2/22/15 O&A Ronald K. Brown and Evidence, A Dance Company Begin New York City Season at the Joyce

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Ronald K. Brown and Evidence, A Dance Company begin a one week New York City season Tuesday, February 24 through Sunday, March 1 at the Joyce Theater. The season will mark the 30th anniversary of the company. To commemorate this milestone the company will present two programs of Brown’s signature work.  Continue reading

2/8/15 O&A With WaleStylez: Harlem Fine Arts Show Announces Jazzmobile Sponsorship

By Adewale Adekanbi

photo copy 2 In Photo: Sidra Smith and Adewale Adekanbi     Walter Rutledge photographer

On Thursday January 29th the Harlem Fine Arts Show held a press event and reception at the New York Times headquarters in Times Square. The event was the official preview of the upcoming art show take will run Thursday, February 12 through Sunday February 15 at Riverside Church.

IMG_1792  In Photo: Robin Bell Steven and photographer Chuck Stewart    Adewale Adekanbi photographer

The event announced Jazzmobile as the recipient of the Harlem Fine Arts Show 2015 fundraising initiative. Jazzmobile President Robin Bell Stevens was joined by art and music lovers to share in the good news that comes during the 50th year celebration of Jazzmobile. Founded in 1964 by National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Master, composer, pianist, educator, jazz legend Dr. Billy Taylor and arts administrator Ms. Daphne Arnstein, Jazzmobile’s mission is to present, preserve, promote and propagate America’s classical music Jazz. Jazzmobile is the oldest not-for-profit organization founded with this as it sole mission.

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The Harlem Fine Arts Show (HFAS) is the largest traveling African Diasporic art show in the United States. Inspired by the Harlem Renaissance; HFAS is a platform for artists and galleries to exhibit their work. The arts show provides unparalleled access to thousands of artists, craftsmen, tastemakers, art aficionados and high-level executives bringing art back to Harlem- the Mecca of Black culture.

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2/6/15 O&A Martha Graham Dance Company Returns To The Joyce

By Walter Rutledge
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Martha Graham had a fondness for Greek literature and mythology, and utilized these larger than life characters and themes as a source for inspiration. If we were to describe the present Martha Graham Dance Company using a figure from antiquity it would definitely be the Phoenix. The death of Graham, a nasty legal battle for control of work and the changing public attitude toward “how modern was modern dance” seemed to predict the final curtain call for the venerable dance company.

So many institutions struggled to survive after the death of the company’s name sake and major artistic voice, unfortunately many were not able to redefine their mission and are now just a memory. The Graham Company has found a way to not only redefine, and like the Phoenix, to rise with a renewed vigor. Through innovative programming, thoughtful reconstructions and exciting new commissions the Martha Graham Dance Company is once again making a bold artistic statement.

After what can only be described as a triumphant return to New York City Center last year, the company will begin their 2015 New York Season Tuesday, February 10 at the Joyce Theater. The company pays tribute to Graham’s defining influence as an American Modernist with Shape&Design, a program highlighting the sculptural and architectural aspects of choreography by Graham and others. The expanded season, which runs through February 22, will offer 14 performances over twelve days. 

A Conversation With Janet Eilber- Artistic Director Martha Graham Dance Company

Panorama and Chronicle, Graham classics that set the standard for geometric force, are featured, along with Embattled Garden and Errand into the Maze, masterworks with evocative sets by Isamu Noguchi. Shape&Design includes recent works by renowned choreographers Nacho Duato, Andonis Foniadakis, and Annie-B Parson. The company celebrates the 85th anniversary of Graham’s iconic solo Lamentation with the world premiere of four new Lamentation Variations, choreographed by Kyle Abraham, Michelle Dorrance, Liz Gerring, and Sonya Tayeh.

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The performance schedule:

Program A: Feb 11, 15 at 7:30pm; Feb 12, 20-21 at 8pm; Feb 22 at 2pm – Satyric Festival Song, Embattled Garden, Lamentation Variations (including pieces by Kyle Abraham and Sonya Tayeh), Rust, Chronicle

Program B: Feb 17, 22 at 7:30pm; Feb 13-14, 19 at 8pm – Lamentation Variations (including pieces by Michelle Dorrance and Liz Gerring), Errand Into the Maze, The Snow Falls in the Winter, Echo.
Each B Program will open with Essential Shape&Design:
Feb 13 – Deep Song and Panorama
Feb 14, 17 – Frontier and “Steps in the Street”
Feb 19, 22 – Deep Song and Primitive Mysteries (Excerpt)

Program C: Feb 15, 21 at 2pm; Feb 18 at 7:30pm – Lamentation, Embattled Garden, At Summer’s Full, Errand Into the Maze, Diversion of Angels

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The Gala performance honoring Frank Gehry and Peter Arnell will take place on Tuesday February 10. The program will include Steps in the Street with stage design by Frank Gehry, Shape&Design- a film by Peter Arnell, Misty Copeland in At Summer’s Full and the World Premiere of all four Lamentation Variations by Kyle Abraham, Michelle Dorrance, Liz Gerring, and Sonya Tayeh. A Gala dinner will follow at IAC HQ, featuring Diane von Furstenberg’s Dress The Kick. For Gala tickets contact the Martha Graham Dance Company for tickets to the Gala Performance on Tuesday, February 10. For more information, email info@marthagraham.org or call 212-229-9200.

In Photo: 1)  PeiJu Chien-Pott in Lamentation 2) Xiaochuan Xie in Annie-B Parson’s The Snow Falls in the Winter 3) PeiJu Chien-Pott in Martha Graham’s Errand into the Maze

Photo Credit:  1&3) Hibbard Nash  2)Brigid Pierce

To view Graham’s masterwork Appalachian Spring click below:

Graham Letter to World 1

http://outandaboutnycmag.com/2615-shall-we-dance-friday-appalachian-spring/

 

 

1/3/14 O&A Reposted: Herb Ritts – Stephanie, Cindy, Christy, Tatjana, Naomi, Hollywood, 1989 (a video tribute)

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An exhibition of rare, vintage photographs by celebrated American photographer Herb Ritts entitled Stephanie, Cindy, Christy, Tatjana, Naomi, Hollywood, 1989 was presented last year at the The Edwynn Houk Gallery,745 Fifth Avenue. The exhibition focused exclusively on the five models in his iconic work that came to define the era of the Supermodel. Out and About NYC Magazine has taken many of these images creating a  choreographed montage set to music. We are reposting the video with was first published on March 10, 2014 (the one month anniversary of the publication) in response to the interest in our new article on Supermodel Naomi Campbell.  Continue reading

12/21/14 O&A Gospel Sunday Holiday Series: Soulful Noel

 

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Soulful Noel is an original holiday musical conceived by Walter Rutledge. The production was in response to the lack of entertainment offer to, and featuring the underserved African-American population of the Low Country South Carolina. It premiered in 1994 at the Garden Theater in Charleston, S.C. Continue reading

12/8/14 O&A REVIEW: Deeply Rooted Dance Theater- Generations II Here’s To Life!

 By Walter Rutledge

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Deeply Rooted Dance Theater presented Generations II Here’s To Life! for three performances; Friday, November 21 through Sunday November 23 in the James and Martha Duffy Performance Space at the Mark Morris Dance Center, downtown Brooklyn. The Chicago based ensemble presented a concert that was deeply rooted in the dance theatre tradition. Artistic Director Kevin Iega Jeff and Associate Artistic Director Gary Abbott have made the courageous decision to offer original dance works that ranged from dance narratives to theatrical abstract works with strong dramatic undertones. The result was an evening of well structured choreography performed with considerable artistic depth. Continue reading

11/25/14 O&A Dance: Complexion Contemporary Ballet …In The Beginning (Part 3) An Interview With Christina Johnson

By Walter Rutledge

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As Complexions Contemporary Ballet begins the second week of their two-week season tonight at the Joyce Theater we continue our conversation with Christina Johnson. The season commemorates the 20th anniversary of the company, Out and About NYC Magazine looks back through the eyes of artists who there at the beginning. Continue reading

10/10/14 O&A Review: Ain’t Misbehavin- Fats Waller’s Harlem

 By Walter Rutledge

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Harlem original Fats Waller returned uptown to the community he loved via the Broadway musical Ain’t Misbehavin presented at Faison Firehouse Theater. This version of the high-spirited, and high-energy musical revue is directed by A. Curtis Farrow; and presented in collaboration with Irving Street Rep. and FaisOne Productions. The first thing that becomes apparent is how well the intimate setting complements Waller’s songbook; which has become a compass articulating the Harlem Jazz era of the 1930’s and 40’s. Continue reading

10/5/14 O&A In NYC: Four Places For Sunday Brunch

By Walter Rutledge 

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A Sunday afternoon in October is a great time to get out and explore New York City. Whether you go uptown, downtown or over one of the bridges into another borough there is no better way to begin your day than with brunch. Here are four restaurants that will get you off to a great start on your day Out and About. 

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Catfish, 1433 Bedford Ave, Brooklyn, is a true Crown Heights gem serving classic New Orleans dishes. At this cozy hideaway, you can savor bona fide Southern dishes like spicy, flavorful jambalaya or shrimp and grits. Enjoy a strong spring cocktail on the outdoor patio, like the Lady Laveu, a refreshing, flavorful mix of absinthe, St. Germain and cucumber lemonade. But be warned—alcohol isn’t served until noon. Until then, there’s no shortage of delectable eats.

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Toast,  3157 Broadway NY, NY 10027 (just south of 125th street between Tiemann & LaSalle Streets), is the wonder world of a bruschetta, where the pasta with chicken and pesto cream sauce is awesome. The mesquite-smoked barbecued-pork sandwich rules. The skirt-steak appetizer rocks. The raspberry swirl cheesecake kicks ass. In general, Toast is gratifyingly pleasant, and everything is cooked as if you were the only one dining. Rest assured you’re not: Toast has caught on with local students and other Upper West Siders. “Where all good things are toasted” is the restaurant’s cheerful motto, so let the browning and the brew-downing begin.

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Five and Diamond, 2072 Frederick Douglass Boulevard (112-113th), is an intimate storefront restaurant that serves a southern inspired weekend brunch. There is an unlimited brunch cocktails special for those with an empty stomach and a hollow leg. 

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Tosca, 4038 E. Tremont Ave., offers the irresistible flavors of Italian cuisine—a compilation of our family recipes using the finest ingredients and offering the traditional tastes of home-cooked pastas, lusciously fresh seafood, and the distinctly unique flavor of our coal oven pizzas. Along with the savory and sweet menus we offer our guests, we invite you to linger at our bar and lounge, take a mouth watering pause at our distinctive sushi bar, or plan your next event at our lavishly appointed restaurant. Much awaits you at our family of eateries here in the Bronx. Let us treat you to the delights of our foods.

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We look forward to seeing you Out and About

10/2/14 O&A: Interview with Anthony Wayne and Kendrell Bowman- Mighty Real: A Fabulous Sylvester Musical

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A video interview with the co-producers and co-directors Anthony Wayne and Kendrell Bowman of the Off-Broadway musical Mighty Real: A Fabulous Sylvester Musical during the run of the show at the Theatre at the Church of St. Clement’s. Continue reading