Page 5 Portland Observer AUGUST 24,1989 A f Shake And IBCHJME) ICIEIPCICT pert alm ost risque stage presence be lie d a voice that is the epitom e o f the soul and blues tra d itio n . A n d the last to p e rfo rm were the a n d d y n a m ic sh o w . A b e n e fit fo r the Pioneer C ourthouse Square; The Shake,R attlc and Soul concert. te m p tin g T e m p ta tio n s, an act that has seen m any personnel changes, and o n ly have tw o o rig in a l members at present. H ow ever, as a g roup both visu a l and a u d ito ry they have been the p ro to typ e fo r p o p u la r acts such as N ew E d itio n and the B oys. Each v o c a lis t possessed a s ilk y sm ooth vo ice that rests at the top o f th e ir F rom the opening act o f B o d y and Soul (fo rm e rly S alm on D ave) on through Etta James, and c lo s in g w ith the M o to w n sound o f the perennial class act o f the T e m p ta tio n s .it was a P A A R T Y !!! B ody and Soul opened the evening w ith such co m p o sitio n s as James B ro w n ’ s L iv in g in A m e rica and Stevie W o n d e r’ s I Just C a lle d T o Say I L o v e Y o u . B ody and Soul are profession,and the choreography was d a z z lin g and re m in isce n t o f a tim e currendy Portland’s premiere rhythm and blues band. Good as they were gone by. The festive m o o d o f the concert was contagious, and was heighten by (and they were good) they were ju s t the appetizer fo r w hat was to fo llo w . cent rin g s on th e ir heads and around N e xt came E tta James and Roots her back-up band. She was im pres th e ir necks, so as the eve n ing p ro gressed it gave the e ffe c t o f a sea o f sive even fo r an artist w h o has w eath halos. W ith a attendance o f over 3,000 ered the ups and dow ns o f a career that spans some 30 plus years. H er an o v e rw h e lm in g success. BLACK CREAM DE LA CREAM OF THEATRE FLOWS INTO 1ST NATIONAL FESTIVAL the m any patrons w h o w ore lu m in e s S hake,R attle and Soul was d e fin ite ly ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ It was the “ place to be som e b o d y ,” at the m u th -a w a ite d 1989 National Black Theatre Festival kicked o f f M o n d a y evening (A u g . 14th to 20th, 1989), at the c o n ve n tio n center o f W inston-S alem , N o rth C arolina. M y o ld frie n d , L a rry L eon H a m lin , fo u n d e r and a rtis tic d ire c to r o f the ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ North Carolina Black Repertory C om pany, w elcom ed vis ito rs at the grand gala o p ening banquet that was h ig h lig h te d by the special guest appear ance o f ta lk show host O prah W in frey. The last co u n t o f 1,300 lo c a l resi ART (Ili A k E ’89 R E S • • i »rt V. - * : Rattle Your Soul L a s t F rid a y A u g u s t 18th, P o rt la n d was g ra ce d by an e xp lo sive P > ¿i ENTERTAINMENT E N T dents, n a tio n a l ce le b ritie s, dire cto rs, producer, designers, actors and edu cators, fro m the leading b la ck the S Jazz Vocalist atre com panies in the co u n try were o u t “ in fo rc e ,” b la c k -tie and gow n. ERNESTINE The event, w h ic h k ic k e d o f f the s ix - day fe s tiv a l, also featured a special re c o g n itio n to P u litz e r P rize bla ck p la y w rig h t, A u g u st W ils o n (I was there opening n ig h t, when his B ro a d w ay p la y , “ Fences,” became o n ly the th ird p la y by a b la ck p la y w rig h t to w in the P u litz e r P rize fo r dram a). The h is to ric event m arked the be g in n in g o f a bi-a n n u a l theatre fe s ti val H a m lin , planned, a fte r ob se rvin g that was a urgent need fo r b la c k theatre com pa nies and p e rfo rm e rs to gather to gether and discuss w ays o f g aining SATURDAY, SEPT. 2 m ore n a tional and w o rld exposure fo r the g ro w th and deve lop m e n t o f 8 PM the A m e ric a n B la c k Theatre m o ve Pioneer Courthouse Square m ent. “ T h is is a ‘ m a rv ta s tic ’ day in the h is to ry o f b la c k theatre, M r. H a m lin , said before M o n d a y ’ s gala. I cer ta in ly hope th a t a ll b lack theatres w ill be n e fit fro m this. W e are her fo r with Bill Ramsay s SWINGSHIFT a reunion o f s p irit and fo r a celebra tio n .” A n d he w e re n ’ t “ jiv in g , ” General Admission $11.50 Patron Seating $50 (fees included) theatre fans, because, checking in , I Tickets available at all Ticketmaster outlets and the Performing Arts Center Box Office Ticket information: 248-4496 Franklin that pro d u ce r/a cto r, R&R Management Can Help You! Sec. 8 W c W e lc o m e Y o u Call 282-4696 2413 NE Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. WE CAN HELP N A T IO N A L C O -C H A IR “ I f there had n o t been bla ck the atre, there c o u ld not have been an ‘ O prah W in fre y S h o w ,” ’ M s. said before the o p ening fe s tiv itie s . “ I rem em ber I saw ‘ A R a isin in the S u n ,’ w ritte n by the late Lo rra in e „tn * Instructor, Dr. Elijah Kush Ben-Abraham Broaden your horizons Study Greek, Hebrew, Arabic, Spanish, or French. We also offer studies in comparative religions of the world. dealt w ith such topics as developing new plays, the c ra ft o f w ritin g plays and the problem s o f g e ttin g them Produced. As a playw right (The Sisy phus T r ilo g y ,” T u t-A n k h -A m e n , the B oy-king,” and “ Jesse and the Games, Jesse O w ens, O ly m p ia d ,” and the seasons, and I am c o n tin u in g as p re si dent o f the board) o f the Frank S il vera W rite rs ’ W o rksh o p , die 1989 N ew Y o rk V illa g e V o ic e , OOBIE the P assinA rt T heatre), Phoenix, A rizona (The Black Theatre Troupe), N ew B ru n s w ic k , N e w Jersey (Cross roads Theatre), K n o x v ille , Tcnn. (the C arpetbag T heatre), O akland, Ca. (O akland Ensem ble and Ed B u llin s ’ B M T C o m p a n y ), A tla n ta , Ga. (Jom andi P roductions and the Just / y Fred Meyer R f \t \sitr< m rkf H 'M 't '2T il MMM -l-M» M» » '» I »M • MU I PIAIS ** HAZII IM U . h»i Iuket liifai tuation ( nil 2 2 4 -T IX X , I Z.S 1 //«// 1/ \S 7 K R ( \R I ) 1« eepted »••• •t •X. ; ★ Best Cash Prices ★ Speedy Service 25 Gal $25.00 50 Gal $44.00 100 Gal $72.00 150 Gal$108.0C DAD’S OIL SERVICE a - 7.. Y Heating Oils 104 N.E. Russell St. Portland, OR 97212 (503) 282-5111 s B & JAZZY FM 89. &Si- fe f i A w a rd -w in n in g N ew Y o rk theatre w orkshop. I t was m y thrust on the fc-J panel o f prestigious p la y w rig h ts that consist o f Ron M iln e r (A u th o r o f m any plays, such as, “ W h o ’ s G o t H is O w n ,” “ Checkm ate,” and W hat the W in e Sellers B u y ,” E d B u llin s , £ whose num erous w o rks include, “ A Son, C om e H o m e ,” w h ich was per form ed Wednesday night, August 16, 1989, j.e. Franklin (A u th o r o f “ Black G ir l” ) c u rre n tly p la y w rig h t-In -R e s i- ow s, whose plays include, “ H e n ri MT HOOD COMMUNITY COLLEGE N egro Ensem ble C om pany o f N ew Y o rk , L e slie Lee, W hose plays, F irs t Breeze o f C o le , p la y w rig h t and founder o f the N o rth C a ro lin a P la yw rig h ts C enter in Greensboro, N .C . M s. C o le ’ s new play, “ M o u m in ,” was given a staged reading on Saturday at S to u ffe r H o te l conference room . There were many d a ily workshops on a h o ld range o f topics, such as: “ B la c k Theatre: The Present C o n d i GOLDEN'S HOUSE OF STYLE 125 N E K illin g s w o rth 2 8 9 -6 4 4 8 tio n ,’ ’ “ The E ffe cts o f N on-R acial C asting on B la ck Theatres T o d a y ,” and m y frie n d and leading black p ro d u ccr/d ire cto r, W o o d ie K in g Jr., W hose film , “ The B la ck Theatre m y o ld b u d d y, B uddy B u tle r, a the atre pioneer, w h o is now d ire ctin g and teaching theatre at the fam ed Bates C o lle g e o f P ortland, M aine A w a rd fo r her perform ance in the film , “ Im ita tio n o f L ife .” ) . fo u n d e r d ire cto r, fo r the firs t thirteen (The co lle g e th a t produced the late, great p o e t/p la y w rig h t, O w en D o d son, w h o made the H o w a rd U n iv e r state Firehouse C u ltu ra l C enter and Toì-ra ti n’yw« *•* ^•**1- «><’*”*'«» • 0*T ’T 3a<ra«iar irav, MM irAijp-tf«* «f-njr. Irra*» <» energy a c tiv itie s o f receptions, d a ily press conferences, and b la ck theatre them e and to p ic w o rksh o p (I sat on the packed, video-taped w orkshop, “ Playwrights on Playwrighting, which a year, in the H o lly w o o d production away as P o rtla n d , O regon (the In te r .mn W h itm a n M a yo , Roscoe Lee B row ne and several others that I d id n ’ t get to “ h a n g o u t” w ith , due to a ll the high- O prah. (A s an actor, I p e rform ed fo r had been nom inated fo r an Academ y *-• ■ -. .»; • •. a • n io Fargas, M e lv in V an Peebles, M ovem ent: ‘ A R a isin in the S un’ to Theatre com panies fro m as far uy'srn uç’pi lrn n p son, were R uby Dee, Ossie D avis, L o u Gossett Jr., Esther R o le , A n to the Present (1959 to the L ate 1970’ s), w asalso “ p a c k e d to th e m a x .” A lso , tors, as Juanita M o o re , w h o earlier, STARRY NIGHT The “ w h o ’ s w h o ’ s” lin e -u p o f b la ck stars that w ere arranged by M aya A ngelou, national co-chairper that I decided that a ctin g was a part o f “ R a is in ,” in 1961, w ith such ac FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 1 B L A C K S U P E R C E L E B R IT IE S H ansberry. I t was d u rin g that tim e o fw h a tlw a n te d to d o in m y life . I let TO ORDER BY PHONE o f “ C ope.” A S T A R -S T U D D E D A R R A Y “ Hannah D a vis,” there fo r this “ great bla ck happen in g .” O P R A H W IN F R E Y S H O W S W IT H M A Y A A N G E L O U , T H E C A L L 2 2 4 -T IX X pany, as an encore presentation o f the com pany’s previous performances Summer,” to name a few , and George H ouston Bass, founder o f Rites & Reason. The m oderator was C a ro lyn ju s t because it was th e re .” W rite o n , 288-0866 .oblyn iV? n’n’rç represented the Frank S ilve ra W r it ers’ W orkshop). The opening n ig h t gala featured a perform ance o f M ic k i G ra n t’ s clas sic gospel m usical, “ D o n ’ t B other M e, I C a n ’ t C o p e ,” at the W in sto n - Salem Stevens C o n ve n tio n Center. T h is new p ro d u ctio n was perform ed by the N .C . B la ck R epertory C o m other theatre folks, wondering whether i f I, as the fo u n d e r and president o f that v is io n ca rry me. B la ck theatre played an im p o rta n t ro le in m y life MESOPOTAMIAN UNIVERSITY 2861 NE MARTIN LUTHER KING BLVD N ew Federal Theatre, N ational B lack Theatre, H arlem Jazz T heatre and I and said he had ju s t m entioned to 1 W c have fr o m o n e (1 ) to fo u r ( 4 ) b e d ro o m s . N e w ly re m o d e le d N ic e , c le a n fo r fa m ily s w h o c a re a b o u t h o w th e y liv e . Us Theatre C om pany), M in n e a p o lis, M in n . (P enum braT heatre), and N ew Y o rk (N egro Ensem ble C om pany, e tta ,” w h ich was produced by the the F rank S ilv e ra W rite rs ’ W o rk shop o f N e w Y o rk , w o u ld be there o r not. Y e s ,y o u bet y o u r “ s w e e tb iffy ” AND THE P-FUNK ALL-STAR X ★ ★ ★ ★ N e w Y o rk frie n d , B e rt A n d re w s, one o f the le ading b lack B ro a d w ay s till that I had d e fin ite ly planned to be ATTENTION RENTERS ' \ dent at the R ites & Reason Theatre C om pany at B ro w n U n iv e rs ity in Providence, R .I., Karen Jones-Mead in g m y name, w ith a ll o f his cameras, C;«ll ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ turned around in the lo b b y o f the S to u ffe r W in s to n Plaza H o te l, the fe s tiv a l headquarter, to see m y o ld photographer. He was sm iling, shout Pnrjcr C-T.lwt', GEORGE CLINTON s ity Players an in te rn a tio n a l name in the fo rtie s and fiftie s ). W e ll n o w , theatre fans o f P ortland to w n , I ju s t have stop now and file this in cre d ib le , n a tio n a lly im p o rta n t b lack theatre story o f the end o f the decade, beginning the nine ties, w here the next N a tio n al B lack Theatre F estival is now being sched uled fo r 1991, again in the great “ arts to w n ” o f W inston-Salem , N.C. Look your Best Come to Golden’s Wc provide complete hair care and design Home of Wet Wave Hair Designers Delores Alexander & Jerry Duckett JAZZ SCHOLARSHIP OFFERED “ P la y w rig h to n , L a rry L eon H a m lin The Jazz S ociety o f O regon is now o ffe rin g applications fo r the A ndre C arand M e m o ria l Scholarship. $ 100, $200, and $300 scholarships in vocal, and your “ hard-work anti under paid” s ta ff!” instru m e n ta l, theory and/or co m p o sitio n fie ld s are a va ila b le fo r ja zz- oriented m usicians from Oregon and C la rk C o u n ty, W ashington. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ A p p lica n ts arc in vite d lo c a l! the Jazz S ociety H o tlin e at (503) 234-1332 fo r in fo rm a tio n and to obtain an a p p lica tio n packet. C a ll n o w ! ...a p p lica tio n deadline is A u g u s t 31, 1989! y ;