Community Calendar: 9/15/11-9/21/11 (36386)

Greetings! Black Resurrection Month in the GBE is also National Minority Health Month, which includes National Cancer Week. In that context, legendary Hall of Fame artist-songwriter Bobby Womack has been diagnosed with first-stage colon cancer. No word on his prognosis yet, but he is said to be upbeat. We wish him well and will keep you updated as information becomes available.

Theater

  • Tennessee Williams’ classic “A Streetcar Named Desire,” featuring Blair Underwood, Nicole Ari Parker, Daphne Rubin-Vega and Wood Harris. Sixteen weeks only–in previews now, opening night April 22. At the Broadhurst Theatre, 253 W. 45th St. For tickets and more information, call (212) 239-6200 or visit www.telecharge.com or www.streetcaronbroadway.com.
  • Tyler Perry’s “The Haves and the Have Nots,” featuring powerful new music written by Perry, about a wealthy family with everything they need and most of what they want. April 5 at 8 p.m. at the Beacon Theatre, 2124 Broadway. For more information, call (212) 465-6500 or visit www.beacontheatre.com.
  • Award-winning playwright and director Marcus Dargan of NuAFrikan Theatre exposes the truth about gentrification in his award-winning new play, “Dream Deferred.” Opens April 20 at the 133rd Street Arts Center in Harlem, 308 W. 133rd St., between Frederick Douglass Boulevard and St. Nicholas Avenue. For more information call (347) 855-7281 or visit http://www.nuafrikantheatre.org/dream-deferred
  • “Black Angels Over Tuskegee,” the story of the pioneering first African-American fighter pilots, now playing at the Actors Temple Theatre, 339 W. 47th St., between Eighth and Ninth avenues. For tickets, call (212) 239-6200 or visit www.telecharge.com.
  • The story of early rock ‘n’ roll comes to life in “Memphis,” capturing a defining moment in time of our history and herstory. At the Shubert Theatre, 225 W. 44th St. For tickets and more information, call (212) 239-6200 or visit www.memphisthemusical.com.
  • Whoopi Goldberg’s “Sister Act,” the stage musical based on the movie, features funky, soulful songs by Alan Menken and Glenn Slater and presents the dynamic debut of Patina Miller. At the Broadway Theatre, 1681 Broadway. For more information, visit www.sisteractbroadway.com.
  • “Sistas the Musical,” a joyous musical celebration of African-American women from Bessie Smith to Mary J. Blige, at St. Luke’s Theatre, 308 W. 46th St. Performances Thursdays at 7 p.m. and Saturdays at 1:30 and 4:30 p.m. For tickets and more information, call (212) 239 6200 or visit www.telecharge.com or www.sistasthemusical.com.
  • “Secrets of Elder Sisters,” by Betty Dopson of CEMOTAP, based on her popular book about the courage and indomitable spirit testimony of seven powerful sisters, brings Women’s History Month to life. At the Black Spectrum Theatre, 177th Street and Baisley Boulevard inside Roy Wilkins Park in Jamaica, Queens. For tickets, directions and information, call (718) 723-1800.
  • “Platanos Y Collard Greens,” David Lamb’s hilarious hit romantic, comedic Off-Broadway play guaranteed to make you laugh out loud, inspire you and make you think, welcomes VH1’s “Basketball Wives” star Royce Reed. At the Baruch Performing Arts Center, 55 Lexington Ave., on 25th Street between Lexington and Third avenues. For show schedules, call (212) 352-3101 or visit www.platanosandcollardgreens.com. For group sales, call (646) 522-4348.

Dance

  • Cirque du Soleil presents “Michael Jackson: The Immortal.” Through dance, music and acrobatics, the show explores Jackson’s love of music, the beauty of nature and a dash of magic, inspired by Jackson’s immensely popular music. At the Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale, N.Y., Sat., April 7 at 8 p.m. and Sun., April 8 at 4 p.m. For tickets and more information, call (888) 456-8499 or visit www.thegarden.com or www.nassaucoliseum.com.

Music

  • The NYU Skirball Center for the Performing Arts hosts the premiere of “An African Nubian Suite” by Randy Weston with his African Rhythms Orchestra on Easter Sunday, April 8 at 7 p.m. at 566 LaGuardia Place, at Washington Square South. The concert features appearances by poet Jayne Cortez and historian Robin D. G. Kelley, and there will be signings of Weston’s “African Rhythms: The Autobiography of Randy Weston” and Kelley’s “Africa Speaks, America Answers: Modern Jazz in Revolutionary Times.” For tickets, call (212) 352-3101 or (866) 811-4111. For more information, visit www.nyuskirball.org/calendar/weston.
  • The 13th annual Central Brooklyn Jazz Festival, “Jazz: A Music of the Spirit,” presents on Mon., April 16, “The Last Poets, Originators of Revolutionary Poetry,” at For My Sweet, 1103 Fulton St., at Classon Avenue. Two shows at 7:15 and 9:15 p.m. For more information, call (718) 857-1427 or email jazzymondays@gmail.com.

Comedy

  • Wayne Brady, host of “Let’s Make a Deal,” appearing Fri., April 20 through Sun., April 22 at the Gotham Comedy Club, 208 W. 23rd St., between Seventh and Eighth avenues. For more information, call (212) 367-9000.

Film

  • The 19th New York African Film Festival presents “21st Century: The Homecoming.” This year’s festival will explore the modern notion of home and homeland April 11 through 17 at the Film Society of Lincoln Center, and throughout April and May at The Jerome L. Greene Performance Space, Columbia University’s Institute of African Studies, the Maysles Cinema Institute and the Brooklyn Academy of Music’s BAMcinematek. For more information, visit www.africanfilmny.org.

Community

  • CVS is sponsoring a series of free health screenings this month called Pharmacy Project Health. For more information, go to www.cvs.com/projecthealth.
  • The Rev. Dr. Johnny Ray Youngblood, executive pastor of Mt. Pisgah Baptist Church and pastor emeritus of St. Paul Community Baptist Church, welcomes “Project Safe Surrender” to Mt. Pisgah Baptist Church, 212 Tompkins Ave., at the corner of DeKalb Avenue, on Good Friday, April 6 and Sat., April 7, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. The program enables Brooklyn residents with “C” summonses and warrants to have their cases heard by a judge and resolved in a safe environment without fear of arrest. To learn more, call (718) 250-3888 or Anita Alexander at (718) 388-3900, ext. 46, or visit www.projectsafesurrender.org.
  • Rep. Charles Rangel invites small business owners and entrepreneurs to hear representatives from the Small Business Administration and the Department of Commerce’s Minority Business Development Agency discuss various federal initiatives to help you grow your businesses on Tues., April 10, 9 a.m.-1 p.m. in the Harlem State Office Building. He is also hosting an information session about finding and applying to government job opportunities, the Peace Corps and AmeriCorps on Thurs., April 12 from 10 a.m.-12 p.m. at Aaron Davis Hall inside the City College of New York. For more details, visit rangel.house.gov.

Hear Imhotep Gary Byrd on 107.5 WBLS-FM daily with “Imhotep’s On-Air Guide to Black Events” and “Express Yourself,” Sunday evenings from 6 to 8 p.m., and on WLIB-AM with “The GBE Mind Flight,” Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to midnight (simulcast on WLIB-AM/WBLS-FM from 7-8 p.m.). The full show can be heard on HD radio at WBLS-HD2. IGB is also heard on WBAI-FM 99.5 with the GBE 2.0 “Global Black Experience” and “Global Beat Experience,” Saturdays from 5 to 7 p.m. We are archived online with both shows at www.wbai.org. To reach us about your event, email gbemail2@yahoo.com, find Imhotep Gary Byrd on Facebook or follow us on Twitter at GBELIFE.