By Aria Brent, AFRO Staff Three words to describe Baltimore theater group “Funktopia” are intentional, unapologetic and charismatic! With a heavy focus on honoring those who have come before them, Funktopia is continuing to uphold this tradition with their latest production “The Dark Tower.” Based on A’Lelia Walker and the salons she held at her […]
Category: Arts & Culture
Posted inBaltimore News
AFRO announces star-studded Baltimore AFRO High Tea
By Ciara Franklin, Abel Communications, for the AFRO The AFRO will host the annual Baltimore AFRO High Tea on April 22, honoring “Maryland’s Leading Ladies.” This year’s event features Maryland’s most prominent women in leadership, including First Lady Dawn Moore, Lt. Governor Aruna Miller, Comptroller Brooke Lierman, and Speaker of the House of Delegates, Adrienne […]
Posted inPrince George's County News
Bowie State University’s Performing Arts Center theatre named for Dionne Warwick
By Deborah Bailey, Contributing Editor Bowie State University’s Performing Arts Center (PAC) now bears the name of internationally renowned singer, Dionne Warwick. In a ceremony this past week, the PAC theatre was formally renamed the Dionne Warwick Performing Arts Theatre. Hundreds gathered in attendance to celebrate with Warwick and the campus, including Gospel Singer, BeBe […]
Posted inBaltimore News
East Baltimore Black Wax Museum gets $2 million in federal funding
By Tashi McQueen, AFRO Political Writer, tmcqueen@afro.com The National Great Blacks in Wax Museum received a $2 million federal investment, which was presented by U.S. lawmakers Rep. Kweisi Mfume (D-Md.), Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.) and Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) to museum co-founder and President Joanne Martin on March 31. “These funds represent the ability […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Lauryn Hill, Megan Thee Stallion to headline ESSENCE Festival’s celebration of hip hop
By AFRO Staff The 2023 edition of the ESSENCE Festival of Culture will celebrate the 50th anniversary of hip-hop and its global impact with two headlining female MCs that represent the past and present of the art form. Back in New Orleans for its 29th year, the four-day festival kicks off June 29 and will […]
Posted inWashington D.C. News
Ford’s Theatre debuts dynamic stage play,“Shout SisterShout!: The Untold Story of Rock and Roll Trailblazer Rosetta Tharpe”
By Deborah Bailey, Contributing Editor The East Coast debut of playwright Cheryl West’s “Shout Sister Shout!: The Untold Story of Rock and Roll Trailblazer Rosetta Tharpe, is the poignant and jubilant theatrical journey of a Black woman emerging from the deep, Jim Crow South of the early and mid-20th century to a world-wide stage– all the while […]
Posted inWashington D.C. News
“Afrofuturism: A History of Black Futures” exhibit opens March 24
By Michelle Richardson, Special to the AFRO Have you ever wanted to see George Clinton’s wig up close or experience the power of the Black Panther suit worn by Chadwick Boseman? The National Museum of African American History and Culture’s newest exhibit makes that possible with “Afrofuturism: A History of Black Futures,” opening March 24. […]
Posted inARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Gladys Knight among 22 honored by Biden
By The Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden welcomed a high-wattage collection of singers, authors, artists and humanitarians to the White House on Tuesday to present them with medals — and then stole the show himself with a quip about seeking reelection. Bruce Springsteen, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Mindy Kaling and Gladys Knight were among […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Well Read Sistas: meet the woman promoting Black women authors and Black stories year-round
By Nadira Jamerson, Word in Black It’s been 73 years since Zora Neale Hurston’s essay “What White Publishers Won’t Print,” ran in the Negro Digest. As Hurston explained back in 1950, even though publishing houses “are in business to make money,” they don’t publish “romantic stories” about Black people “because they feel that they know […]
Posted inINTERNATIONAL
International Criminal Court issues warrant for Putin
By DaQuan Lawrence, Special to the AFRO The International Criminal Court (ICC) said March 17 that it has issued arrest warrants for Russian Federation President Vladimir Putin and the Russian Commissioner for Children’s Rights Maria Lvova-Belova for their alleged involvement in the abductions of children from Ukraine. “is allegedly responsible for the war crime […]
Posted inTV and Film
Lance Reddick, ‘The Wire’ and ‘John Wick’ star, dies at 60
By MARK KENNEDY, AP Entertainment Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Lance Reddick, a character actor who specialized in intense, icy and possibly sinister authority figures on TV and film, including “The Wire,” “Fringe” and the “John Wick” franchise, has died. He was 60. Reddick died “suddenly” Friday morning, his publicist Mia Hansen said in a […]
Posted inNational News
Choosing uncommon careers continues to keep Black women on top
By Sherri Kolade, The Michigan Chronicle The fields of tech, law, construction and that of certain business sectors are in dire need of Black women who naturally always up the ante wherever they go. However, there is still a lot to be desired. Between Black women leaving the workforce in high numbers (according to a […]