None of the 11 new comedies on the four major American broadcast networks has an Africa-American lead actor next fall. “The lack of African American leads in sitcoms is unconscionable. This is historically where many African actors, directors, writers and show runners have honed their artistic skills and found meaningful employment.”
Tag: 06.16.06
Ontario’s Stratford Festival Stages Its First Play By A Black Playwright
Next week, Djanet Sears “officially becomes the first black playwright and the first black female director in the 54-year history of the Stratford Festival of Canada. The production will also be the first on any of its stages with an all-black cast.”
Cirque du Soleil Works With Troubled Kids In 19 Countries
“The programs’ team works with circus-arts instructors to teach troubled youth how to clown around, juggle and do more advanced circus techniques. Kids learn to use their imagination and balance, and to test their own physical limits. The instructors help them improve self-esteem, develop social skills and gain a sense of humour. They also teach self-control and discipline, and channel risk-taking and adrenaline in a positive way. ‘Everyone who has experienced violence or trouble knows that adrenaline. What we do is modify that adrenaline. The difference is, people applaud you for it here’.”
Broadway – The Best And Worst Of Times
“If you’re an admirer of Broadway-ready singing actors, it is a time of feast; there’s never been more potentially showstopping talent…. The list of reliable marquee names and major emerging talents would make any casting director salivate. But what new shows are worthy of such talents?”
Rosenbaum: Glueck Was “Mother To Us All”
Lee Rosenbaum writes in defense of Grace Glueck. “The blogger-created public ‘scandal’ over Glueck’s lapse, which has just resulted in her resignation from the Clark, doesn’t give even a hint of the other side of the story: the fact that her board membership, while inappropriate, caused no discernible slant in Times coverage.”