Greetings! My long-time friend and musical collaborator Stevie Wonder spoke on stage during his “Songs in the Key of Life” Tour to call out the so-called “justice” system in Ferguson, Mo., and New York City while delivering his 1974 classic “Livin for the City” at Seattle’s Key Arena.
THEATER
Irving Street Rep and Faison Firehouse Theatre present “Ain’t Misbehavin,” the life of Harlem in the 1930s, at 6 Hancock Place, at 124th Street, between St. Nicholas and Morningside avenues. Visit smarttix.com or call SmartTix at 212-868-4444.
“Self Made Man: The Frederick Douglass Story,” a new play written and performed by Phil Darius Wallace, is off-Broadway at the ArcLight Theatre (152 W. 71st St.). The production is adapted from the writings, speeches, letters and autobiographies of Frederick Douglass. Call 866-811-4111 or visit frederickdouglassplay.com for more information.
Vy Higgensen’s musical “Alive! 55+ and Kickin’” is at the Dempsey Theater, 127 W. 127th St. in Harlem. For tickets and information, call 212-868-4444 or visit smarttix.com or www.mamafoundation.org.
“Motown: The Musical,” with book by Berry Gordy Jr., is now playing at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, 205 W. 46th St., between Eighth Avenue and Broadway. For tickets, visit ticketmaster.com or motownthemusical.com.
“Kinky Boots,” featuring 2013 Tony Award winner Billy Porter, is at the Al Hirschfield Theatre, 302 W. 45th St. Visit broadway.com/ shows/kinky-boots.
“Futurology the Musical” is a tale of “grand intervention,” as the Saturn Majestic unwittingly sends space-traveling women back in time to the present—a place where they come face to face with a moment that will determine their own fate and very existence. Friday, Dec. 12 at 7:30 p.m., Dec. 13 at 2:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. and Dec. 14 at 2:30 p.m. For tickets, visit www.eventbrite.com/e/futurology-the-musical-tickets14459232955?aff=es2&rank=1.
MUSIC
“Christmas in Brooklyn” features Run DMC, LL Kool J with DJ Z-Trip, Lecray and Diggy Dec. 19 at the Barclays Center, 960 Atlantic Ave., Brooklyn, N.Y. Visit barclayscenter.com for more information.
CBS-FM presents legendary Motown pioneer, recording artist, songwriter and producer Smoky Robinson, appearing for the first time at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, Thursday, Dec. 11 at 8 p.m. Visit barclayscenter.com.
Motown legends the Temptations and the Four Tops play the Palace Theatre, 1564 Broadway in New York City, Dec. 29 through Jan. 4, 2015, for seven historic performances, celebrating their 50-year career of classic, unforgettable Motown hits.
B.B. King Blues Club, located in the heart of Times Square, presents Estelle Saturday, Dec 16; Musiq Soulchild Dec. 21 and 22; and Kindred and the Family Soul Dec. 23. Call 212-997-4144 or visit bbkingsblues.com or wbls.com for more information.
Anthony Hamilton and Mint Condition perform at the NJPAC in Newark, N.J., Sunday, Dec. 14. Also, Sweet Honey in the Rock will be “Celebrating the Holy Days” Saturday, Dec. 20. Call 888-GONJPAC or visit njpac.org for more information.
FAMILY
The Candlelight Carol Festival combines carillons, organs, harps and all the choirs of the Riverside Church, culminating in a ritual sharing of candlelight illuminating the nave. Music will include traditional songs and selections by composers Lee Hoiby, Amanda Singer, John Rutter and Francis Poulenc. The Riverside Church is located at 490 Riverside Drive, between 120th and 122nd streets. The festival takes place Sunday, Dec. 21, with two services, one at 3:30 p.m. and the other at 6:30 p.m. For more information, call 212-870-6784.
Pass the word: The annual Kwanzaa “Regeneration Night” celebration featuring the cultural brilliance of Abdel Salaam’s Forces of Nature Dance Theatre with special guests Sonia Sanchez, Dyane Harvey-Salaam and Theresa Thomason, hosted by yours truly, Imhotep Gary Byrd, is set for Saturday, Dec. 27, with two shows, 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Tickets are affordably priced and are available at ticketmaster.com, apollotheater.org and the Apollo Theater box office.
COMEDY
“The Flip Side of Phyllis Yvonne Stickney” comes home to Harlem for the holidays, Friday, Dec. 19 (showtime at 8 p.m. with a mix and mingle from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.) at MIST Harlem, 46 W. 116th St., between Fifth Avenue and Malcolm X Boulevard. For more information, call 646-370-1061. You may also purchase tickets via PayPal by emailing Avocates4DIA@gmail.com or visiting www.Advocates4DIA.com.
COMMUNITY
New York Assemblyman-elect Charles Barron will hold a major demonstration Thursday, Dec. 11 at 4 p.m. to demand that the Brooklyn district attorney hold a public hearing in the Akai Gurley police shooting, not a private grand jury hearing. Location: 350 Jay St. in Brooklyn, in front of the Brooklyn district attorney’s office.
The December 12th Movement will celebrate its 27th anniversary Friday, Dec. 12 at the House of the Lord Church, 415 Atlantic Ave. in Brooklyn, at 6:30 p.m. It will feature a special report from Zimbabwe. For more information, call 718-398-1766.
The 30th annual Kwanzaa celebration for the African-American community will be held Saturday, Dec. 13, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the the Langston Hughes Community Library and Cultural Center, 100-01 Northern Blvd., Corona, Queens. The celebration features film screenings, a libation ceremony, craft workshops, live music and a special award presentation honoring legendary New York radio broadcaster and poet Imhotep Gary Byrd and author, performing artist and lecturer Nana Camille Yarbrough, in conjunction with the Bullion Foundation. The event is free and open to the public, and young people are especially encouraged to attend. Call 718-651-1100 or visit queenslibrary.org or www.libraryactioncommittee.org for information.
The Learning Tree Cultural Center presents a Kwanzaa festival, Saturday, Dec. 13, 1 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at 201 Bartholdi St. in the Bronx. Call 718-999-0960.
D-12 has announced a commemoration for a “Day of Rage” against police killings Friday, Dec. 19 at noon in front of the Federal Hall National Memorial, located at 26 Wall St., off Nassau Street.
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 7 to 9 p.m., and on WLIB-AM with “The GBE Mind Flight,” Sunday evenings from 9 p.m. to midnight. The full show can be heard on HD radio at WBLS-HD2. IGB is also heard on WBAI-FM 99.5 with Radio GBE: “The 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 contact us for bookings or to reach us about your event, email igbexp@gmail.com, find Imhotep Gary Byrd on Facebook or follow us on Twitter @GBELIFE or call 212-592-3279.