THE NIA NETWORK
Welcome
to our talent line-up, The Nia Network, a division of Celeste Bateman
& Associates. The line-up features performing artists, historians,
writers and speakers of African descent who present in various venues
nationally and internationally. CB&A has compiled a roster of
talented individuals who are available to perform and present at
colleges and universities, performing arts centers, schools, churches,
corporations, conferences, festivals, trade shows, etc. Our presenters
specialize in topics and art forms pertaining to the African Diaspora. Nia
is the Swahili word for ‘purpose.’ Our purpose or MISSION is to
promulgate what is good and positive about African, Caribbean, and
African-American culture, history, heritage and art. For booking
information, please complete the contact form. Thank you.
PLEASE NOTE: We are unable to take on additional artists/speakers at this time, but we thank you for your interest.
PLEASE NOTE: We are unable to take on additional artists/speakers at this time, but we thank you for your interest.
Writers/Poets/Historian
Amiri and Amina Baraka
Amiri and Amina Baraka poets, authors and civil rights activists, founded and direct Kimako’s Blues People, a multimedia arts space, from a small theater in their home in Newark, NJ. Amiri founded the jazz/poetry ensemble Blue Ark, which has played at the Berlin Festival, and throughout the US. In 1964, Amiri’s play, Dutchman, won the OBIE award for Best American Play. His Jazz opera Money, with Swiss composer, George Gruntz was performed in part at the New York Jazz Festival in the early 90’s and Primitive World, with music by David Murray, was performed in New York and at the Black Drama Festival in Winston Salem, North Carolina. His Bumpy: A Bopera with music by Max Roach was performed in 1991 in Newark and San Diego. Amina and Amiri edited Confirmation: An Anthology of Afro American Women.
They have been married for over 30 years and have five children. Their group, BlueArk: The Word Ship is available for performances worldwide. Amiri and Amina are available for performances, seminars and lectures on Art, Politics and Black Liberation. Amiri Baraka's recent books include Tales of the Out & the Gone (Akashic). Home, his book of social essays, was re-released by Akashic Books in early 2009. Digging: The Afro American Soul of Music (Univ. of California) was also released in 2009.
Fees TBD. Travel & accommodations required.
They have been married for over 30 years and have five children. Their group, BlueArk: The Word Ship is available for performances worldwide. Amiri and Amina are available for performances, seminars and lectures on Art, Politics and Black Liberation. Amiri Baraka's recent books include Tales of the Out & the Gone (Akashic). Home, his book of social essays, was re-released by Akashic Books in early 2009. Digging: The Afro American Soul of Music (Univ. of California) was also released in 2009.
Fees TBD. Travel & accommodations required.
Amiri Baraka
Amiri Baraka was born Everett LeRoi Jones in 1934 in Newark, NJ. After leaving Howard University and the Air Force, he moved to the Lower East Side of Manhattan in 1957 and co-edited the avant-garde literary magazine Yugen and founded Totem Press, which first published works by Allen Ginsberg, Jack Kerouac, and others.
His reputation as a playwright was established with the production of Dutchman at the Cherry Lane Theatre in New York on March 24, 1964. The controversial play subsequently won an Obie Award (for "Best off-Broadway play") and was made into a film. (The play was revived by the Cherry Lane Theatre in January 2007 and has been reproduced around the world).
In 1965, Jones moved to Harlem, where he founded the Black Arts Repertory Theatre/School. The BARTS lasted only one year but had a lasting influence on the direction of Afro American Arts.
He and his wife, Amina Baraka, edited The Music (Meditations of Jazz & Blues (Morrow) Confirmation: An Anthology of African-American Women, which won an American Book Award from the Before Columbus Foundation. The Autobiography of LeRoi Jones/Amiri Baraka was published in 1984. Other noted publications are Y’s/Why’s/Wise (3rd World 1992) Funk Lore (Littoral 1993), Eulogies (Marsilio, 94), Transbluesency, (Marsilio 1996), Somebody Blew Up America & Other Poems (Nehesi 2002).
Amiri Baraka's numerous literary honors include fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts, the PEN/Faulkner Award, the Rockefeller Foundation Award for Drama, the Langston Hughes Award from The City College of New York, and a lifetime achievement award from the Before Columbus Foundation. In 1994, he retired as Professor of Africana Studies at the State University of New York in Stony Brook. He was inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Letters in 1995. In 2002, Baraka was named Poet Laureate of New Jersey and Newark Public Schools. His book of short stories, Tales of the Out & The Gone (Akashic Books) was published in late 2007. Home, his book of social essays, was re-released by Akashic Books in early 2009. Digging: The Afro American Soul of Music (Univ. of California) was also released in 2009.
Just added, several 9/11 speech topics as September 11, 2011 marks the 10th anniversary of the bombing of the World Trade Center in NYC:
911: The Pandora's Box of US War & Imperialism
911: US Imperialism's Cover Story for World Conquest
911: Who & Why?
Fees TBD. Travel & accommodations required.
His reputation as a playwright was established with the production of Dutchman at the Cherry Lane Theatre in New York on March 24, 1964. The controversial play subsequently won an Obie Award (for "Best off-Broadway play") and was made into a film. (The play was revived by the Cherry Lane Theatre in January 2007 and has been reproduced around the world).
In 1965, Jones moved to Harlem, where he founded the Black Arts Repertory Theatre/School. The BARTS lasted only one year but had a lasting influence on the direction of Afro American Arts.
He and his wife, Amina Baraka, edited The Music (Meditations of Jazz & Blues (Morrow) Confirmation: An Anthology of African-American Women, which won an American Book Award from the Before Columbus Foundation. The Autobiography of LeRoi Jones/Amiri Baraka was published in 1984. Other noted publications are Y’s/Why’s/Wise (3rd World 1992) Funk Lore (Littoral 1993), Eulogies (Marsilio, 94), Transbluesency, (Marsilio 1996), Somebody Blew Up America & Other Poems (Nehesi 2002).
Amiri Baraka's numerous literary honors include fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts, the PEN/Faulkner Award, the Rockefeller Foundation Award for Drama, the Langston Hughes Award from The City College of New York, and a lifetime achievement award from the Before Columbus Foundation. In 1994, he retired as Professor of Africana Studies at the State University of New York in Stony Brook. He was inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Letters in 1995. In 2002, Baraka was named Poet Laureate of New Jersey and Newark Public Schools. His book of short stories, Tales of the Out & The Gone (Akashic Books) was published in late 2007. Home, his book of social essays, was re-released by Akashic Books in early 2009. Digging: The Afro American Soul of Music (Univ. of California) was also released in 2009.
Just added, several 9/11 speech topics as September 11, 2011 marks the 10th anniversary of the bombing of the World Trade Center in NYC:
911: The Pandora's Box of US War & Imperialism
911: US Imperialism's Cover Story for World Conquest
911: Who & Why?
Fees TBD. Travel & accommodations required.
Donald Bogle
"Let’s all nod in appreciation to Donald Bogle for putting everything in historical perspective….Mr. Bogle continues to be our most important noted Black-cinema historian.” ~ Spike Lee
Donald Bogle, whose book Dorothy Dandridge: A Biography was published to glowing reviews, is one of the foremost authorities on American popular culture and the author of three prize-winning books on the subject. His book, Toms, Coons, Mulattoes, Mammies, and Bucks: An Interpretive History of Blacks in American Films, winner of the Theater Library Association Award as Best Film Book of the Year, is considered a classic study of African American movie images. It is now in its fourth edition.
His book, Bright Boulevards, Bold Dreams: The Story of Black Hollywood. looks at the African American Films colony in Los Angeles from the early years of the 20th century to the mid-1960s. The Los Angeles Times listed Bright Boulevards, Bold Dreams on its Bestseller List.
Bogle is also the author of Primetime Blues: African Americans on Network Television, the first comprehensive examination of African Americans on the primetime network scene. “This is a valuable chronicle” “A revealing, thought-provoking and richly detailed look at the small screen’s highlights,” wrote Essence.
Bogle’s most recent books is Heat Wave: The Life and Career of Ethel Waters. “Bogle’s thorough and unflinchingly honest look at Waters’s brilliant and flawed life will undoubtedly be the definitive biography of this great woman.” Publishers Weekly.
He adapted his book Brown Sugar: Eighty Years of America’s Black Female Superstars, into an acclaimed four-hour, four-part documentary series for PBS. He wrote the scripts for the episodes, headed the film research team, and was an executive producer of the series. Additionally, he is well-known for his distinguished work, Blacks in American Film and Television: An Illustrated Encyclopedia.
A former writer for Ebony, Donald Bogle has appeared as a commentator for numerous television documentaries, including Spike Lee’s Jim Brown: An All-American; HBO’s Mo’ Funny: Black Comedy in America (executive produced by Richard Pryor) and the American Movie Classic channel’s Small Steps...Big Strides, which chronicled the history of African Americans in motion pictures. In addition to Ebony, his articles have appeared in Film Comment, Spin, Essence, Elan, University Review, and Freedomways. He is a frequent lecturer on films and African American performers at colleges, museums, and libraries around the country and has been interviewed on numerous television programs including The Tavis Smiley Show, The Today Show, Good Morning America, The Charlie Rose Show, Nightline and Entertainment Tonight.
Donald Bogle was raised in the Philadelphia area. He currently teaches at the University of Pennsylvania and New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts. He divides his time between New York and Los Angeles.
Fees begin at $3,500 + travel & accommodations
Donald Bogle, whose book Dorothy Dandridge: A Biography was published to glowing reviews, is one of the foremost authorities on American popular culture and the author of three prize-winning books on the subject. His book, Toms, Coons, Mulattoes, Mammies, and Bucks: An Interpretive History of Blacks in American Films, winner of the Theater Library Association Award as Best Film Book of the Year, is considered a classic study of African American movie images. It is now in its fourth edition.
His book, Bright Boulevards, Bold Dreams: The Story of Black Hollywood. looks at the African American Films colony in Los Angeles from the early years of the 20th century to the mid-1960s. The Los Angeles Times listed Bright Boulevards, Bold Dreams on its Bestseller List.
Bogle is also the author of Primetime Blues: African Americans on Network Television, the first comprehensive examination of African Americans on the primetime network scene. “This is a valuable chronicle” “A revealing, thought-provoking and richly detailed look at the small screen’s highlights,” wrote Essence.
Bogle’s most recent books is Heat Wave: The Life and Career of Ethel Waters. “Bogle’s thorough and unflinchingly honest look at Waters’s brilliant and flawed life will undoubtedly be the definitive biography of this great woman.” Publishers Weekly.
He adapted his book Brown Sugar: Eighty Years of America’s Black Female Superstars, into an acclaimed four-hour, four-part documentary series for PBS. He wrote the scripts for the episodes, headed the film research team, and was an executive producer of the series. Additionally, he is well-known for his distinguished work, Blacks in American Film and Television: An Illustrated Encyclopedia.
A former writer for Ebony, Donald Bogle has appeared as a commentator for numerous television documentaries, including Spike Lee’s Jim Brown: An All-American; HBO’s Mo’ Funny: Black Comedy in America (executive produced by Richard Pryor) and the American Movie Classic channel’s Small Steps...Big Strides, which chronicled the history of African Americans in motion pictures. In addition to Ebony, his articles have appeared in Film Comment, Spin, Essence, Elan, University Review, and Freedomways. He is a frequent lecturer on films and African American performers at colleges, museums, and libraries around the country and has been interviewed on numerous television programs including The Tavis Smiley Show, The Today Show, Good Morning America, The Charlie Rose Show, Nightline and Entertainment Tonight.
Donald Bogle was raised in the Philadelphia area. He currently teaches at the University of Pennsylvania and New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts. He divides his time between New York and Los Angeles.
Fees begin at $3,500 + travel & accommodations
Dr. Leonard Jeffries
Leonard Jeffries was born on January 19, 1937 and raised in Newark, New Jersey.
They say, "It takes a whole village to raise a child" and Newark provided that experience. As a teenager, Lenny sensed he was on a mission. He was interested in the formation of our young men and women.
Jeffries took his first trip to Africa with Operation Crossroads International founded by Dr. James Robinson. His apparent leadership abilities and proficiency in French made him an asset to the program. Jeffries had heard about the Crossroads program a few years earlier. "Listening to this man talking about the need to work with Africa…tears came to my eyes. It was as if he was talking to me," remembers Jeffries. He was brought on the Crossroads staff and, by the summer of 1962, was the group leader of a trip to Senegal. By 1964, he had traveled to Africa a dozen times.
His experiences in Africa shaped his academic ambition and ultimately his career. He switched from a budding lawyer to a political scientist, left law school and sought a master's degree in international affairs.
Later, he worked on his Ph.D. in the Ivory Coast, studying economics and politics. He was struck by the extent to which African studies, as taught in the educational institutions, was from the imperialistic viewpoint. It was not long before he began challenging the authorities on Africa in intellectual circles.
His lectures, writings, and the single class he was teaching at City College (prior to a Black Studies Department) put him in contact with his peers and in 1969, he and historian John Henrik Clarke established the African Heritage Studies Association. That same year, Jeffries was called to San Jose State University in California to set up their first Black Studies programs.
Jeffries began to build on firm ground his own vision of a curriculum based on the "African world focus." His program objectives were to be community oriented, to reach overseas to Africa and to reach out to the Caribbean. He was to break with previously structured masters and Ph.D. programs—his goal being to link academic activities to the community and root Black history to its existence prior to slavery.
Dr. Jeffries if available for lectures on college campuses and other venues.
Fees begin at : $3,500 + travel & accommodations
They say, "It takes a whole village to raise a child" and Newark provided that experience. As a teenager, Lenny sensed he was on a mission. He was interested in the formation of our young men and women.
Jeffries took his first trip to Africa with Operation Crossroads International founded by Dr. James Robinson. His apparent leadership abilities and proficiency in French made him an asset to the program. Jeffries had heard about the Crossroads program a few years earlier. "Listening to this man talking about the need to work with Africa…tears came to my eyes. It was as if he was talking to me," remembers Jeffries. He was brought on the Crossroads staff and, by the summer of 1962, was the group leader of a trip to Senegal. By 1964, he had traveled to Africa a dozen times.
His experiences in Africa shaped his academic ambition and ultimately his career. He switched from a budding lawyer to a political scientist, left law school and sought a master's degree in international affairs.
Later, he worked on his Ph.D. in the Ivory Coast, studying economics and politics. He was struck by the extent to which African studies, as taught in the educational institutions, was from the imperialistic viewpoint. It was not long before he began challenging the authorities on Africa in intellectual circles.
His lectures, writings, and the single class he was teaching at City College (prior to a Black Studies Department) put him in contact with his peers and in 1969, he and historian John Henrik Clarke established the African Heritage Studies Association. That same year, Jeffries was called to San Jose State University in California to set up their first Black Studies programs.
Jeffries began to build on firm ground his own vision of a curriculum based on the "African world focus." His program objectives were to be community oriented, to reach overseas to Africa and to reach out to the Caribbean. He was to break with previously structured masters and Ph.D. programs—his goal being to link academic activities to the community and root Black history to its existence prior to slavery.
Dr. Jeffries if available for lectures on college campuses and other venues.
Fees begin at : $3,500 + travel & accommodations
Valerie Wilson Wesley
Valerie Wilson Wesley is the author of seven Tamara Hayle Mysteries of which Of Blood and Sorrow, published in 2008, is the latest. She is also the author of the novels Playing My Mother’s Blues, Always True to You in My Fashion and Ain’t Nobody’s Business If I Do for which she received the 2000 Award for Excellence in Adult Fiction from the Black Caucus of the American Library Association (BCALA), and seven Tamara Hayle Mysteries. Her other mysteries include When Death Comes Stealing, Devil's Gonna Get Him, Where Evil Sleeps, No Hiding Place, Easier to Kill, The Devil Riding and Dying in the Dark. Most of her books have been Blackboard bestsellers, and When Death Comes Stealing was nominated for a Shamus award.
The Tamara Hayle Mysteries are published in Great Britain, France, Germany and Poland. Ain’t Nobody’s Business If I Do and Always True to You in My Fashion are published in Germany. Her short stories and essays are included in the anthologies The Bluelight Corner, Black Women Writing on Passion, Sex and Romantic LoveGumbo, A Literary Rent Party, edited by Marita Golden and E. Lynn Harris and Room to Grow, edited by Christina Baker Kline. Ms.Wesley’s books for children include seven books in her Willimena Rules! series, Freedom’s Gifts: A Juneteenth Story, Where Do I Go From Here, and The Afro-bets Book of Black Heroes, which she co-wrote with Wade Hudson.
Ms.Wesley served as artist-in-residence at Columbia College in Chicago for the spring semester of 2005. She is currently an adjunct at Ramapo College. She is the former executive editor of Essence magazine. Her fiction and nonfiction for both adults and children have appeared in many publications, including Essence, Family Circle, TV Guide, Ms, Creative Classroom and Weltwoche, a Swiss weekly newspaper.
Ms. Wesley is a 1993 recipient of the Griot Award from the New York Chapter of the National Association of Black Journalists. She has received awards from several book groups and community organizations including the 2004 Author of the Year from the Amigirls Book Club and the 1996 Author of the Year from the Go On Girls Book Club. She is a former board member of Sisters in Crime, an organization committed to promoting women writing mysteries.
Ms. Wesley is a graduate of Howard University and holds masters degrees from both the Bank Street College of Education and the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism. She is married to noted screenwriter and playwright Richard Wesley and has two adult daughters.
Ms. Wilson Wesley is available for book signings and lectures.
Fees begin at : $2,500 + travel & accommodations
The Tamara Hayle Mysteries are published in Great Britain, France, Germany and Poland. Ain’t Nobody’s Business If I Do and Always True to You in My Fashion are published in Germany. Her short stories and essays are included in the anthologies The Bluelight Corner, Black Women Writing on Passion, Sex and Romantic LoveGumbo, A Literary Rent Party, edited by Marita Golden and E. Lynn Harris and Room to Grow, edited by Christina Baker Kline. Ms.Wesley’s books for children include seven books in her Willimena Rules! series, Freedom’s Gifts: A Juneteenth Story, Where Do I Go From Here, and The Afro-bets Book of Black Heroes, which she co-wrote with Wade Hudson.
Ms.Wesley served as artist-in-residence at Columbia College in Chicago for the spring semester of 2005. She is currently an adjunct at Ramapo College. She is the former executive editor of Essence magazine. Her fiction and nonfiction for both adults and children have appeared in many publications, including Essence, Family Circle, TV Guide, Ms, Creative Classroom and Weltwoche, a Swiss weekly newspaper.
Ms. Wesley is a 1993 recipient of the Griot Award from the New York Chapter of the National Association of Black Journalists. She has received awards from several book groups and community organizations including the 2004 Author of the Year from the Amigirls Book Club and the 1996 Author of the Year from the Go On Girls Book Club. She is a former board member of Sisters in Crime, an organization committed to promoting women writing mysteries.
Ms. Wesley is a graduate of Howard University and holds masters degrees from both the Bank Street College of Education and the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism. She is married to noted screenwriter and playwright Richard Wesley and has two adult daughters.
Ms. Wilson Wesley is available for book signings and lectures.
Fees begin at : $2,500 + travel & accommodations
Camille Yarbrough
Camille Yarbrough was recently profiled in Vibe (online) and hailed as progenitor of the hip hop phenomenon. She is an award-winning performance artist, author, and cultural activist. With a career that spans over fifty years, several continents, countless awards and accolades, and a few generations, Nana Camille has earned legendary status. She continues to inspire audiences today via her local, long running television show (Ancestor House), via her popular musical CD (also entitled Ancestor House), and via performances and lectures about poetry, music, Black art and culture.
Most recently, Nana Camille (as she is honorably called) performed at the Poetry Jam of the 2011 Black Enterprise Women of Power Summit in Florida. She is regularly called upon to share her wisdom and life/work, be it Kwanzaa celebrations and Haiti tributes in New York, concerts in California for Maulana Karenga (founder of Kwanzaa), or on the Michael Eric Dyson Radio Show. Regardless of the medium, Nana Camille’s life-long vision remains clear. She consistently champions the beauty and greatness of African people wherever they are in the world. Her mission is to raise their glory and in so doing vibrate that thread of humanity that links all.
In contemporary pop culture circles, Nana Camille is known as the singer whose song and vocals were sampled on the international mega-hit, "Praise You," by techno-musician Fatboy Slim. Her first solo musical recording, The Iron Pot Cooker (1975) is where the hit song Praise You originated.
Nana Camille is also an educator. After 12 years as a faculty member at City College of New York, she now presents at colleges across the country, from Howard University to the University of Wisconsin. Ms. Yarbrough performs with her band, Ancestor House, which includes keyboards, drums and bass.
SELECT LECTURE TOPICS
Cornrows: A Deep-Rooted Conversation about African and African American Hair
Let’s Get It On: The Queen Mother and the Ghetto Queen
Black Dance in America (based on Yarbrough’s Black Collegian article “The Old Seed”)
The Language of Body Adornment (based on Yarbrough’s article “Black Women in Antiquity”)
Tell It: The Role and Responsibility of the African American Artist
Family Forever - A Journey into 500 Years of Tradition
Fees begin at : $3,500 + travel & accommodations
Most recently, Nana Camille (as she is honorably called) performed at the Poetry Jam of the 2011 Black Enterprise Women of Power Summit in Florida. She is regularly called upon to share her wisdom and life/work, be it Kwanzaa celebrations and Haiti tributes in New York, concerts in California for Maulana Karenga (founder of Kwanzaa), or on the Michael Eric Dyson Radio Show. Regardless of the medium, Nana Camille’s life-long vision remains clear. She consistently champions the beauty and greatness of African people wherever they are in the world. Her mission is to raise their glory and in so doing vibrate that thread of humanity that links all.
In contemporary pop culture circles, Nana Camille is known as the singer whose song and vocals were sampled on the international mega-hit, "Praise You," by techno-musician Fatboy Slim. Her first solo musical recording, The Iron Pot Cooker (1975) is where the hit song Praise You originated.
Nana Camille is also an educator. After 12 years as a faculty member at City College of New York, she now presents at colleges across the country, from Howard University to the University of Wisconsin. Ms. Yarbrough performs with her band, Ancestor House, which includes keyboards, drums and bass.
SELECT LECTURE TOPICS
Cornrows: A Deep-Rooted Conversation about African and African American Hair
Let’s Get It On: The Queen Mother and the Ghetto Queen
Black Dance in America (based on Yarbrough’s Black Collegian article “The Old Seed”)
The Language of Body Adornment (based on Yarbrough’s article “Black Women in Antiquity”)
Tell It: The Role and Responsibility of the African American Artist
Family Forever - A Journey into 500 Years of Tradition
Fees begin at : $3,500 + travel & accommodations
Sandra L. West
Sandra L. West, lecturer and writer, specializes in the Harlem Renaissance era. She has written many articles about the period, in addition to the well-received Encyclopedia of the Harlem Renaissance (2003) which she co-authored with Aberjhani. The book won the New Jersey Notable Book Award 1999-2005. West grew up in New Jersey and New York, with a residential stint in Harlem. She graduated from Rutgers University (English and African American Studies) and Goucher College (Nonfiction Writing). She teaches, writes, and lectures around the country.
Since 1989, Professor West has taught Creative Writing, African American Literature, World Literature, and a course on the political poetry of Claude McKay and Langston Hughes - two Harlem Renaissance writers - at Seton Hall, Virginia Commonwealth and Rutgers Universities. She recently completed (unpublished) a collection of inspirational sayings by the renowned author and poet Dr. Maya Angelou entitled The Grace & Wisdom of Maya Angelou. Ms. West is a personable, informative, and engaging storyteller of Harlem Renaissance sayings and doings. She is a journalist, poet, and editor for various publications currently works in the James Brown African American Room at the Newark Public Library.
Fees begin at : $1,500 + travel & accommodations
Since 1989, Professor West has taught Creative Writing, African American Literature, World Literature, and a course on the political poetry of Claude McKay and Langston Hughes - two Harlem Renaissance writers - at Seton Hall, Virginia Commonwealth and Rutgers Universities. She recently completed (unpublished) a collection of inspirational sayings by the renowned author and poet Dr. Maya Angelou entitled The Grace & Wisdom of Maya Angelou. Ms. West is a personable, informative, and engaging storyteller of Harlem Renaissance sayings and doings. She is a journalist, poet, and editor for various publications currently works in the James Brown African American Room at the Newark Public Library.
Fees begin at : $1,500 + travel & accommodations
Motivational Speaker
Caryl Lucas, Wellness Coach and Author
Caryl Lucas is a sought after motivational speaker who empowers and inspires women from all walks of life to get rid of negative thought patterns and cultivate their inner beauty and authentic sense of style. Her high energy messages of self-love and self-respect have touched the hearts and souls of girls and young women at schools, teen conferences, churches, correctional facilities and colleges across New Jersey. She is the founder of the “No More Drama Queen: Build Your Self-Esteem” workshop, which is designed to teach teenagers and women the power of positive thinking and positive peer pressure.
Caryl utilizes her faith, life experiences, coaching skills and power affirmations to enrich lives and help others create new possibilities for their lives. During her quest for personal development and self discovery, Caryl was awakened by a divine calling to use her God-given talents to encourage others to overcome the same fears and adversities she encountered. She is a graduate of Landmark Inc., an international leadership training and life coaching program. Caryl is a gifted public speaker and orator who graduated from Upsala College in East Orange, NJ, where she earned a degree in English and minored in Journalism and Theater.
Fees begin at : $1,500 + travel & accommodations
Caryl utilizes her faith, life experiences, coaching skills and power affirmations to enrich lives and help others create new possibilities for their lives. During her quest for personal development and self discovery, Caryl was awakened by a divine calling to use her God-given talents to encourage others to overcome the same fears and adversities she encountered. She is a graduate of Landmark Inc., an international leadership training and life coaching program. Caryl is a gifted public speaker and orator who graduated from Upsala College in East Orange, NJ, where she earned a degree in English and minored in Journalism and Theater.
Fees begin at : $1,500 + travel & accommodations
Music
Bradford Hayes
Bradford Hayes, a native of Petersburg, Virginia has been a force on the jazz scene in the northeastern U.S. for several years now. He has performed at a number of clubs, colleges and concert halls including Birdland, Tavern on the Green and the Beacon Theater in New York City. Bradford has performed with such jazz luminaries as Jimmy Heath, Al Grey, Cecil Payne, Rufus Reid, Ray Bryant, Winard Harper, Ben Riley, Dr. Lonnie Smith, Cecil Brooks III, Jerry Butler, and the R&B/doo-wop group, the Dells. Mr. Hayes has opened for Chico Freeman, Betty Carter, Joe Henderson, Max Roach, Marlena Shaw, Pieces of a Dream, and Hilton Ruiz among others. In addition to leading his own band, Bradford spent 15 years with Babatunde Olatunji’s Drums of Passion band, serving as musical director for the last three years, until Mr. Olatunji’s death in 2003. Bradford performed with Mr. Olatunji at Yankee Stadium during Nelson Mandela’s first historical trip to the United States after his release from a South African prison.
Mr. Hayes holds a Bachelor of Sciences Degree in Music Education from North Carolina AT&T State University. He has also studied privately with George Coleman and Charles Davis. Mr. Hayes has also been a successful music educator in the Newark, New Jersey Public Schools for nearly 25 years. He is available for jazz performances with his band, workshops, school assemblies and panel discussions.
Fees begin at : $1,500 + travel & accommodations
Mr. Hayes holds a Bachelor of Sciences Degree in Music Education from North Carolina AT&T State University. He has also studied privately with George Coleman and Charles Davis. Mr. Hayes has also been a successful music educator in the Newark, New Jersey Public Schools for nearly 25 years. He is available for jazz performances with his band, workshops, school assemblies and panel discussions.
Fees begin at : $1,500 + travel & accommodations
Silvana Magda
Silvana Magda - singer, dancer, composer, choreographer - launched her dance career in 1975 performing with the Loni Duro Bahia Dance Company. She toured with Viva Bahia Dance Company and Orquestra Afro Brasileria as a featured soloist throughout Europe, Canada, South and Central America, the Caribbean and the Orient. Silvana toured extensively with the Viva Brazil Dance Company which she formed in 1988.
She has taught at Hunter College, Rutgers University and at various schools throughout the boroughs of New York. She formed her Katende Band in 1995 to work with her Viva Brazil Dance Company, combining her love of music and dance. She tours nationally and internationally with her nine-piece band and backup dancers presenting a heavy mixture of Brazilian, African, Caribbean, American funk and Latin rhythms. Her CD, Enzila (“Routes” in Bantu dialect) features funk, calypso, reggae, salsa and lambada rhythms and her most recent release, Sentindo (“Feeling” in Portuguese) features her rapturous lyrics and harmonic compositions.
Fees begin at : $3,500 + travel & accommodations
She has taught at Hunter College, Rutgers University and at various schools throughout the boroughs of New York. She formed her Katende Band in 1995 to work with her Viva Brazil Dance Company, combining her love of music and dance. She tours nationally and internationally with her nine-piece band and backup dancers presenting a heavy mixture of Brazilian, African, Caribbean, American funk and Latin rhythms. Her CD, Enzila (“Routes” in Bantu dialect) features funk, calypso, reggae, salsa and lambada rhythms and her most recent release, Sentindo (“Feeling” in Portuguese) features her rapturous lyrics and harmonic compositions.
Fees begin at : $3,500 + travel & accommodations
Alva Nelson and Afrykhan Khaneckshun (Pronounced African Connection)
Alva Nelson is a multi-faceted musician who performs and creates music that is diverse, sophisticated and exhilarating. As a pianist, Nelson has performed with Lightnin’ Hopkins, Kirk Whalum, David “Fathead” Newman, Arnett Cobb, Tramaine Hawkins, Phyllis Hyman, Regina Belle, Eddie Harris, Martha Wash, Odetta, The Chantells, and Chuck Jackson. As a sideman, Nelson has recorded with Lonnie Plaxico, Charley Gerard, Bubbha Thomas & the Lightmen. Alva has been musical director (and/or Asst MD) for regional theatre productions including Ain’t Misbehavin’, Sam Cooke, Forever Mr. Soul, Violet, A Brief History of White Music, Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grill, …Love, Langston, If This Hat Could Talk, Black Broadway and a slew of other shows as a pit musician. As a producer, his credits include two recent projects for Dorothy Leigh. Alva wrote three songs for Leigh’s A Second Chance (Whitley Productions, Inc.), a compilation of 10 original songs, all arranged for Nelson’s 17-piece orchestra. In stark contrast, Intimate Moments is a beautiful collection of jazz standards featuring Nelson’s piano and Leigh’s vocals in 10 duets. Alva Nelson has released two recordings as a jazz pianist, African Suite (Pyramyd Records) and Soul Eyes (Kilosi Keys Music), both CDs showcasing Nelson’s composing skills. A third CD, also all original compositions, is mostly a smooth jazz effort entitled Behavior Modification. Alva produced Juanita Flemings’ Redeeme (BAKA Records), which is a Gospel/Jazz hybrid further highlighting his arranging skills and Fleming’s songwriting ability. Juanita contributed five songs to Dorothy Leigh’s A Second Chance. Nelson’s arrangement of Stevie Wonder’s “Send One Your Love” on Robin Eubanks’ Karma (Polydor Records), and the single, “Another Chance to Give” by Genie Pepper Swinson (for the New York City Organ Donor Foundation) are other examples of Alva Nelson’s musical creativity. All in all, Alva Nelson has a lot going on, the way he likes it, as long as he is doing it musically.
Fees begin at : $3,500 + travel & accommodations
Fees begin at : $3,500 + travel & accommodations
Newark Boys Chorus
Newark Boys Chorus – Under the direction of Donald Morris, the Newark Boys Chorus (NBC) has been heard throughout the world with a diversified repertoire that includes traditional classical music, spirituals, folk music and jazz. In recent years, the boys have toured Australia, South Africa, the Caribbean, Finland, Latvia, Russia and the Czech Republic. The Newark Boys Chorus has performed in prestigious venues such as Carnegie Hall, Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Lincoln Center, and the New Jersey Performing Arts Center. The Chorus has appeared on ABC’s Good Morning America, and recorded a Christmas special with the British Broadcasting Corporation. NBC school’s mission is to inspire a love for learning, a quest for excellence and a compassion for humanity. They are available for performances throughout the school year.
Fees begin at $3,500 + travel (must provide bus)
Fees begin at $3,500 + travel (must provide bus)
Roycrosse
A Trinidad native, roycrosse began playing the steel drum and bass as a young man in Port of Spain with the Trinidad All Stars and the Star Lift Steel Orchestra. He immigrated to Toronto, Canada to study art and joined the Steel-Tones Orchestra, performing campus gigs and recording with the band for the Canadian Broadcasting Company Christmas show, In 1986, he came to the United States and worked with jazz and folks singers in the New York-New Jersey metropolitan area. As the roycrosse Trio, he performed the jazz café circuit and has been featured on gigs with saxophonist Oliver Lake and bassist Chris White.
His quintet has performed at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center’s Sound of the City, the East Orange Jazz Festival as well as concerts in Boston and Mexico City. His trio appeared regularly at the Priory Jazz Brunch series in Newark, NJ and he was featured on an hour-long live public radio broadcast in Allentown, PA in 2000. His current CD, A Touch of Latin, was produced with a five-piece ensemble that includes violin, guitar, bass, percussions and steel drum. He is available for solo performances or with his trio.
His quintet has performed at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center’s Sound of the City, the East Orange Jazz Festival as well as concerts in Boston and Mexico City. His trio appeared regularly at the Priory Jazz Brunch series in Newark, NJ and he was featured on an hour-long live public radio broadcast in Allentown, PA in 2000. His current CD, A Touch of Latin, was produced with a five-piece ensemble that includes violin, guitar, bass, percussions and steel drum. He is available for solo performances or with his trio.
Spirit of Life Ensemble
Spirit of Life Ensemble (SOLE) is a group rooted in jazz traditions and influenced by a myriad of musical styles from the African Diaspora. SOLE has performed nationally and internationally since 1975 and boasts performances and recordings with such jazz luminaries as Nancy Wilson, Charles Mingus, Horace Silver, Abbey Lincoln, Wynton Marsalis, Max Roach and numerous others. Their Music Appreciation Concerts feature jazz and world music for young people. Excellent for school assemblies, these “edu-tainment” performance workshops are interactive and include traditional and original compositions of Blues, Latin, African, Afro-Cuban, Brazilian, and Euro-Classical music for children of all ages. Spirit of Life Ensemble is available for concerts, workshops, seminars, master classes, assembly programs, lectures and residencies. The group performs as an eight to 18-piece band or smaller combo of five to seven pieces.
Fees begin at $3,500 + travel & accommodations
Fees begin at $3,500 + travel & accommodations
Sherry Winston
Sherry Winston, a Grammy-nominated jazz flutist, has performed in many of the major concert halls throughout the U.S. including Carnegie Hall, Constitution Hall, Lincoln Center and the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC. She has performed at the White House for the President and Mrs. Clinton and for the former President George H. Bush in New York City. She has been featured in numerous publications including the New York Times and Ebony, Essence, Black Enterprise, Savoy and Odyssey Couleur magazines. Her fourth CD, Life is Love & Love Is You, charted in Billboard magazine and features the late saxophonist Grover Washington Jr., flutist Najee, guitarist Norman Brown, keyboard wizard Bobby Lyle and vocalist Jon Lucien. Ms. Winston has shared the stage with such artists at comedian Sinbad, Ramsey Lewis, Chaka Kahn, Pieces of a Dream, Peabo Bryson, Regina Belle, Grover Washington, Jr., Diane Reeves, Nelson Rangel and Alex Bugnon. The Sherry Winston Band is available to perform at special events, corporate functions, nationally and internationally. Past clients include: The White House, AIG, J.P. Morgan Chase, Pepsi, Aetna, American Express, IBM, Xerox, General Electric, Coca-Cola, Johnson & Johnson, Verizon Wireless, AT&T, Ebony Magazine, FedEx, Merrill Lynch, PNC Bank, and many more. Other CDs by the Sherry Winston Band include Do It For Your Love, Love Madness, Love Is..., For Lovers Only, and her 6th CD For your Love. The Sherry Winston Band is available for library, museum, corporate and festival performances.
Fees begin at $3,500 + travel & accommodations
Fees begin at $3,500 + travel & accommodations
Music Production
Carter "Roc" Mangan, II
Carter “Roc” Mangan II, studied piano at a young age but traded the keyboard in for a guitar by age 13. He studied guitar under jazz musician Geary Moore for several years. He was accepted into the Jazz for Teens program in 2005 at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center where he honed his skills and studied with jazz guitarist Geary Moore. As a student at the Technical Career Center in Newark, NJ, Roc studied music production under R&B artist CeCe Rogers. He recently graduated from the Institute for Audio Research in New York City where he studied music engineering and production.
Roc produces original R&B and hip hop under Off The Roc LLC. Roc has done production work for film and television, and has been credited for doing work on Discovery Channel's "Not Your Average Travel Guide" and Oxygen Channel's "Bad Girls Club." He also had the opportunity to do production work for Hussein Fatal of the Outlaws and former G-Unit artist Young Buck. He is currently a producer/engineer at Cobblestone Records in Newark, NJ where he has had the opportunity to work with key people in the entertainment and music business. Roc is available for freelance production engagements.
Fees: Negotiable
Roc produces original R&B and hip hop under Off The Roc LLC. Roc has done production work for film and television, and has been credited for doing work on Discovery Channel's "Not Your Average Travel Guide" and Oxygen Channel's "Bad Girls Club." He also had the opportunity to do production work for Hussein Fatal of the Outlaws and former G-Unit artist Young Buck. He is currently a producer/engineer at Cobblestone Records in Newark, NJ where he has had the opportunity to work with key people in the entertainment and music business. Roc is available for freelance production engagements.
Fees: Negotiable
Theater
Stephen McKinley Henderson
In his eloquent obituary of renowned African American playwright, August Wilson, Michael Feingold of the Village Voice wrote:
“To think of the great characters and scenes in August’s plays is to think of an epic parade of great African American actors who have seized their moment to make theater history: James Earl Jones and Mary Alice in Fences, Charles S. Dutton in Ma Rainey and The Piano Lesson, S. Epatha Merkerson confronting him in the latter, Roscoe Lee Browne sagely ironic in Two Trains Running, Stephen McKinley Henderson oozing malice in Jitney, Ruben Santiago-Hudson and Lisa Gay Hamilton glaring a skyful of weaponry at each other in Gem of the Ocean.”
Stephen is honored to be considered in such outstanding company as a significant interpreter of August Wilson’s work during his lifetime. Jitney ran for an unprecedented full LORT season during 1998-99 in Boston, Baltimore, Buffalo, Rochester, and Chicago. The production played Los Angeles and New York in 2000. During its off-Broadway run in 2000, Jitney garnered the N.Y. Drama Critic’s Award for Best Play and Drama Desk, Obie, and Audelco awards for each actor as members of the outstanding ensemble of the New York season. In Los Angeles, Mr. Henderson won the NAACP Theatre Award for Outstanding Dramatic Performance by a Male as well as a Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Award as an outstanding featured actor. The London run of Jitney garnered the Olivier Award for Best New Play of the London season, 2002
Stephen’s early education in Kansas City, Kansas, led to an academic scholarship to attend Lincoln University in Missouri, a historically black institution. In his freshman year at Lincoln, he auditioned for John Houseman and Michael Kahn and became a member of Group l, Juilliard Drama Division in 1968. Mr. Houseman includes Henderson’s work at Juilliard in his memoirs, Final Dress, Simon and Schuster. His educational pursuits continued at North Carolina School of the Arts (BFA) and at Purdue University Graduate School (MA), where he was Director of the Drama Workshop for the Black Cultural Center. He has attended summer sessions at Rose Bruford Academy in Britain and William Esper Studios, New York. In the summer of 2001, Stephen was part of a master class taught by Lloyd Richards at the Actor’s Center, NYC. The master class is featured in a documentary on Mr. Richards being prepared by filmmaker Michael Schultz.
In Buffalo, where Stephen is a Professor and former Chair of the Department of Theatre and Dance for the State University of New York at Buffalo, he is a member of the LAByrinth Theater Company, The Actor’s Center and is a Fox Foundation Fellow. Mr. Henderson is available for “informances” (informational performances) on college campuses and other venues, interviews, workshops and panel discussions.
Fees TBD. Travel & accommodations required.
“To think of the great characters and scenes in August’s plays is to think of an epic parade of great African American actors who have seized their moment to make theater history: James Earl Jones and Mary Alice in Fences, Charles S. Dutton in Ma Rainey and The Piano Lesson, S. Epatha Merkerson confronting him in the latter, Roscoe Lee Browne sagely ironic in Two Trains Running, Stephen McKinley Henderson oozing malice in Jitney, Ruben Santiago-Hudson and Lisa Gay Hamilton glaring a skyful of weaponry at each other in Gem of the Ocean.”
Stephen is honored to be considered in such outstanding company as a significant interpreter of August Wilson’s work during his lifetime. Jitney ran for an unprecedented full LORT season during 1998-99 in Boston, Baltimore, Buffalo, Rochester, and Chicago. The production played Los Angeles and New York in 2000. During its off-Broadway run in 2000, Jitney garnered the N.Y. Drama Critic’s Award for Best Play and Drama Desk, Obie, and Audelco awards for each actor as members of the outstanding ensemble of the New York season. In Los Angeles, Mr. Henderson won the NAACP Theatre Award for Outstanding Dramatic Performance by a Male as well as a Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Award as an outstanding featured actor. The London run of Jitney garnered the Olivier Award for Best New Play of the London season, 2002
Stephen’s early education in Kansas City, Kansas, led to an academic scholarship to attend Lincoln University in Missouri, a historically black institution. In his freshman year at Lincoln, he auditioned for John Houseman and Michael Kahn and became a member of Group l, Juilliard Drama Division in 1968. Mr. Houseman includes Henderson’s work at Juilliard in his memoirs, Final Dress, Simon and Schuster. His educational pursuits continued at North Carolina School of the Arts (BFA) and at Purdue University Graduate School (MA), where he was Director of the Drama Workshop for the Black Cultural Center. He has attended summer sessions at Rose Bruford Academy in Britain and William Esper Studios, New York. In the summer of 2001, Stephen was part of a master class taught by Lloyd Richards at the Actor’s Center, NYC. The master class is featured in a documentary on Mr. Richards being prepared by filmmaker Michael Schultz.
In Buffalo, where Stephen is a Professor and former Chair of the Department of Theatre and Dance for the State University of New York at Buffalo, he is a member of the LAByrinth Theater Company, The Actor’s Center and is a Fox Foundation Fellow. Mr. Henderson is available for “informances” (informational performances) on college campuses and other venues, interviews, workshops and panel discussions.
Fees TBD. Travel & accommodations required.
Jamil A. C. Mangan
Jamil A.C. Mangan is an actor, director, teaching artist and native of Newark, New Jersey. He received a degree in Theatre Arts from the University of the Arts (UARTS) in Philadelphia. As a youngster, Jamil was a concert chorus member at the Newark Boys Chorus School. While a member, he toured the East Coast, Prague, Czechoslovakia, and performed for former President Bill Clinton’s 1992 Inauguration. Mangan attended Newark’s Arts High School, the oldest performing arts high school in the U.S After graduating from Arts High, Jamil studied theatre arts at the University of the Arts (UARTS), the first conservatory for the arts in the U.S. While at UARTS, he performed in several theatre productions including The Colored Museum as Junie, Piano Lesson as Boy Willie, and Mojo as Teddy. He also studied musical theatre at Syracuse University, piano with the late jazz pianist, Duke Anderson, and was a member of the National Speech and Debate Forensics League.
Jamil began his professional acting career in Philadelphia in the role of Orpheus Fisher, Marian Andersons love interest in the bio-play My Lord, What a Morning. Mangan toured the U.S. in My Soul is a Witness, a play by David Barr, III, and produced by the Jena Company; and Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry based on the book by Mildred D. Taylor. Jamil also toured in a production of Romeo and Juliet, in the role of Friar Lawrence. Other notable performances include The Greeks (Manhattan Ensemble Theatre), Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, and All That Jive, Flat Black (Theatre Row), Grandmothers, Inc. (Billie Holiday Theatre) and Camp Logan (KimbleTheatre) alongside T.C. Carson and directed by Chuck Paterson.
The independent feature Head Trauma is a psychological thriller in which Mangan co-stars as Julian. Head Trauma premiered at the Tribeca Cinema. Other films included the FBI agent in A Dangerous Place (starring Kristen Dalton), and as Thelonious Monk in Thelonious Hands currently in production. He has worked on commercials and voice-overs for Klondike, Inc., Comcast Sportsnet ,Verizon Fios, Dorito, and Eli Lily Medical Group.
He made his directing debut at Newark Symphony Hall with the production of Gospel at Colonus. The Star-Ledger critic Peter Filichia said, “Jamil A.C. Mangan staged the show with precision.” Mangan would later travel with Dramatic Adventure Theatre to produce and directe two shows in South America that were then performed at Teatro Iati and the Richmond Shephard Theatre. Jamil has directed productions and readings for institutions such as Young Playwrights of New Jersey and Summer Music Institute.
Jamil A.C. Mangan has been a teaching artist for several years working for many arts organizations throughout the tri-state area. He taught Acting for Film for Big Picture Alliance (Philadelphia), an organization that teaches teens how to produce independent films. Jamil has been a teaching artist for the New Jersey Performing Arts Center, Playwrights of New Jersey, Steve Adubatos Stand and Deliver and other organizations including Restore Kidz, Inc., Playwrights of Philadelphia, UARTS summer arts program and African Globe Theatreworks.
Jamil was recently featured in the Billie Holiday Theatre production of What Would Jesus Do? for which he received an Audelco Award (Black Theater) for Best Supporting Actor. He recently performed with song stylist Jannie Jones in the Juneteenth Blues Cabaret at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe (NYC) and will perform in playwright Lynn Nottage's Pulitzer Prize-winning play, Ruined, in Philadelphia in spring 2011 and later will play Captain Treville in the Connecticut's Free Shakespeare Equity production of The Three Musketeers.
When not touring, directing and/or performing, Jamil is available for acting workshops for adults and children, short-term teaching artist engagements.
Fees : Negotiable. Travel & accommodations required
Jamil began his professional acting career in Philadelphia in the role of Orpheus Fisher, Marian Andersons love interest in the bio-play My Lord, What a Morning. Mangan toured the U.S. in My Soul is a Witness, a play by David Barr, III, and produced by the Jena Company; and Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry based on the book by Mildred D. Taylor. Jamil also toured in a production of Romeo and Juliet, in the role of Friar Lawrence. Other notable performances include The Greeks (Manhattan Ensemble Theatre), Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, and All That Jive, Flat Black (Theatre Row), Grandmothers, Inc. (Billie Holiday Theatre) and Camp Logan (KimbleTheatre) alongside T.C. Carson and directed by Chuck Paterson.
The independent feature Head Trauma is a psychological thriller in which Mangan co-stars as Julian. Head Trauma premiered at the Tribeca Cinema. Other films included the FBI agent in A Dangerous Place (starring Kristen Dalton), and as Thelonious Monk in Thelonious Hands currently in production. He has worked on commercials and voice-overs for Klondike, Inc., Comcast Sportsnet ,Verizon Fios, Dorito, and Eli Lily Medical Group.
He made his directing debut at Newark Symphony Hall with the production of Gospel at Colonus. The Star-Ledger critic Peter Filichia said, “Jamil A.C. Mangan staged the show with precision.” Mangan would later travel with Dramatic Adventure Theatre to produce and directe two shows in South America that were then performed at Teatro Iati and the Richmond Shephard Theatre. Jamil has directed productions and readings for institutions such as Young Playwrights of New Jersey and Summer Music Institute.
Jamil A.C. Mangan has been a teaching artist for several years working for many arts organizations throughout the tri-state area. He taught Acting for Film for Big Picture Alliance (Philadelphia), an organization that teaches teens how to produce independent films. Jamil has been a teaching artist for the New Jersey Performing Arts Center, Playwrights of New Jersey, Steve Adubatos Stand and Deliver and other organizations including Restore Kidz, Inc., Playwrights of Philadelphia, UARTS summer arts program and African Globe Theatreworks.
Jamil was recently featured in the Billie Holiday Theatre production of What Would Jesus Do? for which he received an Audelco Award (Black Theater) for Best Supporting Actor. He recently performed with song stylist Jannie Jones in the Juneteenth Blues Cabaret at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe (NYC) and will perform in playwright Lynn Nottage's Pulitzer Prize-winning play, Ruined, in Philadelphia in spring 2011 and later will play Captain Treville in the Connecticut's Free Shakespeare Equity production of The Three Musketeers.
When not touring, directing and/or performing, Jamil is available for acting workshops for adults and children, short-term teaching artist engagements.
Fees : Negotiable. Travel & accommodations required
Marie Thomas
Marie Thomas is an actress, director and former Associate Professor, Theater Department, City College of New York. As an actress, she has numerous credits and awards to her name for her on- and off-Broadway performances. On television, she has appeared in The Cosby Mysteries, Amen, L.A. Law, Knots Landing and on the soap operas The Doctors, One Life to Live and As the World Turns. She is the founder and artistic director of Children’s Theater Workshop/The Peppermint Players. The Children’s Theater Workshop brings quality arts training to young people who are serious about the theater. Ms. Thomas' semi-professional teen repertory company, The Peppermint Players, is available for local performances at libraries, museums and assembly programs. When not touring, directing and/or performing, Marie is also available for acting workshops for adults and/or children and panel participation as a panelist on the topics of arts in general and theater in particular.
Fees : Negotiable. Travel & accommodations required
Fees : Negotiable. Travel & accommodations required
Dance
Pyramyd! Dance Theatre
Pyramyd! Dance Theatre is an eclectic group of singers, dancers and musicians. Their performances are infused with authentic African instruments, costumes and language. The group represents the culture and art of Africa in performances, workshops and lecture demonstrations with special emphasis on West African dance and American jazz.
Fees begin at $2,500 plus travel & accommodations if required
Fees begin at $2,500 plus travel & accommodations if required
The Seventh Principle Drum & Dance Ensemble
The Seventh Principle Drum & Dance Ensemble is a contemporary African dance company founded in 1992 by artistic director Candace M. Hundley-Kamate. The company combines traditional African, modern and contemporary movement in a dynamic, innovative approach to performance. Through dance, drumming and music, they connect past and present through the creative fusion of African traditions and American culture. Their repertoire includes African storytelling, spoken word, folklore, history and experiences from a Pan-African perspective. Their ensemble generally includes seven dancers and five musicians. The Umfundailai Technique (Swahili for “Essence”), is a workshop that combines African and Caribbean dance with modern dance technique in a training program for professional artists and choreographers. Seventh Principle is available for performances, workshops, lecture/demonstrations, assembly programs, festival performances and African dance classes.
Fees begin at $1,500 for local (NJ/NY) assembly programs and up plus travel & accommodations when necessary
Fees begin at $1,500 for local (NJ/NY) assembly programs and up plus travel & accommodations when necessary
For Nia Network programming information contact:
Celeste Bateman & Associates
Celestebateman@gmail.com