Focus
(Etje |Jo rtlan b ®bscrucr
from the A m erican A cadem y
o f A rts and L etters, as w ell as
a G u g g e n h e im fe llo w s h ip ,
e r m arriage, on Sep w hich w as renew ed the fol­
tem b er 17, 1939, to low ing year. N ot yet thirty, she
H e n ry
B la k e ly , w as fully launched as a serious
w hom she had m et the poet.
p rev i­
ous y ear, p ro d u ced tw o ch il­
In 1949, she published A nnie
dren, H enry, (1940), and N ora,
b o m in 1951. A crucial step in A llen, a series o f poem s that
h er p o etic d evelopm ent w as trac es the progress to w om an­
tak en in 1941, w hen she and hood o f a B lack girl. It w as for
her h u sb an d en ro lled in Inez th is volum e th at she w on the
ers, P o etry , and T he Y ale R e­
view.
H
C u n n in g h am S ta rk ’s poetry
w orkshop, in which the stu­
dents w ere required to read
m odem poets and to produce
poetic exercises that w ere held
to, and ju d g ed by, the strictest
standards. B rooks began to
achieve recognition in 1943,
w hen she w on an aw ard at the
M idw estern W riters’ C onfer­
ence; she w ould receive three
m ore aw ards from the same
organization in the next two
years. In 1945, the year her first
book appeared, M adem oiselle
selected h er as one o f its “Ten
Y oung W om en o f the Y ear.” In
1946, she w on a $1000 aw ard
P u litze r P rize in 1950.
In 1967, an estab lish ed and
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Page 3
respected poet, she attended a
w rite r’s c o n fe re n c e at F isk
U n iv ersity w here, she says,
The Luv Jonz
she red isco v ered h er b la c k ­
Every Thursday Evening
ness. H er subsequent poetry
The Luv Jonz is Portland’s Thursday night lounge which features
broke new ground for her, re ­
live hip-hop/j azz by the David Parks Panic Project, live poetry and music
flecting the change that o c ­
d.j.’ed by O.G. One. This is for adults 25 and over only. No sneakers,
curred at Fisk. T he M ecca, a
jeans, baseball hats or athletic wear o f any kind. The lounge is located
b o o k -le n g th p o em ab o u t a
at The House o f Grooves, 13 NW. 13th & Burnside in downtown.
m other searching for h er lost
ch ild in a C h icag o housing
Columbia Symphony’s March Concert
project, show s this new d irec­
Friday, March 23
tion. T his volum e w as n om i­
Huw Edwards leads the Columbia Symphony Orchestra o f Port­
nated for the N ational Book
land in a performance titled “National Pride” on Friday, March 23, at
A w ard for poetry. H er o th er
8 p.m. at the First United Methodist Church, 1838 SW. Jefferson in
work includes children's books,
Portland. Oregon Symphony clarinetist Yoshinori Nakao is the
an autobiography, and a c o l­
featured soloist. A pre-concert talk begins at 7:15 p.m. Call 503/234-
lection o f poetry about South
4077
or
F astix x
at
5 0 3 /2 2 4 -8 4 9 9 .
Africa. H er work is collected in
Women’s History Month Book Party
a single volume titled: BLACKS.
Saturday, March 24
rooks them es w ere
Women ’ s Hi story Month celebration and book launch for the new
based on her involve
edition o f “The Radical Women Manifesto: Socialist Feminist Theory,
ment and concern with
black pride, black identity Program
and and Organizational Structure.” Festivities include a presen­
tation on the radical roots o f the fight for equal rights, a tribute to
solidarity, black hum anism , and
trailblazing foremothers and readings from the book. This event will
caritas, a m aternal vision. And
be held on Saturday, March 24, 6 p.m. at Radical Women, located
naturally com ing up in her gen­
at
819
N.
K illin g s w o rth .
C all
5 0 3 /2 4 0 -4 4 6 2 .
eration, she was concerned with
Entertainment Guide
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5n
racial discrim ination; the civil
rights m ovem ent o f the fifties;
black rebellion o f the sixties; a
concern with com placency in
the seventies; black leadership.
Chinese Take-Out
Saturdays, March 24 and 31
“Chinese Take-Out” is an innovative and imaginative theatre produc­
tion for adults, will be performed at the Deloris Winningstad Theatre
located at 1111 SW. Broadway. The show varies with what the
audience chooses to “takeout.” Our host takes our order from a menu
o f Chinese food names, and then serves the order in the form o f several
vignettes. It is a brilliant conceptual piece, unique and fully developed.
The pieces range from whimsical to bawdy. Call 503/248-0557.
In the M ecca ( 1968 ), R iot
( 1 9 6 9 ), B lack P osition, N o. 2
( 1972 ), C apsule C ourse in
Oscar Night America
B lack P oetry W ritin g ( 1975),
B lack L ove ( 1982 and C om ­
Sunday, March 25
ing H om e ( 1992 ) are ju s t a
Volunteers o f America Oregon’s 5,h Annual Oscar Night America Gala
few from the long list o f m ajor
will be held on March 25 at he Portland Art Museum, Downtown Portland.
w o rk s th a t th e late B rooks
The only Portland Academy Awards gala event officially sanctioned by
c o n trib u te d to th e lite ra r y
the Academy o f Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences - will offer Portland
movie fans a chance to celebrate Oscar night in grand style, view a live
w orld.
broadcast o f the Annual Academy Award Ceremony over a four-course
T he career o f G w endolyn
dinner and bid on fantastic items like a Mercedes 380 SL and a 17’ Sun Ray
B rooks is virtual ly w ithout p ar­
Ski Boat. The VIP reception starts at 3 p.m. and the live broadcasts o f the
allel in A m erican literature. She
A cad em y A w ards from H o lly w o o d b e g in s at 5 p.m .
ach iev ed e x tra o rd in a ry su c ­
Whitman College Choir
cess at an early age, w inning
Sunday, March 25
the P u litzer P rize for poetry
w ith her second book w hen
The award-winning Whitworth College Choir will perform in 11
she w as in h er early thirties.
cities throughout the Pacific Northwest as part of its 2001 spring
concert tour. The 68-member ensemble will perform works from such
n 1968 she w as nam ed
composers as Jacob Handl, Sergei Rachmaninoff, Johann von Herbeck
P oet L a u re a te fo r the
and William Dawson, and the free concert will include a repertoire of
state o f Illinois,an honor
in w hich the w hole state w ould music spanning the Baroque period to the 20lh century. The event will
be at the First Presbyterian Church, located at 4300 Main Street in
recognize her talent. A lso,she
Vancouver, WA. on Sunday. March 25, 7 p.m. Call 360/694-3363.
becam e poetry co nsultant to
I
the L ibrary o f C ongress,one o f
the highest honors an A m eri­
can author can achieve. Lastly,a
Jr.High in Harvey Illinois and
The Gwendolyn Brooks C enter
at the University o f Illinois were
nam ed after her. G w endolyn
B rooks’s contributions with lit­
erature and poetry m ake her an
inspiration.
A Sultan’s Feast
Tuesday, March 27
At the Portland Art Museum is an exhibition o f Ottoman Art from the
Khalili Collection. As a compelement, the museum is having an Empire
o f the Sultans: Cultural History Series that includes a food sampling
called “A Sultan’s Feast." Terrie Chrones, educator and Ottoman
culinary expert, will discuss Ottoman cuisine and culture, followed by
a sampling o f Turkish mezza, or appetizers, and wine. The event will
be on Tuesday, March 27 at 6 p.m. in the Stevens Room o f the museum.