Friday 2 Gammage Docudrama Pitt Repertory Theater presents The Gammage Project at 8 p.m. at the Henry Heymann Theatre, Pitt’s Stephen Foster Memorial, Forbes Ave., Oakland. The play is based on actual events from the 1995 death of Jonny Gammage, who died at the scene during a traffic stop by Brentwood Police. The cause of death is listed as asphyxiation caused by pressure applied to the chest and neck. The play will run today and March 4. Following the performance, Attilio Favorini or a guest will moderate talkback sessions between the audience, one or two of the cast members, and individuals who have a connection to the Gammage case. For more information, call 412-624-7529.
You knew exactly what you were going to do. You might have been three, or five or ten years old. Maybe the realization hit you last summer or last week, but you knew there’d be no stopping you. From the moment you understood that you had talent—that “Hey, this is fun and I’m good at it!” moment—you knew what you were going to do with it. You’d be taking that gift to the top. terrIn the new book “Uptown Dreams” by Kelli London, four students at Harlem’s Academy of Creative and Performing Arts are headed the same way up. But their path to the top will be a long climb.
Kuntu Repertory Theatre presented August Wilson’s “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” in the auditorium of the Homewood branch of the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh. “Ma Rainey” is the only play of Wilson’s “Century Cycle” that did not take place in Pittsburgh; instead it takes place in a low-budget recording studio in the mid-1920s Chicago.
(NNPA)—Dear Gwendolyn: I came from a wealthy family. My father and mother divorced when I was only 3 years old. My mother raised me and kept me from knowing my grandparents on my father’s side.
Before it closed in 2000, if you wanted to have a good meal and some drinks while rubbing elbows with everyone from jazz greats like Dwayne Dolphin, Roger Humphries or Jimmy Ponder, to down-home bands like the Blues Orphans, the James Street Tavern on the North Side was the place to be. And now, it is again. JAZZ IS BACK AT JAMES—During the show, from left: on keyboard is Leonard Johnson III; bass Albert “Mouchie” Weir; singing Tim Stevens; drummer Vince Taglieri; and special guest Kenny Blake, popular saxophonist. (Photo by J. L. Martello) Thanks to music fans and entrepreneurs Adam Johnston and Lisa Saftner, the classic music venue reopened in December, and, as of Jan. 8 has become the new home of the Pittsburgh Jazz Society. Jazz Society Founder Tony Mowod said the new venue is great.
A well-known movie star, up for an award for her portrayal of a maid in one of the year’s most critically-acclaimed films, is criticized by her own people accused of perpetuating a stereotype. No, not Viola Davis or Octavia Spencer, both up for Oscar Awards this month. Go back to 1939, when Hattie McDaniel received the statuette for her role as Mammy in “Gone with the Wind.” SHAUNYCE OMAR PORTRAYS HATTIE McDANIEL That same struggle in Hollywood is as American as apple pie and alive and well today, except that McDaniel didn’t have pioneers to inspire her path – she blazed it for others to follow. That is the one-woman tour-de-force performance in New Horizon Theater’s presentation of “Hi-Hat Hattie” in the Grey Box Theater in Lawrenceville earlier this month.
This week I visited Savoy Restaurant in the Strip District, CJ’s in the Strip District, Kenny’s Place in Uptown, The Red Onion in the Hill District and the Shadow Lounge in East Liberty. My first stop was at Savoy Restaurant in the Strip District where actor Laz Alonzo came out to meet and greet with his fans at an event called “Ladies & Love Weekend Affair” for Valentine’s Day. Chuck Sanders of Savoy Restaurant and actor Laz Alonzo representing at Savoy Restaurant in the Strip District.
Thursday 23 Jazz Jam CJ’s Restaurant & Lounge presents “The Roger Humphries & RH Factor Jazz Jam Session” at 8 p.m. at 2901-2911 Penn Ave., Strip District. There will be live jazz and fun every Thursday night. Must be 30-years or older and there is a dress code that will be enforced. No tennis shoes, sweats, or athletic gear. For more information, call 412-642-2377.
Philadelphia and Pittsburgh have always been rivals, especially in sports. It extends to music to which is the idea behind Saturday night’s match-up at the August Wilson Center for African American Culture. The Pittsburgh Jazz Orchestra will assume a neutral position as the back-up band to a pair of jazz musicians extraordinaire. JEFF ‘TAIN’ WATTS
In memory of the Queen of Pop, Coston Funeral Home, located at 427 Lincoln Ave. in East Liberty, will host a Memorial Tribute in honor of the legendary Whitney Houston at 7 p.m. Houston died Feb. 11 during Grammy weekend at a Beverly Hills hotel. WHITNEY HOUSTON
