Pittsburgh Playwrights Theatre Company presents August Wilson's TWO TRAINS RUNNING 5/15-31

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Produced by special arrangement with SAMUEL FRENCH, INC

Photo by Michael Romanos

www.pghplaywrights.com

Broadway's The Color Purple's LEILANI N. BRYANT cast as the lead in HANNAH ELIAS 6/17 (NYC)

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Leilani N. Bryant
Leilani is a native of Jacksonville, Florida. She has performed in the Broadway musical The Color Purple. She has also performed in the Broadway musical Show Boat, a benefit concert for Carnegie Hall. Other accomplishments include featured vocalist for Music Under the Stars with the Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra, as well as featured vocalist for the Florida Jasper Awards.

I am also honored that Nathan is going to use one of my original compositions as incidental music for HANNAH ELIAS, and I look forward to being in NYC to perform the music in conjunction with the reading, as well as to attend the opening night of Hershell Norwood's BILLIE'S BLUES at the Cherry Lane Theater, directed by T. Bankole.

Also on board for this event will be Winston Salem based costume designer Frenchie LaVern, who will present her costume renderings for Nathan's play.

This reading will take place at The Players Club at 7 pm on Tuesday, June 17. Seating is limited, so please let me know if you are planning to attend.

Jaz Dorsey
Artistic Director
AAPEX
(The African American Playwrights Exchange)
Nashville, Tennessee
615-837-8777
aapextv@gmail.com

First National Conference Black Women Playwrights' Group 9/4-7 (Chicago)

1st National Conference - Black Women Playwrights' Group

The Black Women Playwrights' Group

presents

Whisper, Laugh, Shout, Tell the Story: 1st National Meeting for Women of Color Writing Drama

Chicago

September 4-7

Hosted by

Loyola University Chicago's Department of Fine and Performing Arts

Guest Speaker:

Lynn Nottage, MacArthur Award-Winning Playwright

Who should come? You should. If you are thinking about writing your first play, or have just started, come. If you have written 20 plays, come. If you are writing hip hop, dramas, comedies, gospel plays, musicals, come! If you are writing for film and television, come. Your voice is unique, but we are gathering kindred spirits with stories to tell. For the first time women writers of color will gather in a nurturing environment that assumes they should have prolific, consistent careers writing dramatic literature that illuminates the human condition. We want to ask writing women what they need to navigate the labyrinth facing writers of color in theater, film, and television. Focus groups will ask, "What do you need? How can we support you?" With the answers to these questions, we will design a national level of membership that serves not only women playwrights of color but also the American theater.

The four-day meeting will include a staged reading, an awards dinner, workshops, and small group discussions that center on the playwrights' experiences. Lynn Nottage, MacArthur award-winning playwright, is a guest speaker. Scholars and professionals in the field will also be present to make this a memorable and worthwhile event. The conference will take place at Loyola University Chicago's newly renovated Mundelein Center for the Fine and Performing Arts on Loyola's Lake Shore Campus. Loyola Professor Jonathan Wilson, a highly respected director at regional theaters across the nation, will direct the staged reading. For Loyola, the conference is the beginning of a year-long focus on gender, diversity, and new initiatives in the American theater.

"This summer, I stood in the bank and two black women were at the teller windows in front of me. I saw only their backs. One was in her fifties, with perfectly coiffed silvery hair, a raw silk outfit, lime green pants, and tiny jewels on her mules. Next to her was a woman in her twenties, with dread locks down her back, well-worn cowboy boots, jeans with a chain belt, and a small purse with a shoulder strap. On the purse was the Harley Davidson emblem. I thought to myself, 'Here's a story. Here's a BWPG standing in line right in front of me."

Please come to Chicago and tell your story!

Karen L.B. Evans

President & Founder BWPG.

For more information, please email conference@40blackwomenplaywrights.org, call (202) 635-2974, or visit www.blackwomenplaywrights.org/.

Call for Shorts 8/1 Deadline

Calling All Playwrights. Submissions for short plays/one acts/excerpts (10-20 min) are now being accepted for the 3rd Annual Shades of Black Theatre Festival. Selected submissions will be read at the festival’s Emerging Playwrights Readings at the Darkhorse Theater in Nashville, TN. Submissions must be unpublished works. The playwright will retain all rights to his/her script. There is a $5 entry fee that must be paid online at http://sistastyle.tix.com. For more information or to access a submission form, visit shadesofblackfestival.com or send an email to shadesofblackfestival@yahoo.com. Deadline: August 1.

Call for Southern Based Women of Color playwrights UNDER 30 5/20 Deadline (Houston)

Submission Call for

Southern Based Women of Color playwrights under 30.

Silver House Theatre is now accepting submissions for its

HOUSTON URBAN THEATER SERIES.

Silver House Theatre is specifically seeking women writers of color who are southern based and under the age of 30. If selected for a Staged Reading, playwrights are encouraged to attend at least one other Theater Series event in addition to their own. Encouraging and supporting collaboration and dialogue between playwrights is vital to the mission of the series.

We are accepting only full-length plays at this time. All readings will be staged at the Silver House Theatre, using local directors and professional actors. Three (3) plays will be selected. Playwrights will receive, if their play is chosen, a staged reading with the assistance of a dramaturg.

GUIDELINES: (One Submission per playwright, please)

1. Previously unproduced and unpublished original work (no adaptations)

2. Comedies & Dramas

3. Cast: maximum- 6

There is no submission fee for this event.
Please submit with cover letter, a brief bio, artist resume, and a hard copy of your script to:

Silver House Theatre

Reginald Edmund

Attn: Houston Urban Theatre Series

P.O. Box 88074

Houston, Tx 77288-0074

Submission deadline by: May 20th, 2008

All applicants should expect a reply within six weeks of receipt,

including written feedback on the play.

If the work is chosen for a Staged Reading, the Theatre Reading Series Curator will assist on all requested aspects of the event, including casting, publicity and in-house dramaturgy.

Please no phone calls. Any questions can be emailed to Reginald Edmund,

Silver House Theatre's Artistic Director,

at silverhousetheatre@yahoo.com.

We look forward to receiving your submissions!

ANTIGONE ASSATA SHAKUR April/May (NYC)

You are invited to enjoy the engaging work in ...
Antigone Assata Shakur An Adaptation

by

Jaqueline Wade
Directed by

PASSION
An exciting new view of the Black Panther Party as Antigone fights for her brother’s dignity in death.

Featuring:
T. Renee Mathis, Cecily Benjamin, Terrence Epps, Kyle P. Carter, Larry Floyd,

Juanita Howard, Darnelle Cadet, C.J. Sailor, Brandon Ramcheran

&

Jessica Fontaine as Antigone

Sat. April 19, 8 PM

Sun. April 20, 5 PM & 8 PM

Fri. April 25, 9:45 PM

Sat. April 26, 8 PM

Sun. April 27, 7 PM
Thur. May 1, 7 PM

Fri. May 2, 7 PM

Sat. May 3, 5 & 9:30 PM

Sun. May 4, 7PM
At

411 Theatre
300 West 43rd Street, 4th Fl,

NYC (near 8th Avenue )

For Tickets online contact www.theatermania.com

or call 212-352-0255
Or purchase tickets 1/2 hour before show time
at theatre box office.

Tickets Prices
General Admission $18
Students and Senior Citizens $15 with ID

For more information or questions, contact 212-501-3842
or email us at dusttracksprod@aol.com
Dust Tracks Theater Productions

Call for Entries (Florida playwrights only)

NEW STAGEWORKS

LONGJOHNS STAGED READING SERIES

for FLORIDA playwrights only.
Deadline Date: 05-15-08
Material: Full-Length Plays
STAGEWORKS 21st YEAR INTRODUCING FLORIDA PLAYWRIGHTS

STAGEWORKS Theatre is now accepting submissions of original, previously un-produced and unpublished full-length plays for consideration for a STAGED READING during our 2008 – 2009 Season. Preference is given to plays that encourage multi-racial casting. Three (3) plays will be selected. Playwrights will receive, if their play is chosen, a staged reading with the assistance of a dramaturg.
GUIDELINES: (One Submission per playwright, please)
1. Previously unproduced and unpublished original work (no adaptations)
2. Comedies & Dramas
3. Minimal Set/Tech
4. Cast: maximum: 6-8
SUBMISSION FEE: Waived: paid by Anonymous donor
AWARDS: A Staged Reading at the TBPAC’s Shimberg Playhouse & a Dramaturg assigned from the Playwrights Center, Minneapolis, or Chicago Dramatists NOTIFICATION: June 15, 2008
MAIL TO: STAGEWORKS

120 Adriatic Avenue Tampa, FL 33606

Tel : 813-251-8984
www.stageworkstheatre.org

Source: The Loop (see Resources)

Meet Mike Oatman May 15th (NYC)

Join Mike Oatman, playwright in residence at Cleveland's Karamu House, for the reading of his play THE CHITTLIN THIEF on Thursday, May 15 at Stella Adler Conservatory, 31 W. 27th Street between Broadway & 6th Avenue. The reading will begin at 7 pm.

Seating is limited, so reservations are recommended. Please RSVP TO aapextv@gmail.com

Stella Adler and AAPEX Present Mike Oatman's THE CHITLIN THIEF 5/15 (NYC)

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The Stella Adler Conservatory in New York City

will present a reading of Mike Oatman's stunning new comedy

THE CHITTLIN THIEF

on Thursday, May 15, at 7pm.

The reading will be directed by AAPEX artist

Benard Cummings,

who is an instructor at the Conservatory.

It stars:

Duane A. Robinson

Mr. Robinson's stage credits include Classical Theater of Harlem's Ain’t Supposed to Die A Natural Death (Sweet Daddy), Romeo and Juliet (Romeo), Folger Theater's (Washington D.C.) King Lear (Edmund),

Turtle Shell Prods' (NYC) Five Guns, Four Bullets (Joshua), Heads-Up (Grey), LifeDome Theater's (NYC) Christmas at The Murphy’s (Jim), Stella Adler Studio's (NYC) Angels In America (Belize/Mr. Lies), The Dybbuk (Man), Tartuffe (Tartuffe), Marat/Sade (Marat), A Gaggle of Saints (John), The Philadelphia (Marcus), La Ronde (Husband), The Producers Club Open Admissions (Calvin). Television credits include: As The World Turns (CBS) (Officer Williams). Film credits include: Inside Joke Productions' How to Make it in N.Y. for Only $15 a Day (Chris). Vocie Over: UNICEF: PAHA (Narrator #1)
(Principled Approach to Humanitarian Action)

Jeremy Stuart

Stage credits include leading roles in Rinne Groff's LIFT-OFF at Provincetown Playhouse, ASCENSION DAY with Ving Rhames, Arthur French, and Andre DeShields at Hudson Guild, FLATBUSH FAITHFUL with Chazz Palminteri at Judith Anderson Theater, HARVEST at AlchemyTheatre/Theater Row, EDWARD 2 at NY Fringe Festival, Gary Richards' STAG at Studio 3. As a member of Circle Rep Lab, RIVERS AND RAVINES and HIRE THE MAN. Founding member of Gary Garrison's FIRST LOOK THEATER COMPANY. Extensive work with Tony Randall at NATIONALACTORS THEATER for Young Audience Outreach program. Television, recurring roles on ALL MY CHILDREN and GUIDING LIGHT. Longtime and devoted student of Michael Howard and Uta Hagen.

Michelle Baldwin

Michele Baldwin has currently completed the feature film, Betrayal: Sins in High Places, presently being pitched to HBO, where she portrays the lead character, Doris. Michele has also completed the TV pilot, Paris Nevada, as the principal character, Lorette, which is being shopped around for pick up. In addition, Michele portrays a supporting character and a principal character on two web series. Michele presently studies at Black Nexxus and also via private coaching. Some credits: Visions Tour Group; Visions, Southern Belles, Bram Stroker’s Dracula, Venus the Mystic Psychic, Girlfriends… Film: Push, The Blood and the Body, Pitter Patter, A Veteran’s Life… TV: One Life to Live, All My Children, Law and Order SUV… and several commercials. With a purposeful focus and steadfast drive, Michele will not be stopped, surely a “Star Rising” to lookout for!

Constance Parng

Constance Parng will be appearing in the upcoming Inwood Shakespeare Festival this summer and will also be joining the Between the Lines production of From Auction Block to Hip Hop. She has performed with Second Generation at the Public Theater, Turtle Shell Productions, Theatre Nebula, and The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey's apprentice company. As a playwright, her work has been produced in the 8 Minute Madness Festival and staged by Core Theatre. She is a recipient of the National Foundation for Advancement of the Arts Gold Award in Writing, and a Presidential Scholar in the Arts. BFA: NYU Tisch School of the Arts, Dramatic Writing.

Chantal Thuy

Chantal Thuy stage credits include Teesri Duniya Theatre's Untold Stories (Montreal), Lysistrata (Montreal, Concordia University), Stella Adler Studio's (NYC) Angels In America (Harper), Children's Hour (Karen/Martha), Dolores (Dolores), Danny and The Deep Blue Sea (Roberta), This is Our Youth (Jessica). Film and Shorts include The Fuzz (Hawaii, Short Indie), The Bump (San Francisco State University), Alex, Vampire Slayer (High Resolution Production), and Between the Folds (Concordia University). Chantal Thuy is currently completing a 2.5 year Conservatory program at Stella Adler Studio of Acting (NYC)and has graduated from San Francisco State University (San Francisco) and Concordia University (Montreal) with a BA in TV, Film Studies and Theatre.

Mr. Oatman is playwright in residence at KARAMU HOUSE in Cleveland. In addition to his position as resident playwright, Mike is also creative director of Karamu's Gaslight series, which mounts workshop productions, and is the interim director of Karamu's TOPS educational program, which sends shows out to the schools.

THE CHITTLIN THIEF received it's premiere reading at Mocha Hut in Washington, DC in October 2007.

Inquiries should be directed to Jaz Dorsey, Dramaturg, The African American Playwrights' Exchange (AAPEX) at jazmn47@aol.com or by calling 615-837-8777

AAPEX events for April, May and June (NYC)

Friday, April 18
Bankole's fundraiser for the Cherry Lane Theater production of BILLIE'S BLUES
Rush Art Galleries
526 W. 26th Street Suite 311
7 - 9 pm
Suggested Donation $25.00 for artists associated with AAPEX
RSVP to http://us.f343.mail.yahoo.com/ym/Compose?To=bankole@mugendaifilms.com

Mugendai Entertainment, a production company based in New York was founded by T.Bankolé and Keith Sagel. Mugendai has primarily focused on film, television and music based projects. Bankolé , a New York based fine artist, has traveled the United States and abroad conducting art seminars, showcasing his artwork and producing and directing theatrical performances. Additionally, while working under the auspices of Woodie King Jr.'s New Federal Theater, Bankolé produced, directed, and secured funds for several works including the jazz inspired theatrical Homage to the Greats (1997), starring Antonio Hart; Acts from the Womb (1998), a series of six women's plays; and Parallel Lives (1999), a dance theatrical featuring participation from noted actors Armand Assante and Italian legend Marrio Fratti. He has worked with notable actors, such as Ruby Dee to Dave Chappell and Aretha Franklin to John Legend. Throughout his career, Bankolé has built great relationships with noted directors, producers and industry insiders. He will serve as the producing director of playwright, Hershell Norwood's play, Billie's Blues,Tonight At Moma's Jam.

Thursday, May 15
Benard Cummings directs a reading of THE CHITTLIN THIEF by Karamu Playwright in Residence Mike Oatman
Stella Adler Conservatory
31 W. 27th Street 2nd floor
7 pm
Free
RSVP to http://us.f343.mail.yahoo.com/ym/Compose?To=jazmn47@aol.com

Tuesday, June 17
Passion directs a reading of HANNAH ELIAS by award winning film maker Nathan Ross Freeman
The Players Club Library 16 Gramercy Park South
Free
RSVP to http://us.f343.mail.yahoo.com/ym/Compose?To=jazmn47@aol.com

Date TBA June 2008
Bankole presents BILLIE'S BLUES TONIGHT AT MAMA'S JAM at The Cherry Lane Theater as part of the Downtown Urban Theater Festival.

ALSO - TRU Executive director Bob Ost and AAPEX Dramaturg Jaz Dorsey invite you to a TRU - AAPEX MIXER on Wednesday, May 15 from 7 - 10 pm. For details please contact Jaz at http://us.f343.mail.yahoo.com/ym/Compose?To=jazmn47@aol.com

Nathan Ross Freeman's HANNAH ELIAS reading at the PLAYERS CLUB June (NYC)

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Call for short screenplay with African culture theme

Searching for short script 30 pgs w/African culture/theme... (Anywhere, Ca./USA)

Reply to: gigs-635345509@craigslist.orgDate: 2008-04-08, 4:34PM PDT

We are in search of a script with a FRESH and DIFFERENT TAKE on ideally WEST AFRICAN but open to all African cultures as it relates to life IN AMERICA. Please avoid submitting scripts filled with endless and abvious stereotypes, those tend to be predictable and offensive. We are open to comedies and dramas that can realistically be filmed here in Los Angeles. The budget is currently being worked on. We are looking for a FRESH, ORIGINAL VOICE with something interesting/meaningful to say about Africans in America and themes surround that idea. You will be paid for the script. The film will be exploited in every possible way to maximize exposure. Banking/investors and film distribution connections are in place for a possible feature lengh version and/or for other possible projects. Please register and protect your work. See you at the movies!

Source: Craigs List

Hershell Norwood's BILLIE'S BLUES 4/18 (NYC)

Click image to Enlarge.

Call for Entries Juneteenth Atlanta Film Fest 6/19-20th (ATLANTA)

DEADLINE MAY 25TH!

It's Carly! I am co-sponsoring a Juneteenth Film Festival in Atlanta on June 19 - 20.

I have attached our press release and call for entries below.

Thanks, Carletta

http://www.ikamproductions.com/

Juneteenth Atlanta Film Showcase

Featuring
Presentation to The Campaign

for the Ossie Davis Endowment

Atlanta, Georgia (March 15, 2008) – In celebration of Juneteenth 2008, The Big Picture Film & Video Foundation and IKAM Productions proudly presents the first annual Juneteenth Atlanta Film Showcase, Thursday and Friday, June 19th & 20th. Festivities include an opening and closing reception, book signings, a museum exhibit of African American inventors, and a two-day showcase of short and feature length films celebrating the diversity, strength and survival of African Americans.

The Juneteenth Atlanta Film Showcase closing program will take place Friday June 20th and will include a special presentation of a portion of the event’s proceeds to be received by a representative of

The Campaign for the Ossie Davis Endowment.

“We are excited to make participation in this historical celebration possible!” says Nancy Howard, Founder and Executive Director of The Big Picture Film & Video Foundation. “Juneteenth is a representation of who we are as African Americans – a turning point indicating where we’ve come from and a confirmation of our resilience and endurance. We’re doubly honored to contribute to The Ossie Davis Endowment, and pleased to welcome a representative from the organization as our special guest to kick off our first annual event and to receive our donation.”

The Campaign for The Ossie Davis Endowment supports Ossie Davis Scholars, African American college students charged with continuing his life of artistic activism through their educational and professional choices. The Campaign was established by friends of Mr. Davis, with the blessing of the Davis family. The United Negro College Fund (UNCF) will administer the Endowment. For additional information about the campaign and the endowment, visit www.ossiedavisendowment.com.

What is Juneteenth? Juneteenth is the oldest known celebration commemorating the end of slavery in the United States. It was June 19th, 1865 when the slaves in Galveston, Texas learned that they were finally free – though slaves had actually been freed two and a half years earlier with the Emancipation Proclamation of January 1, 1863. While its roots are in Texas, Juneteenth has become a special day for African Americans all around the United States and the world. For an overview of the worldwide celebration, visit www.juneteenth.com.

Schedule of events and advance ticket sales will be available online at www.juneteenthatlanta.com beginning April 15, 2008, and will include pricing for individual events, All Day Passes or All Access Passes. Program booklet ads are $100 for a full page. Additional sponsorship opportunities are also available - commit early for reduced rates. For details call 404-799-8115.

AAPEX Celebrates JUNETEENTH with Nathan Ross Freeman's HANNAH ELIAS 6/17 (NYC)

On Tuesday, June 17th, AAPEX will recognize the annual observation of JUNETEENTH (June 19th) with a reading of Nathan Ross Freeman's stunning award-winning play HANNAH ELIAS. The reading will be directed by Passion and will include a presentation of the costume renderings of Frenchie LaVern. The reading will be held in on the main stage of The Players Club, 16 Gramercy Park South, NYC.

Nathan and Passion are both film makers whose work won awards at last year's Southern Appalachian International Film Festival.

We hope that you can plan now to join us for this exciting event.

Donations toward this project are welcome and can be made by sending a check to
Theater Resources Unlimited
309 W. 104th Street, ID
New York, New York
10025

Checks should be made out to TRU and marked "For AAPEX - HANNAH ELIAS."


Below is some information on Juneteenth.

Juneteenth is the oldest known celebration commemorating the ending of slavery in the United States. Dating back to 1865, it was on June 19th that the Union soldiers, led by Major General Gordon Granger, landed at Galveston, Texas with news that the war had ended and that the enslaved were now free. Note that this was two and a half years after President Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation - which had become official January 1, 1863. The Emancipation Proclamation had little impact on the Texans due to the minimal number of Union troops to enforce the new Executive order. However, with the surrender of General Lee in April of 1865, and the arrival of General Granger’s regiment, the forces were finally strong enough to influence and overcome the resistance.
Later attempts to explain this two and a half year delay in the receipt of this important news have yielded several versions that have been handed down through the years. Often told is the story of a messenger who was murdered on his way to Texas with the news of freedom. Another, is that the news was deliberately withheld by the enslavers to maintain the labor force on the plantations. And still another, is that federal troops actually waited for the slave owners to reap the benefits of one last cotton harvest before going to Texas to enforce the Emancipation Proclamation. All or none of them could be true. For whatever the reason, conditions in Texas remained status quo well beyond what was statutory.

General Order Number 3
One of General Granger’s first orders of business was to read to the people of Texas, General Order Number 3 which began most significantly with: "The people of Texas are informed that in accordance with a Proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free. This involves an absolute equality of rights and rights of property between former masters and slaves, and the connection heretofore existing between them becomes that between employer and free laborer."

The reactions to this profound news ranged from pure shock to immediate jubilation. While many lingered to learn of this new employer to employee relationship, many left before these offers were completely off the lips of their former 'masters' - attesting to the varying conditions on the plantations and the realization of freedom. Even with nowhere to go, many felt that leaving the plantation would be their first grasp of freedom. North was a logical destination and for many it represented true freedom, while the desire to reach family members in neighboring states drove the some into Louisiana, Arkansas and Oklahoma. Settling into these new areas as free men and women brought on new realities and the challenges of establishing a heretofore non-existent status for black people in America. Recounting the memories of that great day in June of 1865 and its festivities would serve as motivation as well as a release from the growing pressures encountered in their new territory. The celebration of June 19th was coined "Juneteenth" and grew with more participation from descendants. The Juneteenth celebration was a time for reassuring each other, for praying and for gathering remaining family members. Juneteenth continued to be highly revered in Texas decades later, with many former slaves and descendants making an annual pilgrimage back to Galveston on this date.