best Child Actor (Tshepang Mohlomi) at the 2012 African Movie Academy Awards. The film makes its U.S. theatrical premiere at New York’s new MIST Harlem presented by Autonomous Entertainment and The Turner Group.
Introduction by Voza Rivers, Chair, HARLEM Arts Alliance
Tickets are $30 and can be purchased at HERE.
Thursday, October 4
6:00 PM
Studio Museum in Harlem
144 West 125th Street
Caribbean Crossroads of the World: The Creative Process
Presentation and discussion of the collaborative process involved in developing this unique exhibition in partnership with El Museo del Barrio and Queens Museum
Viewing of Exhibition and Reception
Free admission
Friday, October 5
1:00 PM–4:00 PM
Harlem Site Visit- Imagining America
“Harlem: At the Crossroads”
Harlem’s global reputation as a center for arts and culture is unparalleled and its mystique has served as a magnet for both artists and audiences for decades. This is a guided trolley tour focusing on three outstanding Harlem Arts Institutions: the Studio Museum in Harlem, the world-class institution that has been a catalyst for promoting the work of artists of artists of African descent; The Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, a leading institution that has collected, preserved, and provided access to materials documenting black life; and Harlem Stage/The Gatehouse, a vibrant center for the performing arts celebrating and supporting artists of color from Harlem and around the world.
Presentations will focus on the new and unique partnerships between the arts, business, and educational institutions that fuel Harlem’s current resurgence and lay the foundation for new models to sustain Harlem’s artistic preeminence into the future.
1:00 PM Studio Museum in Harlem
Museum Visit and Gallery Tour
Exhibition: Caribbean Crossroads
2:00 PM The Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture
Visit to Exhibitions and Presentations
3:00 PM Harlem Stage/the Gatehouse
Harlem Stage Visit and tour of the Gatehouse
Presentation: BID ON CULTURE Annual Banner Competition
Barbara Askins, President and CEO, 125th Street BID
Wayne Benjamin, Director, Residential Development, Harlem Community Development Corporation
Pat Cruz, Executive Director, Harlem Stage/The Gatehouse
Panel discussion: Jazz Shrines. Model for Collaboration and “landmarking” Harlem’s legendary role in emergence of Jazz
Participating organizations:
Jazzmobile, Apollo Theatre Foundation, Harlem Stage, Columbia University
Free admission
6:00–8:00 PM
Strivers Art Circuit Annual Art Tour Opening Reception
Aaron Davis Hall, 135th Street & Convent Avenue
This is the fifth year of this self-guided art/gallery tour exhibiting the work of a wide diversity of artists drawn from throughout the Harlem community in galleries, studios and alternative spaces in and around the Strivers Row area. Sponsored by the HARLEM Arts Alliance, the tour takes place over Saturday and Sunday October 6 & 7th, 2012
Host: City College of New York
Free admission
7:00 PM–8:30 PM
Art & Activism: Using Art for Social Change
RAW SPACE, 2031 Adam Clayton Powell Blvd. (between 121st & 122nd Street)
Join ImageNation for a panel discussion and sneak peek at scenes from the new film Middle of Nowhere, directed by Ava DuVernay. Middle of Nowhere opens October 12th in select cities nationwide.
RSVP to 212-340-1874.
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 6
12:00 PM–6:00 PM
Strivers Art Circuit Annual Art Tour
Various venues, Strivers’ Row
See artists at work at their studios and visit galleries in this self-guided, walking tour of art venues in the Harlem’s Strivers’ Row corridor. Designed to increase exposure for Harlem artists, the event affords participants the opportunity to view and purchase artwork.
To RSVP, call (347) 735-4280 or visit HERE.
4:00 PM
Concert: In the Spirit: What’s Your Groove? Hip-Hop, R&B and Blues
Aaron Davis Hall, City College of New York, 160 Convent Avenue Concert featuring Legacy, Impact Repertory Theatre, Kwame and the Uptown Shakedown
Presented by New Heritage Theatre Group in Association with HAA and City College of New York
Free admission (RSVP 212-926-2550)
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 7
12:00 PM–6:00 PM
Strivers Art Circuit Annual Art Tour
Various venues, Strivers’ Row
See artists at work at their studios and visit galleries in this self-guided, walking tour of art venues in the Harlem’s Strivers’ Row corridor. Designed to increase exposure for Harlem artists, the event affords participants the opportunity to view and purchase artwork.
To RSVP, call (347) 735-4280 or visit HERE.
3:00 PM
New Heritage Theatre Group in association with New Federal Theatre and the HARLEM Arts Alliance
Dwyer Cultural Center, 258 St. Nicholas Avenue
The Summit concludes with a blues and jazz concert drawn from the plays, poems and narrative writings of jazz artist and poet Bill Harris.
Free admission (RSVP 212-926-2550)
Harlem Arts Summit 2012 is presented by HARLEM Arts Alliance in collaboration with the following Partner Organizations:
Aaron Davis Hall
Columbia University
The Greater Harlem Chamber of Commerce
125th Street Business Improvement District
Studio Museum in Harlem
The City College of New York
The Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture
Harlem Business Alliance
Harlem Stage/The Gatehouse
Caribbean Cultural Center
Harlem Community Development Corporation
Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation
New Heritage Theatre Group
MIST Cinemas
MNN - El Barrio Firehouse Community Media Center
Vy Higginsen Photo Courtesy Of: G.M. Miller
Danny Glover Photo By: Sara de Boer/Retna
Danny Glover Photo By: Sara de Boer/Retna
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