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The Billie Holiday Theatre Artistic and Executive Director Dr. Indira Etwaroo announced the line-up today for The Billie Holiday Theatre\u2019s Fall 2019 Season and 2019 \u2013 2020 Season Highlights<\/b> at their newly-renovated home at Restoration Plaza on 1368 Fulton Street, Brooklyn, NY 11216.\u00a0 This historic landmark theater \u2013 theater home to the largest community of African Americans in the nation: Central Brooklyn \u2013 encompassing a 199-seat theater, state-of-the-art studio spaces, a gallery space, and outdoor plazas, has been home to world-class storytelling for 47 years. Forged in the sociocultural and aesthetic kiln of the Civil Rights and Black Arts Movements, The Billie Holiday Theatre continues to celebrate the diversity, intersectionality, and complexity of the African diaspora from around the corner and around the world with an almost-five decade, keenly honed consciousness for social justice through narrative.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThis is a season that celebrates the triumph of the human spirit, which remains at the core of the African American experience during this 400<\/span>th<\/sup><\/span><\/strong> commemorative year of the beginning of slavery in America. We enter this season with a profound knowledge that the African American story is the very foundation of the American story,\u201d<\/strong> stated Artistic and Executive Director Dr. Indira Etwaroo<\/b>. \u201cWe strive to stretch and innovate on Black narratives in the 21<\/strong><\/span>st<\/sup><\/span> century from 20<\/span>th<\/sup><\/span> anniversary works by internationally renowned choreographer Ron Brown that are still profoundly resonant, to playwright James Sheldon\u2019s world premiere Reparations<\/i>, helmed by the incomparable Michele Shay, presenting our audience the first produced playwright of non-African descent in our theater\u2019s history, to eclectic local musical talent in our daring Skylight Open, to new play readings by our resident company, Frank Silvera Writers\u2019 Workshop.\u201d<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n This Fall 2019, The Billie launches the New Windows Festival,<\/strong> as a platform for deeply necessary cross-cultural and inter-racial dialogues around race, social justice, and equity, developed by an historic Black-led cultural institution to explore our shared humanity, while providing our audiences an opportunity to witness provocative, groundbreaking, and radical work in their own theater home in Central Brooklyn…all in a spirit of excellence and inclusion. The 2019 New Windows<\/i> Festival includes the World Premiere of James Sheldon\u2019s Reparations<\/i>, an exhibit by internationally renowned artist Luba Lukova \u201cDesigning Justice,\u201d and a reading of a new play by David Davila.<\/span><\/p>\n Our Education Division launches the 21st year of our Youth Arts Academy, which has been a haven of beauty, safety, and free expression for hundreds of youth annually, cultivating global citizens to become powerful contributors to their communities. YAA offers a wide range of classes, including West African Dance, Ballet, Modern Dance, Hip-Hop, Drama, and Drumming encompassing the Sabar, Steel Pan, and Djembe taught by a world-class faculty for students ages 3 – 18 years old. Registration ONLINE at\u00a0 https:\/\/TheBillieHoliday.org<\/strong><\/span><\/a> and IN PERSON at 718-636-6995. The Billie Holiday Theatre, in partnership with The Stella Adler Studio of Acting, also <\/span>engages over 75\u00a0 young theater artists annually, ages 18 \u2013 early 30s, from across the world at The Billie Holiday Theatre. With founding faculty Stephen McKinley Henderson, Ruben Santiago Hudson, Phylicia Rashad, Sonia Sanchez, and Michele Shay, The Billie and Stella Adler Studio have joined arms to address voids that are still missing in many mainstream college and university theater programs and training programs: a curriculum and theater canon, a peer group, performance experiences, and administration and faculty that fully reflect the exquisite diversity of students of African descent.\u00a0 BAI has focused on socio-cultural, historical, and political eras that have informed the creative expression of Black people on American soil, mainly the Black Arts Movement. Registration at https:\/\/blackartsinstitute.org\/<\/span><\/a><\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n The 47-year partnership between The Billie Holiday Theatre and its founder, Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation, continues to provide a vital and viable platform for the sustainability of world-class art in the heart of Bed-Stuy.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Patrons who join the Friends of The Billie program as a donor, starting with a gift of $50, gain access to VIP tickets and events, and advance notice of events throughout the year. To find out how you can support The Billie by joining the Friends of The Billie program at https:\/\/thebillieholiday.org\/support\/<\/span><\/a> or call 718-636-0918.<\/span><\/p>\n Tickets for the 2019 – 2020 season are available ONLINE at TheBillieHoliday.org\/show-and-events; IN PERSON at The Billie Holiday Theater Box Office at Restoration Plaza, 1368 Fulton Street from Wed – Fri, 4 – 7pm and Sat 1 – 4pm; and BY PHONE at (718) 636-0918.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0LOCAL FILMS | BEDFORD STUYVESANT CROWN HEIGHTS FILM FESTIVAL\u00a0<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n September 13 \u2013 15, 2019<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n Founded by Attika J. Torrence, Joseph C. Grant Jr. and Ephraim FETTI Benton<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n Free and Open to the Public | The Billie Holiday Theatre and Outdoor Plazas<\/span><\/p>\n The Bedford Stuyvesant Crown Heights Film Festival brings together the best and brightest in the film and entertainment business from the Bed Stuy, Crown Heights, and surrounding communities.<\/span><\/p>\n GLOBAL FILMS | NOVA FRONTIER FILM FESTIVAL<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n September 20 \u2013 22, 2019<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n Tickets starting at $20; Free for 18 and under | The Billie Holiday Theatre\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The Billie Holiday Theatre presents the annual Nova Frontier Film Festival and Lab<\/i><\/span><\/a>, a timely narrative, documentary and experimental film festival, and multi-disciplinary lab, passionately committed to showcasing the works of filmmakers and artists from and about the African diasporas, Middle East, Latin America, and Caribbean. The lab, which is a core component of the festival, focuses on the development of youth and emerging artists and media-makers from underserved and underrepresented communities.<\/span><\/p>\n DANCE | RONALD K. BROWN\/EVIDENCE IN CONCERT<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n Fri, Sep 27 at 7PM\u00a0<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n Sat, Sep 28 at 3PM with a Pre-Show Talk at 2PM | Sat, Sep 28 at 7PM followed by a House Party<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n The Billie Holiday Theatre<\/span><\/p>\n Tickets |$20 for all performances | $15 ticket for Sat post-show house party with a complimentary drink. House Music curated by Ronald K. Brown | The Billie Holiday Theatre<\/span><\/p>\n Ronald K. Brown\/EVIDENCE, hailing from Bedford Stuyvesant, celebrates with the highly-anticipated annual homecoming concert with a <\/span>focus on the fusion of African dance with contemporary choreography and spoken word. The work provides a unique view of human struggles, tragedies, and triumphs, \u201ccreating<\/span> a magnificently textured style, which shifts from earthy, raw-powered movement to jumps that send dancers sailing into the air like spirits.” – The New York Times<\/i>. The program includes two 20th Anniversary works choreographed by Ronald K. Brown<\/b>, Gatekeepers<\/i><\/b> (1999) and Water<\/i><\/b> (1999) with original text written and performed by Cheryl Boyce Taylor. \u201cThe rituals of ‘\u2019Water\u2019’ offered hope that evil stains can be removed from this world.\u201d\u00a0 – The New York Times<\/i>. Other highlights include Walking Out the Dark<\/i><\/b> (2001).<\/span><\/p>\n MUSIC | RESTORATION ROCKS! 2019<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n In Partnership with Bed-Stuy Alive!<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n Sat, Oct 12, 2019 from 12 – 6PM, 2019<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n Free and Open to the Public | Fulton Street between New York Ave and Brooklyn Ave<\/span><\/p>\n RestorationROCKS!, a part of the annual week-long Bed-Stuy Alive! celebration, returns with a dynamic line-up of musical talent and community favorites, including Big Daddy Kane, Nona Hendryx, Maritri Garret and the Soulfolk Experience<\/b>, as well as a takeover of Fulton Street with a Soul Summit House Party.\u00a0 Join thousands of community members to celebrate the legacy of Bed-Stuy as the mecca of Black arts and culture in Brooklyn with street vendors, live music, and delicious food .<\/span><\/p>\n NEW WINDOWS FESTIVAL<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n October –\u00a0 November 2019<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n As part of its continued role as a voice and convener for its community, The Billie Holiday Theatre will introduce the inaugural New Windows<\/i> Festival, <\/i>a radical step forward in furthering transformative conversations around race through the power of narrative.\u00a0 Based on the concept of \u201ctearing down walls and not building them,\u201d New Windows <\/i>goes beyond social, intellectual, cultural and geographical borders to explore difference, intersectionality, and the complexity of identity, as a community with the simple question that literary legend Sonia Sanchez challenges us with: \u201cwhat does it mean to be human?\u201d New Windows<\/i> spotlights voices and perspectives that have not historically been presented at The Billie, yet continues to place bold and daring storytelling and social justice at the center of the largest community of African descent in the nation.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n TALK | IDENTITY AND DESIGN: A GLOBAL PARADIGM: AN EVENING WITH JAHNKOY<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n Tickets Not Yet Available<\/span> | The Billie Holiday Theatre<\/span><\/p>\n Born and raised in Siberia, Russia, JAHNKOY<\/b> is a New York based visual artist who will be joined in conversation by\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Hollis King<\/b>, Creative Director, The Billie Holiday Theatre.\u00a0 JAHNKOY\u2019s work draws upon found materials and ready-made clothing to illustrate her ideas around consumerism, racial and cultural inequality, crafts and the political and economic restraints that surround it. She sees fashion as a powerful force to raise questions about the sustainability of the actual fashion system and seeks to bring awareness and raise consciousness among consumers about alternative, more viable modes of production, distribution and consumption. The aim of her practice is to reestablish cultural heritage in a new contemporary way, reconnect people to the knowledge of the past, promote hand skills and craftsmanship.<\/span><\/p>\n VISUAL ARTS | LUBA LUKOVA DESIGNING JUSTICE EXHIBIT<\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Opening Reception: Mon, Nov 4 at 6PM\u00a0<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n Free and Open to the Public | The Billie Holiday Theatre Lobby<\/span><\/p>\n An artist and designer, Luba Lukova<\/b> creates images that transcend language, cultures, and politics. Her thought-provoking posters address essential themes of humanity and injustice worldwide. Her messages help viewers develop empathetic understanding for social and cultural issues through indelible metaphors and an economy of line, color, and text.<\/span><\/p>\n “Creating some of the most iconic posters of the last decade, Luba Lukova is one of the most important visual artists of our generation. This is not up for debate. History will remember her work.” \u2013John Foster, Rockpaperink<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n THEATER | REPARATIONS – <\/b>World Premiere<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n By James Sheldon and Directed by Michele Shay<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n Previews <\/i>– Oct 25 – Nov 5; Opening Night<\/i> – Wed, Nov 6 and runs through Sun, Nov 24, 2019\u00a0<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n Tickets Starting at $25 with Group Sale, Student, and Senior Discounts | The Billie Holiday Theatre<\/span><\/p>\n The Billie Holiday Theater presents the world premiere of Reparations<\/i>, by playwright James Sheldon<\/b> and directed by Tony Award-nominated Michele Shay<\/b>. Reparations<\/i> tells the story of a recently widowed white book editor who invites a younger black writer to her apartment, only to find that a night of tenderness and passion turns into a complex and unforeseen morning-after when he threatens to reveal a dark secret. Will the young writer succeed in claiming his reparations for a life of racial injustice?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The cast features Lisa Arrindell, Kamal Bolden, and Alexandra Neil<\/b><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The artistic team includes Moriah and Isabel Curley-Clay<\/b> as set and prop designers, and David Moodey<\/b> as lighting designer with Sam Potochick<\/b> as Production Stage Manager, Yohanna Florentine<\/b> as Assistant Stage Manager, and Emma Pearl Nigut<\/b> as Assistant Director. Casting by Anne Davison.<\/b><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n SEASON HIGHLIGHTS<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n THEATER | 50IN50: WRITING OURSELVES INTO EXISTENCE<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n Curatorial Statement by Dominique Morisseau<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n Call for Submissions: November 2019<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n Readings: March 2020<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n The Billie Holiday Theatre, in collaboration with Frank Silvera Writers’ Workshop, presents the return of one of its most celebrated programs with the fourth installment of 50in50: Writing Ourselves Into Existence<\/i>. Launched in 2017 during the 50th Anniversary of Restoration with a keen eye towards spotlighting the narratives of Black women, 50in50 was created as a theatrical reading event to provide a platform for Black women from all walks of life across the globe to share their stories in response to emerging social issues.\u00a0 Women writers respond to a global call for talent with a curatorial statement shaped by Obie Award-winning playwright and MacArthur Fellow Dominique Morisseau<\/b>; and 50 monologues are brought to life on stage with award-winning actresses. 50in50 has touched a pulse and provoked an enormous response with over 700 black women and girls, ages 8 to 83, from around the corner to around the world (Holland, South Africa, Canada and more) sharing their stories.<\/span><\/p>\n This fourth installment of the series will feature a new group of 50 women writers who will \u201cconsider both the world they inherited and the one they\u2019d like to create.\u201d\u00a0 50in50 is made possible with support from The Made in NY Women\u2019s Film, Television & Theatre Fund by the City of New York Mayor\u2019s Office of Media and Entertainment in association with The New York Foundation for the Arts.<\/span><\/p>\n EDUCATION AND COMMUNITY PROGRAMS<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n EDUCATION | YOUTH ARTS ACADEMY<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n Sat, Sep 7 and 14 from 10AM – 2PM | Open Houses with free classes and registration discounts<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n Sat, Sep 14 and Sun, Sep 29 at 3PM | Pre-Professional Auditions led by Ronald K. Brown and Arcell Cabuag<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n Community Studio at 247 Herkimer Street<\/span><\/p>\n Our Education Division launches the 21st year of the Youth Arts Academy, which has been a haven of beauty, safety, and free expression for hundreds of youth annually since its inception in 1998, cultivating global citizens to become powerful contributors to their communities. YAA offers a wide range of classes, including West African Dance, Ballet, Modern Dance, Hip-Hop, Drama, and Drumming including the\u00a0 Sabar, Steel Pan, and Djembe taught by a world-class faculty for students ages 3 – 18 years old. The Youth Arts Academy is made possible with support from The Hearst Foundation, The Pinkerton Foundation, The NYC Department of Cultural Affairs, The New York State Council on the Arts, The National Endowment for the Arts, and The Harkness Foundation for Dance.<\/span><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.blackfilm.com\/read\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/Indira-Etwaroo-285x300.jpg\")
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\n<\/span>THE BILLIE HOLIDAY THEATRE\u2019S 2019 FALL SEASON AND SEASON HIGHLIGHTS:<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n