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Women's Herstory Month
Thursday March 19 through Sunday, March 21: The Women’s Project: NOT A FAIRY TALE workshop production to be presented at Mt. Pisgah Baptist Church by Dr. Johnny Ray Youngblood, Senior Pastor. The production runs three performances only – Friday, March 19 at 7pm; Saturday, March 20 at 3pm, Sunday, March 21 at 3pm. in Mt. Pisgah Baptist Church Spann-Jones Fellowship Hall, 760 DeKalb Avenue at the corner of Tompkins Ave. Brooklyn.. Suggested donation: $20. For tickets and more information: 718.388.3900, ext. 20, www.womenproject.com. Directed by Jesse Wooden Jr., the production is based on the true stories of three women coming to terms with the scars of their past and triumphantly facing the future. The script combines the adapted words and experiences of the women with spoken word by Nuyorican Slam poet and project ensemble member Jennifer Falu; and contemporary and gospel music. Three young women, who were also lifelong friends, approached Rev. Youngblood and revealed that they were survivors of some form of abuse; sexual or physical and they wanted to share their stories. The pastor suggested that they go beyond testifying in front of the congregation and allow themselves to be vehicles of healing in a bigger way. He decided that the bigger vehicle was the theater. The three women, along with several other women who are actors, poets or dancers by profession and had also experienced some form of abuse, came together to form an ensemble. The ensemble and the creative team participated in an intense four-day workshop with Shawnee Benton-Gibson, a psychodrama therapist, to develop the framework for their stories and to begin their healing.
The ensemble members are Brigette Barfield, Maya Bishop, Naeemah Brown, Soyini Crenshaw, Jennifer Falu, Demitrachs Hawkins, Jasmine Mejias, Katrina Pegues and Deirdre Simmons. The production’s creative team includes Temishia Johnson (lighting design), Patrice Davidson (set design), Hopie Lyn Burrows (Costume design), Rev. Ina Alisa Anderson (musical director), Naeemah Brown (choreographer), Nykolla Sweeney (production stage manager), Mary Brooks (assistant to the director) and Denise S. Gray (associate producer and CEO/SeasonWalk Productions).
A question and answer session will follow each performance. Members of the Mt. Pisgah Baptist Church healing ministry will be present to offer support to anyone affected by the production.
Thursday, March 19: 8:00a-10:00a, “Herstory” Induction Ceremony and Celebration at Borough Hall Courtroom and Rotunda hosted by Borough President Marty Markowitz honors contributions of Brooklyn women to the arts, sciences and business and public service. 209 Joralemon St., Downtown Brooklyn. This year’s honorees include: Barbara Winslow, Ph.D, associate professor, Brooklyn College School of Education and Women’s Studies programs, and founder and director of the Shirley Chisholm Project of Brooklyn Women’s Activism: 1945 to the Present. (Lucy Burns Activist Award); Elwanda Young, CEO, United Way of NYC (Shirley Chisholm Award); Betty Kahn, board member, Brooklyn Public Library and Reel Works (Emily Roebling Stewardship Award; Brenda M. Greene, Ph.D., English Professor at Medgar Evers College and executive director of the college’s Center for Black Literature (Betty Smith Arts Award); Elizabeth Streb, founder, Streb S.L.A.M. 9Lab for the Mechanics (Lady Deborah Moody Founders Award); Iris Jimenez-Hernandez, svp, North Brooklyn Healthcare Network (Dr. Susan Smith McKinney Humanitarian Award; and Tracie Williams, President, Junior League of Brooklyn (Jr. League of Brooklyn Centennial Award).
Saturday, March 20, 1p-4p: 2nd Women of Distinction Scholarship Luncheon at Boys & Girls H.S. The luncheon salutes distinguished women for their unwavering support of and service to the community and Boys & Girls High School and supports a great scholarship- creation opportunity for some of New York’s best and brightest graduating students. Money raised through ticket sales, a Silent Auction and donations at the event go to the scholarships. As we see it, the Women of Distinction Awards refers to both the students and the distinguished honorees, who include Pamela Green, Weeksville Heritage Center; Crystal Bobb-Semple, ounder and owner, Brownstone Books; educator Dr. Renee Young; guidance counselor Dorothy Harper (celebrating 43 years in the education field); Miss Kelly Roberts, school safety agent; Dr. Sheila Evans-Tranumn, retired associate commissioner for the NYS Education Department; and Ms. Nebert Jackson, retired educator who taught for some 30 years at Boys & Girls H.S. The Boys & Girls H.S. graduating seniors who worked hard throughout the school year to raise funds for college needs include: Alicia Rogers, Areya Cortes, Shatiqua Watson, Brittany George, Adana David, Melissa DeVore, Amandla McMillan, Shardei Lewis and Deborah Akinbowale. The event is the culminating activity of the year-long campaign and anyone wanting to support the effort can donate items or services for the silent auction; food for the March 20 luncheon;and/or contributions to the students’ scholarship fund. Contact: Miss Andrea Toussaint of The Sisterhood.Tickets: $25. 718-467-1700. (See Centerfold photo.)
Saturday, March 21, 3:00p-7p: BOOK FAIR hosted by the Brooklyn Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority: Theme: Reading is Chicken Soup for the Mind. At Boys & Girls H.S., 1700 Fulton Street, Brooklyn. For everyone.
Friday, March 26: Tribute to “The Creative Power of Women” sponsored by NYS Sen. Bill Perkins and the Caribbean Cultural Center of the African Diaspora Institute will honor such women as Wilhelmina Obatola Grant for their work in the arts and the cultural community. Adam Clayton Power Jr. State Office Building, 163 West 125th St., 8th Fl. A reception will follow the program. RSVP 212-222-7315
Friday, March 26-31: Opening of MUSLIM VOICES: THE FEMALE PERSPECTIVE at BAM. Seven feature films that explore women’s lives in Muslim countries including Afghanistan, Algeria, Iran and Lebanon. For details visit: www.BAM.org or call 718-636-4100.
Sunday, March 28: HARRIET’S PLACE: Underground Railroad and Beyond. New exhibition of photographs capturing the essence of Harriet Tubman, the woman, by educator/artist/historian/preservationist Dr. Olivia Cousins, opens today at Magnolia Tree Earth Center of Bedford-Stuyvesant. Admission Free. Details to be announced. Contact: Andrea Brathwaite at 718-387-2116.
Sunday, March 28: 12:00p-4:00p, One-Day Only! CARIBBEAN-AMERICAN WOMEN ARTISTS Exhibition. St. Francis College, 182 Remsen St. Reception: 2:30pm. Admission Free.
Monday, March 29: At the YMCA today Congressman Ed Towns salutes community activists Vivian Bright and Sharonnie Perry; Dr. Emma Jordan Simpson, Executive Director, Childrens Defense Fund-New York; Jeannette Turner, Retired Health Care Professional; Kim William Clark, Dean, Institutional Advancement and Student Affairs, LIU; Entrepreneur Tremaine Wright; Deborah Clark-Johnson, Principal of P.S. 56; Lena Gates, Principal of P.S. 5; Sharlene Brown and Kay Wilson-Stallings of the Bedford Stuyvesant YMCA staff.
Monday, March 29: Herbert Von King Park’s Third Phenomenal Women Awards Brunch: Culinary and Drama Teens at the Park, and Parks Administrator Lemuel Mial with volunteer instructor-wife Charlotte Mial, and community friends will honor community media women.
-Bernice Elizabeth Green