The Surry Arts Council is celebrating Black History with Living Rhythms African drumming and dance workshops in conjunction with the African American Historical and Genealogical Society; the Earle Theatre will be showing King Richard; Mike Wiley will be performing in five area schools with his show entitled Jackie Robinson: A Game Apart; Sons of Mystro will be performing for students at the Earle and will also be performing in the evening for the public on Thursday, March 17.
The arts council will be joining with the African American Historical and Genealogical Society again in April to provide a one-hour drumming and dance interactive performance at the Multicultural Festival on Market Street.
The African drumming and dance workshops are sponsored in part by the African American Historical and Genealogical Society with funding from a Grassroots Grant from the North Carolina Arts Council, a division of the Department of Natural & Cultural Resources.
These programs will be held on Saturday, Feb. 19, March 19, April 16, and May 21. Each workshop will begin with drumming at 1 p.m. followed by an African dance workshop at 2:15 p.m. in the Andy Griffith Museum Theatre on the lower level of the Andy Griffith Museum. The workshops are free for all ages and are limited to 30 participants per session.
Tam Tam Mandingue of Winston-Salem will be providing 30 drums at each workshop. With an authentic imported drum for each participant, these education programs immerse participants in both the music and dance of West Africa. Participants learn rhythms and songs that represent the traditions of several African ethnic groups, then learn dances that historically accompany the musical selections.
Strong emphasis is placed on the traditional West African values of respect, community, and teamwork. Living Rhythms workshops broaden participants’ understanding of our increasingly interdependent world, and encourage them to embrace a life of critical thinking.
On May 28, a dance workshop will close out the series. In addition, a one-hour interactive performance will be held at 5 p.m. on April 28 at the Multicultural Festival on Market Street. Contact Marie Nicholson at mariejnic@hotmail.com or RJ Heller at rj@surryarts.org with questions, to register/participate, or for more information.
The celebration continues Wednesday, March 2 and Thursday, March 3 with performances by Mike Wiley. Wiley’s play chronicles the life of Jackie Robinson. Acclaimed actor and playwright Mike Wiley has spent the past decade fulfilling his mission to bring educational theatre to young audiences and communities across the country.
In the early days of his career, Wiley found few theatrical resources to shine a light on key events and figures in African-American history. To bring these stories to life, he started his own production company. Through his performances, Wiley has introduced countless students and communities to the African American legends.
Wiley has a Masters of Fine Arts from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and is the 2010 and 2014 Lehman Brady Visiting Joint Chair Professor in Documentary Studies and American Studies at Duke University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. In addition to his numerous school and community performances, he has also appeared on Discovery Channel, The Learning Channel, and National Geographic Channel and has been featured in Our State magazine and on PBS’ North Carolina Now and WUNC’s The State of Things.
The finale will be a performance by Sons of Mystro on Thursday, March 17 at the Historic Earle Theatre. The violin duo will have two performances, one daytime performance for local students and an evening performance open to the public.
Born in South Florida to a Jamaican father and Barbadian mother, Malcolm, 23, and his 20-year-old brother Umoja learned to play violin through South Florida’s public school system and attended Dillard High School for the Performing Arts. Together, these brothers are Sons of Mystro. They use their violins to interpret reggae classics, American pop songs, and their own creations accompanied by a DJ and a drummer.
They are winners of the Emerging Artist under 21 years of age award by the International Reggae and World Music Awards. Their debut recording, “Reggae Strings” is available wherever music is streamed or sold. Mentored by the classical meets hip hop duo Black Violin, these artists’ stars are on the rise. Sons of Mystro has played at many festivals and events, including The Grace Jamaican Jerk Festival, Legends Easter Fest, One Love Reggae Fest, Reggae Dancehall Awards, Sunfest, and the annual Jazz in the Gardens. They’ve graced the same stage with reggae, dancehall, and R&B veterans such as Marcia Griffiths, John Holt, Ken Boothe, Dobby Dobson, Freddie McGregor, Frankie Paul, Fantasia Barrino, Kenny “Babyface” Edmonds, and Earth, Wind & Fire.
The performances are funded in part by a grant from South Arts in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts and the North Carolina Arts Council. Tickets are $10-$15 per person for the public show.
For additional information or tickets visit www.surryarts.org, call 336-786-7998, or email rj@surryarts.org.
Source: https://www.mtairynews.com
Be First to Comment