2UrbanGirls
  • Home
  • Local
    • Compton
    • Education
    • Inglewood
    • Sports
  • Entertainment
  • Crime and Public Safety
  • Opinion
  • About
    • Advertise
    • Mediakit
  • Shop
    • Cart

Subscribe to Updates

Get the latest creative news from FooBar about art, design and business.

What's Hot
February 1, 2023

Op-Ed: Inglewood Special Election set for March 7

February 1, 2023

Metro plans mass expansion of digital billboards throughout South LA

February 1, 2023

Grand Jury indicts disbarred attorney Tom Girardi for embezzling $15M from clients

Facebook Twitter Instagram
Trending
  • Op-Ed: Inglewood Special Election set for March 7
  • Metro plans mass expansion of digital billboards throughout South LA
  • Grand Jury indicts disbarred attorney Tom Girardi for embezzling $15M from clients
  • South LA road projects awarded federal funding
  • Driver falls asleep at the wheel, crashing into big rig in Orange County
  • 93.5 KDAY Krush Groove festival returns to Inglewood’s Kia Forum April 22
  • High-speed pursuit leaves two dead, suspects in custody
  • Authorities ID victim of fatal crash near DTLA
Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest RSS
2UrbanGirls
  • Home
  • Local
    1. Compton
    2. Education
    3. Inglewood
    4. Sports
    5. View All

    Sheriff deputies shoot suspects in Compton

    January 31, 2023

    Compton bridge eroding to dangerous conditions

    January 30, 2023

    Compton Community College Introduces New Student Trustee

    January 28, 2023

    CA Attorney General affirms Compton City Council appointment

    January 27, 2023

    Lawsuit dismissed against LAUSD over student’s suicide

    January 28, 2023

    Letter to the Editor: Inglewood school is being run into the ground!

    January 26, 2023

    Sallie Mae Announces 10 Nationwide Recipients of Bridging the Dream Scholarship for Graduate Students

    January 25, 2023

    Florida Launches 2023 Black History Month Student and Educator Contests

    January 24, 2023

    Op-Ed: Inglewood Special Election set for March 7

    February 1, 2023

    CHP seeks public’s help identifying suspects in deadly Inglewood freeway shooting

    January 31, 2023

    Op-Ed: It’s time we tell the truth about Inglewood Unified School District

    January 31, 2023

    Inglewood awarded $407M of state surplus funds towards people mover project

    January 31, 2023

    LA Laker involved in late-night traffic stop for expired car registration

    January 26, 2023

    Orange County native joins Dodgers broadcast team

    January 21, 2023

    LAFC, Bank of Montreal announce $100M naming rights deal

    January 19, 2023

    Georgia Bulldogs football player, staff member killed in car crash

    January 15, 2023

    South LA road projects awarded federal funding

    February 1, 2023

    LA Council gives prelim approval on relocation assistance for tenants

    January 31, 2023

    Caltrans shuts down street to inspect for erosion

    January 31, 2023

    Powerball jackpot grows to $653 million

    January 31, 2023
  • Entertainment
  • Crime and Public Safety
  • Opinion
  • About
    • Advertise
    • Mediakit
  • Shop
    • Cart
2UrbanGirls
You are at:Home»Arts & Culture»Camden Rep celebrates Black History Month with revival of seldom produced underground classic ‘Unfinished Women’
Photo by Kamile Kuntz Photography

Camden Rep celebrates Black History Month with revival of seldom produced underground classic ‘Unfinished Women’

0
By admin on January 9, 2023 Arts & Culture

CAMDEN, NJ — Camden Repertory Theater celebrates Black History Month with an immersive production of Aishah Rahman’s rarely produced underground classic Unfinished Women Cry In No Man’s Land While A Bird Dies In A Gilded Cage, directed by Chyna Morrison and featuring music direction by JoJo Streater.

Boasting a live jazz band and presented in Camden Rep’s unique venue — a typical New Jersey row house with only 20 seats — performances kick off with four public previews from February 1 through February 4, followed by two press previews on Wednesday, Feb. 8 and Thursday, Feb. 9. Opening night is set for Friday, Feb. 10, with performances continuing through March 25.

Ozzie Jones
Photo by Kamile Kuntz Photography

March 12, 1955: on the same day that virtuoso jazz saxophonist Charlie “Bird” Parker (Ozzie Jones) is dying in the plush boudoir of his wealthy European patroness (Jenna McLaughlin), five teens living in the Hide-a-Wee Home for Unwed Mothers —Wilma (Jalynn Brunson), Midge (McLaughlin), Mattie (J’Lynn Henry), Consuelo (Shaleah Navarro) and Paulette (Alani Burke) — must decide whether to keep their babies or put them up for adoption. Meanwhile, Hide-a-Wee head nurse Jacobs (Desi P. Shelton) holds a closely guarded secret of her own, and the mysterious Charlie Chan (Samir Nichols) oversees all.

Ozzie Jones and Jenna McLaughlin
Photo by Kamile Kuntz Photography

Mixing poetry and live music into a rich tapestry of longing and love, Unfinished Women possesses a rare and haunting lyricism not soon forgotten. As in Rahman’s other work, jazz, rhythm and meter are integral to the structure and flow of the piece.

Shaleah Navarro, J’lynn Henry, Alani Burke,
Desi P. Shelton and Jenna McLaughlin
Photo by Kamile Kuntz Photography

“My plays are about men and women whose voices, and therefore their lives, have been muted,” she said in an interview. “Their body beats are music, whether it’s in the way they speak, move, or in their world view. It’s in the improvisational way they have been forced to deal with life. My characters are not linear folks. There’s poetry and rhythm in their speech, and it all amounts to music.”

Born in Harlem where she was raised in the foster care system, Rahman was known for her participation and contribution to the Black Arts movement, one of the only American literary movements to merge art with a political agenda. As the artistic and aesthetic arm of the Black Power movement of the ’60s and ’70s, it called for the creation of poetry, novels, visual art and theater to reflect pride in Black history and culture as a means to awaken Black consciousness and achieve liberation.

Unfinished Women is the perfect fit for Camden Rep, a professional company that uses the performing arts as social activism to encourage, heal and transform lives. It was founded by Desi P. Shelton in 2005 when, returning to the city with an M.F.A. in theater from Sarah Lawrence College, she heard her friends and neighbors complain they were not welcome at local venues, had no artistic outlet in Camden, and that their stories were being left untold. In addition to producing plays, the company uses theater to improve life and literature skills of at-risk children through its P.A.C.E. (Preparing Artists for College Entrance) program, which helps students prepare for college auditions; assists with the application and financial aid process; offers supplementary education in written language, cultural, financial, emotional and social literacy; and creates jobs and apprentice training for returning college students. Shelton has received the Valentine Foundation Award for female executives and is a Dodge Emerging Leader. She completed the Woman and Power Program at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government and is a recipient of a Leeway Transformation Award for social change artists.

Unfinished Women was originally produced by Joseph Papp’s New York Shakespeare Festival in 1977.

Rahman’s other plays include The Mojo And The Sayso, Only in America,Chiaroscuro and three plays with music, Lady Day A Musical Tragedy, The Tale of Madame Zora and Has Anybody Seen Marie Laveau? Her plays were produced at the Public Theater, Ensemble Theatre, BAM and theaters and universities across the United States. She served as director of playwriting at the New Federal Theater in New York. Among her numerous fellowships, grants and awards were a special citation from the Rockefeller Foundation of the Arts for dedication to playwriting in the American Theater. Her plays are distributed by Broadway Play Publishing. “Chewed Water: A Memoir,” her story of growing in the foster care system, was published in 2001 by University of New England Press. A graduate of Howard University and Goddard College, Rahman was a Professor of Literary Arts at Brown University, where she taught from 1992-2011. She died in 2014 at the age of 78.

The creative team for Unfinished Women includes scenic designer Charletta Jones and costume designer Nala Johnson. The lighting designer is Angelique Haynesworth, who also associate produces. Christopher Thompson is the production stage manager.

Performances of Unfinished Women Cry In No Man’s Land While A Bird Dies In A Gilded Cage take place February 10 through March 25 on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays at 7 p.m.; and Saturdays and Sundays at 5 p.m. There will be four public previews February 1 through February 4, followed by two press previews on February 8 and February 9.

Camden Repertory Theater is supported, in part, by the William Penn Foundation and the Geraldine Dodge Foundation.

Camden Repertory Theater is located at 445 Mechanic St. in Camden, NJ 08104. To purchase tickets to Unfinished Women Cry In No Man’s Land While A Bird Dies In A Gilded Cage, call (856) 438-8430 or visit www.camdenrep.com.

Related

Aishah Rahman Black History Month Camden Repertory Theater Chyna Morrison JoJo Streater theatre news
Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email
admin

Related Posts

Stars Attend ECOLUXE Park City ABC4 TV Media Lounge at Sundance Film Festival

LA Philharmonic announces initial lineup for 2023 Hollywood Bowl Jazz Festival

Florida Launches 2023 Black History Month Student and Educator Contests

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Most Read
Antelope Valley
January 16, 20230

Man, woman found dead in grocery store parking lot

PALMDALE, Calif. – The bodies of a man and woman were found in the parking…

January 15, 2023

Friends ID woman who died giving birth at Inglewood hospital

January 10, 2023

Family ID hiker who fell to her death on Mt.Baldy

January 12, 2023

Woman reportedly dies giving birth in Inglewood hospital

Elections
February 1, 2023

Op-Ed: Inglewood Special Election set for March 7

January 31, 2023

Vote center open for today’s Special Election in Downey

January 31, 2023

Former LA City Attorney to run for Congress

January 21, 2023

Vote center opens for Downey special election

Entertainment
February 1, 2023

93.5 KDAY Krush Groove festival returns to Inglewood’s Kia Forum April 22

January 30, 2023

Judge denies delay in start of woman’s lawsuit against rapper Soulja Boy

January 30, 2023

Johnny Britt and Will Downing collab on new song ‘Butterflies’

January 29, 2023

`Avatar: The Way of Water’ tops box office for seventh consecutive week

Business
January 30, 2023

What To Know Before Purchasing a Warehouse

January 27, 2023

Neurodivergence and Accessibility in the Workplace

January 25, 2023

Plenty confirms closure of San Francisco vertical farm, will shift focus to Compton

January 23, 2023

Apply now for Women’s Recovery Response Grant funds

Transportation
January 31, 2023

Man stabbed to death at Metro train station

January 31, 2023

Inglewood awarded $407M of state surplus funds towards people mover project

January 29, 2023

Inglewood Transit Connector and the soul of our City

January 28, 2023

Inglewood to schedule Public Hearing on Relocation Plan for Inglewood Transit Connector project

Sports
January 26, 2023

LA Laker involved in late-night traffic stop for expired car registration

January 21, 2023

Orange County native joins Dodgers broadcast team

January 19, 2023

LAFC, Bank of Montreal announce $100M naming rights deal

January 15, 2023

Georgia Bulldogs football player, staff member killed in car crash

Real Estate
January 20, 2023

Inglewood family continues their march through the City

January 15, 2023

Top 5 Commercial Real Estate opportunities in Inglewood

January 14, 2023

5 Inglewood condos under $450,000

January 14, 2023

Op-Ed: When will Black businesses thrive in Inglewood?

Legal
February 1, 2023

Grand Jury indicts disbarred attorney Tom Girardi for embezzling $15M from clients

January 26, 2023

Judge dismisses lawsuit over truck traffic

January 24, 2023

Women files sexual harassment lawsuit against Seal Beach country club

January 24, 2023

Former LA area police officer reaches settlement in retaliation lawsuit

Newsletter

Recent Posts
  • Op-Ed: Inglewood Special Election set for March 7
  • Metro plans mass expansion of digital billboards throughout South LA
  • Grand Jury indicts disbarred attorney Tom Girardi for embezzling $15M from clients
  • South LA road projects awarded federal funding
  • Driver falls asleep at the wheel, crashing into big rig in Orange County
Recent Comments
  • Latinos For Mayor Butts on LACOE hires new County Administrator for Inglewood Unified School District
  • SHANNON on Bicyclist killed in Orange County
  • Anonymous on Bicyclist killed in Orange County
Copyright © 2011-2022 2UrbanGirls.
  • Cookie Policy
  • DMCA
  • Privacy Policy

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.

 

Loading Comments...