Harlem Stage And National Black Theatre presents MOTHERS OF THE MOVEMENTS

Harlem Stage, the legendary uptown venue that for over 30 years has promoted the creative legacy of Harlem and artists of color from around the corner and across the globe, is proud to present its Spring 2018 season of performances. The season is curated by Monique Martin, newly appointed Director of Programming for Harlem Stage and features artists as #Disrupters, who take creative risk. They reflect the times via a range of artistic genres, offering audiences the chance to experience legendary performers and rising stars.

In March 2018, Harlem Stage, in partnership with the National Black Theatre and Carnegie Hall will present "Mothers of the Movements ," a celebration of the contribution of Black women pioneers from the Civil Rights and Black Arts movements. "Mothers of the Movements" is a two-part series that will take place in both Harlem-based institutions. The performance is part of Harlem Stage's signature music series Uptown Nights, which presents top artists in an intimate setting and a part of National Black Theatre's Communication Arts Program used to advocate and promote alternative learning within the field and community

On March 9th at 7:30pm at Harlem Stage, longtime Lincoln collaborator, Marc Cary will re-imagine the seminal album, "We Insist! Max Roach's Freedom Now Suite," with Terri Lyne Carrington, Reggie Workman, Sameer Gupta, Edmar Colón, and other surprise guests.

On March 12th at 7:30pm, for the second part of the series, the National Black Theatre will present "The Black Woman: She Does Exist," an evening of newly commissioned work that was inspired and in response to seminal texts written by Black women artists and activists of the 60's such as Dr. Barbara Ann Teer, Ella Baker, and the women of SNCC. These new works are being created by the next generation of vital Black women voices; writers Mfoniso Udofia, Chisa Hutchinson, Ebony Noelle Golden and ensemble. Seeking to strengthen the bonds between past and present, and in addition to the newly commissioned work, NBT has gathered pioneering Black women legends of the theater community to perform the original texts.

"Mothers of the Movements" is presented in collaboration with Carnegie Hall's festival, "The '60s: The Years that Changed America," which is a citywide festival that reflects on the turbulent spirit of the '60s: the quest for civil rights, equal rights, and social justice. The festival runs from January 14 - March 24, 2017.

EVENT DETAILS:

March 9, 2018
7:30 PM
Harlem Stage GATEHOUSE
150 Convent Avenue (at West 135th Street)
Tickets: $20
https://www.harlemstage.org/events-list/2018/3/9/carnegie-hall-1960s-project-mothers-of-the-movement

March 12, 2018
7:30 PM
National Black Theatre
2031 Fifth Avenue (National Black Theatre Way)
Tickets:
http://www.nationalblacktheatre.org

Patricia Cruz, Executive Director, Harlem Stage, said "I welcome Harlem residents, New Yorkers, and visitors to join us at the Harlem Stage Gatehouse for this fresh and special spring season, which offers a diverse, unique array of artists and genres."

Monique Martin, Director of Programming, Harlem Stage, said "The arts have and continue to be a steady mooring during tumultuous times. This season's theme #Disrupters is an act of resistance against apathy and isolation speaks to our individual and collective responsibility to create the world we want to live and thrive in."

Jonathan McCrory, Director of Theater Arts Programming, National Black Theatre, said "Mothers of the Movements is a time for us to acknowledge the rich and dynamic legacy we all are beneficiaries of because brave Black women stood up to give birth through their brilliance an alternative reality where we could know liberation. NBT is looking forward to how this series will grow and continue to celebrate the light bearers that shifted and shaped culture, community, and society."

TICKETING INFORMATION
Box Office Location: Harlem Stage Gatehouse (150 Convent Avenue at West 135th Street, Manhattan).
Box Office Hours: Regular box office hours are 10AM-3PM Monday through Friday, except on performance days when the box office remains open until one hour after the start of the performance.
By Phone: 212.281.9240 ext. 19
Online: www.HarlemStage.org

ABOUT Harlem Stage

Harlem Stage is the performing arts center that bridges Harlem's cultural legacy to contemporary artists of color and dares to provide the artistic freedom that gives birth to new ideas.For over 30 years Harlem Stage has been one of the nation's leading arts organizations, achieving this distinction through its work with artists of color and by facilitating a productive engagement with the communities it serves through the performing arts. With a long-standing tradition of supporting artists and organizations around the corner and across the globe, Harlem Stage boasts such legendary artists as Harry Belafonte, Max Roach, Sekou Sundiata, Abbey Lincoln, Sonia Sanchez, Eddie Palmieri, Maya Angelou and Tito Puente, as well as contemporary artists like Bill T. Jones, Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah, Tamar-kali, Vijay Iyer, Mike Ladd, Meshell Ndegeocello, Jason Moran, José James, Nona Hendryx and more. Its education program each year provides over 1,000 New York City children with introduction and access to the rich diversity, excitement and inspiration of the performing arts. In 2006, Harlem Stage opened the landmarked, award-winning Harlem Stage Gatehouse. This once abandoned space, originally a pivotal source for distributing fresh water to New York City, is now a vital source of creativity, ideas and culture. Harlem Stage is a winner of the William Dawson Award for Programming Excellence and Sustained Achievement in Programming (Association of Performing Arts Presenters).

ABOUT NATIONAL BLACK THEATRE

Founded by visionary Dr. Barbara Ann Teer in 1968, National Black Theatre (NBT) is a nationally recognized cultural and educational institution. Dr. Teer pioneered "the healing art of black theatre as an instrument for wholeness in urban communities where entrepreneurial artists of African descent live and work." In 1983, Dr. Teer expanded the vision of NBT by purchasing a 64,000-square-foot building on 125th Street and Fifth Avenue (renamed "National Black Theatre Way" by local law in 1994). This was the first revenue-generating Black arts complex in the country, an innovative arrangement through which for-profit businesses who shared NBT's spiritual and aesthetic values rented retail space to subsidize the arts. Out of her vision, NBT houses the largest collection of Nigerian new sacred art in the Western hemisphere and is considered the authentic representation of a model whose time has come. NBT is partially supported by grants from the City Council of New York, City of New York Department of Cultural Affairs, Ford Foundation, New York State Council on the Arts and private donations.

For more information on Harlem Stage, visit: www. harlemstage.org