HARLEM STAGE ANNOUNCES FALL 2017 SEASON 

New York, NY (August 8, 2017) – Harlem Stage is back with another amazing season featuring a range of Music, Film, Spoken Word, Dance and the return of their successful Dinner/Discussion series, WaterWorks at 10: Visionary Artists and Transformative Art. Harlem Stage will launch the Fall 2017 season with their first ever Open House.

Highlights Include:

• OPEN HOUSE: Tour the Gatehouse and learn about its historical restoration from a facility that distributed clean water to New York City, into a state-of-the-art flexible performing arts center. Meet some of the artists and dance to the soulful sounds of Sundae Sermon’s DJ Stormin Norman (September 16).

• MUSIC: Harlem Stage in collaboration with Manhattan School of Music presents Monkmania, A Centennial Tribute to Thelonius Monkfeaturing special guest soloist Regina Carter, Violin; John Beasley, Guest Conductor and Arranger; and The MSM Monk’estra Ensemble (December 1); A free Carnegie Neighborhood Concert with Jazzmeia Horn (December 7); Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah continues hisStretch Music Residency with two nights of concerts showcasing a range of cultural influences from his native New Orleans to West Africa and the Caribbean (December 14 & 15).

• FILM: Dreamstates,written by Rwandan-born Anisia Uzeyman in her directorial debut, paints an underground portrait of a sultry, sensual, and quixotic America through the fleeting romance of two artistic lovers. The film stars acclaimed poet and actor Saul Williams who will perform a post screening DJ and poetry set (October 6); Some Girls, directed by Raquel Cepeda and produced by Henry Chalfant, focuses on a group of troubled Latina teens from a Bronx-based suicide prevention program who are transformed by an exploration of their roots via the use of ancestral DNA testing, followed by a trip to the seat of the Americas (November 29).

• DANCE: Declassified Memory Fragment is a dance theater work, created by Olivier Tarpaga and Esther Baker, with a live band inspired by the ideas and themes of memory, history, politics and cultural realities affecting the continent of Africa (October 4); World renowned Misty Copeland will lead a ballet class for select students, followed by a discussion with the legendary Carmen de Lavallade (November 6).

• SPOKEN WORD: Native Tongue: A Story Slam, created by award winning storyteller Aman Ali, will investigate the theme of ‘ Home’ through the viewpoint of multigenerational artists, thinkers, and disrupters. Native Tongue Story Slam showcases and celebrates the lives of marginalized voices around the corner and around the globe (October 12).

• DINNER/DISCUSSION: WaterWorks at 10: Visionary Artists and Transformative Art is a discussion series that is dedicated to reflecting on the visionary artists and transformative art that has been created in the Harlem Stage Gatehouse (November 13).

Monique Martin, New Director of Programming said, “Harlem Stage is a beacon of innovation dedicated to identifying, incubating and supporting visionary artists of color. This bold mission is vital, now more than ever, as communities across New York City, the nation and the world wrestle with questions of identity, equity and belonging. Fostering culturally diverse art and ideas anchored in the rich legacy of Harlem and reflective of the diaspora is the genesis of my programmatic vision. This season Harlem Stage will continue to be a ‘Sanctuary Space’ for dialogue, bridge building and transcendent theater, music, dance and film. Artists from down the block, around the way and across the globe will present bespoke programs to ignite our imaginations, pose disrupting questions and ground us in our collective commitment to a world that honors everyone. It is my honor to join this brilliant institution whose history of amplifying and propelling voices, often on the margins, is extraordinary. We look forward to holding space with you and honoring our humanity.”

Patricia Cruz, Executive Director, said, “Monique Martin joins the Harlem Stage team at a unique time. We’ve just completed 10 years of extraordinary programming of our WaterWorks series through which we commissioned new work by 50 visionary artists of color. The impact has been remarkable. The passionate curatorial practice of Brad Learmonth and later Simone Eccleston inspired artists and audiences alike. But as time and life demanded, they moved on to new challenges.

But what to do for our next act? Call it serendipity, call it fate or a blessing, the door opened and in walked Monique Martin who, after 10 years of fabulous programming at SummerStage, was also ready to move on and walked through that open door to join Harlem Stage as our new Director of Programming. Monique joins the dedicated and expert team of the board and staff at Harlem Stage to guide us in expanded vision – all the while staying true to mission. She knows the artists with whom we’ve worked and supported; her network of artists runs wide and deep. While she is respectful of the legacy programs that she is inheriting, she is connecting us to new artists – artists from Africa, Europe and of course right here in Harlem. We are proud to welcome Monique and in doing so eager to welcome you to our next Act in the life of Harlem Stage.”

Tickets and reservations to Harlem Stage go on sale starting August 14 and can be purchased online at www.HarlemStage.org, or via phone at 212.281.9240 ext. 19. All performances take place at the Harlem Stage Gatehouse (150 Convent Avenue at West 135th Street, Manhattan).

HARLEM STAGE FALL 2017 PROGRAMMING

[SPECIAL EVENT] 
harlem stage open house 
Saturday, September 16 at 3pm – 6pm 
Tickets: FREE

Harlem Stage kicks off its Fall season welcoming the community and inviting all drummers, percussionist, dancers and culture enthusiast! Participate in a drum circle led by, second year artist in residence, Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah. Stretch Music will honor the rhythmic tradition of Christian’s Afro New Orleanian/Black Indian culture throughout the season. Bring your tambourines, djembes, congas, cajones, hand percussion and joy.

Tour the Gatehouse and learn about its historical restoration from a facility that distributed clean water to New York City into a state-of-the-art flexible performing arts center. Meet some of the artists and dance to the soulful sounds of Sundae Sermon’s DJ Stormin Norman.

[MULTIDISCIPLINARY] 
DECLASSIFIED MEMORY FRAGMENT 
Co-Presented with 651 Arts 
Wednesday, October 4 at 7:30pm 
Tickets: $20

Declassified Memory Fragment is a dance theater work, created by Olivier Tarpaga and Esther Baker, with a live band inspired by the ideas and themes of memory, history, politics and cultural realities affecting the continent of Africa. The work was created as an open letter to African society – its lifestyles, cultures, beauty, complexity and politics. Declassified refers to living in a society where aspects of everyday life are subjected to restrictions and cultural expectations of secrecy and privacy; even within the family. The act of declassifying is a process of revealing and exposing what is hidden from view and obscured, not spoken. The work is a response to political conditions in African countries (specifically Kenya, Ivory Coast, Zimbabwe and Burkina Faso), the unpredictable circulation of power and the resulting tension, destabilization and explosive climax that occurs, often without dismantling the illusion of democracy. Through movement and a driving band the piece both caustically and humorously stages a two-tier society where craving for power simultaneously creates and unravels friendships, yet brotherhood prevails.

*post-performance discussion with the artists moderated by Gabri Christa

The presentation of Declassified Memory Fragment was made possible by the New England Foundation for the Arts' National Dance Project, with lead funding from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation and The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

[FILM] 
DREAMSTATES 
Co-Presented with 651 Arts 
Friday, October 6 at 7:30pm 
Tickets: $15

Written by Rwandan-born Anisia Uzeyman in her directorial debut, DREAMSTATES paints an underground portrait of a sultry, sensual, and quixotic America through the fleeting romance of two artistic lovers. The film stars acclaimed poet and actor Saul Williams, who will perform a post screening DJ and poetry set. Also starring is CX KiDTRONiK (Nine Inch Nails, Saul Williams), Beau Sia (Rachel Getting Married), and William Nadylam (Claire Denis’ White Material), as well as Anisia Uzeyman (Alain Gomis’ Tey).

The Film will be followed by a discussion with the Director and cast members.With special support from African Film Festival, Inc.

[SPOKEN WORD] 
NATIVE TONGUE: A STORY SLAM 
Thursday, October 12 at 7:30pm 
Tickets: $15

Created by award winning storyteller Aman Ali, will investigate the theme of ‘Home’ through the viewpoint of multigenerational artists, thinkers, and disrupters. Native Tongue story slam showcases and celebrates the lives of marginalized voices around the corner and around the globe. The show debuted in New York City in May 2013 to a max capacity crowd and has since traveled to dozens of sold out shows across the globe.

Each thematic show is a platform for storytellers, Urban Griots, to battle by telling personal stories that the audience then votes upon. The winner of the story slam will (literally) get crowned as Best Storyteller of the evening. Featuring: Luqman Brown, Salim Ptah, Mama Akanke and special surprise guests. 

Dance party to follow with DJ LotusMoon spinning a soulful sonic groove.

[DANCE] 
A MISTY COPELAND BALLET CLASS 
In Association with Dance Theater of Harlem and Harlem School for the Arts 
Monday, November 6 at 5pm 
Tickets: $50 
A Limited Number of Tickets will be available to the public.

Harlem Stage is honored to host world renowned Misty Copeland for a Ballet Class designed to deepen the engagement in the arts for young ballet students in the Harlem Community and collaborate with Harlem arts organizations. Students selected by and from Dance Theater of Harlem and Harlem School for the Arts will participate in a one-hour ballet class with Ms. Copeland. We will open the Harlem Stage Gatehouse to students and their families to experience the inspiring, empowering, and history-making Misty Copeland.

The Ballet Class will be followed by an intimate conversation around the concept of “being the first” between Misty Copeland and legendary dancer, choreographer and actress, Carmen De Lavallade, moderated by Zita Allen from New York Amsterdam News.

This event is made possible with the generous support of Valentino D. Carlotti.

[DINNER/DISCUSSION] 
WATERWORKS AT 10: Visionary Artists and Transformative Art 
Monday, November 13 at 7:30pm 
Tickets: $50

This discussion series that is dedicated to reflecting on the visionary artists and transformative art that has been created in the Gatehouse. It is designed to highlight the significance of our WaterWorks commissioning program – past, present and future, while creating space for dialogue, community and transformational ideas. Join us for an intimate dinner party examining the trend of hidden influences in American Pop Culture and the importance of intersectional artistic practice featuring WaterWorks artist Tamar-kali in conversation around her new work Demon Fruit Blues. She will be joined by Kyra Gaunt PhD, Elissa Blount Moorhead, Maureen Mahon-Tate PhD and Peg Schuler-Armstrong, in a delicious conversation focusing on the role of the 'Blues Woman' in contemporary music and how the legacy of African American culture and traditions inform her new work. Only 50 tickets available.

[FILM] 
SOME GIRLS 
Wednesday, November 29 at 7:30pm 
Tickets: $10

Some Girls focuses on a group of troubled Latina teens from a Bronx-based suicide prevention program who are transformed by an exploration of their roots via the use of ancestral DNA testing, followed by a trip to the seat of the Americas. On that journey to modern-day Dominican Republic, the white supremacist narratives about American history they've been taught are challenged, leaving them free to re-construct their own respective identities. What does it really mean to be American? And, more importantly, what does that look l ike? Raquel Cepeda (director/producer) Henry Chalfant (producer)

The Film will be followed by a panel discussion with Raquel Cepeda, Henry Chalfant and Beatriz Coronel (mental health expert, featured in the film).

[MUSIC] 
MSM Comes to Harlem 
Harlem Stage in Collaboration with Manhattan School of Music Presents: 
Monkmania, A Centennial Tribute to Thelonious Monk 
Featuring special guest soloist Regina Carter, Violin; John Beasley, Guest Conductor and Arranger; and The MSM Monk’estra Ensemble! 
Friday, December 1 at 7:30pm 
Tickets: $20

The MSM MONK’estra Ensemble, with students from Manhattan School of Music's Jazz Arts program, led by guest conductor/arranger John Beasley, will perform arrangements from Beasley's MONK’estra project, which “reinvents Thelonious Monk for the 21^st century” ( LA Weekly). This tribute to the legendary composer and pianist features virtuoso jazz violinist and MacArthur Fellow Regina Carter, whose soulfulness and musical curiosity are boundless.

[MUSIC] 
Harlem Stage in collaboration with Carnegie Hall Neighborhood Concerts, presents: 
Carnegie Hall Neighborhood Concert: JAZZMEIA HORN 
Thursday, December 7 at 7:30pm 
Tickets: FREE

Vocalist Jazzmeia Horn with an assured maturity and vocal confidence far beyond her years, performs with an all-star septet from her debut album A Social Call. Horn’s marriage of music and message suffuses the variety of selections on the album, that include inspirational R&B from the 1960s and ’70s, black spirituals and, of course, standards.

"Not only a vocalist, but a musician with big ears, and wisdom beyond her years" -Al Jarreau

Lead Support for Neighborhood Concerts is provided by the Howard Gilman Foundation. Additional support is provided by the A. L. and Jennie L. Luria Foundation.

[MUSIC] 
UPTOWN NIGHTS: CHRISTIAN SCOTT ATUNDE ADJUAH PRESENTS 
STRETCH MUSIC X AFRO NEW ORLEANIAN BLACK INDIAN MUSIC CONCERT 
Thursday and Friday, December 14 ­& 15 at 7:30pm 
Tickets: $20

Grammy nominated jazz trumpeter Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah, returns with two nights of genre blind music that will Stretch jazz music’s rhythmic, melodic and harmonic conventions to encompass a range of cultural influences from his native New Orleans to West Africa and the Caribbean. Scott aTunde Adjuah is a WaterWorks artist in the second year of a three year residency made possible with a Building Demand for the Arts Implementation grant from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation. As part of this season’s Stretch Music Residency, he will honor the rhythmic tradition of his Afro New Orleanian/Black Indian culture. Join us on a sonic journey that creates a bridge to liberation and freedom with some of music’s most daring musicians and improvisers.

ABOUT HARLEM STAGE 
Harlem Stage is the performing arts center that bridges Harlem’s cultural legacy to contemporary artists of color and dares to provide the artistic freedom that gives birth to new ideas.For over 30 years Harlem Stage has been one of the nation’s leading arts organizations, achieving this distinction through its work with artists of color and by facilitating a productive engagement with the communities it serves through the performing arts. With a long-standing tradition of supporting artists and organizations around the corner and across the globe, Harlem Stage boasts such legendary artists as Harry Belafonte, Max Roach, Sekou Sundiata, Abbey Lincoln, Sonia Sanchez, Eddie Palmieri, Maya Angelou and Tito Puente, as well as contemporary artists like Bill T. Jones, Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah, Tamar-kali, Vijay Iyer, Mike Ladd, Meshell Ndegeocello, Jason Moran, José James, Nona Hendryx and more. Its education program each year provides over 4,000 New York City children with introduction and access to the rich diversity, excitement and inspiration of the performing arts. In 2006, Harlem Stage opened the landmarked, award-winning Harlem Stage Gatehouse. This once abandoned space, originally a pivotal source for distributing fresh water to New York City, is now a vital source of creativity, ideas and culture. Harlem Stage is a winner of the William Dawson Award for Programming Excellence and Sustained Achievement in Programming (Association of Performing Arts Presenters).

For more information on Harlem Stage, visit: www. harlemstage.org. 
For a full list of donors, please visit: www.harlemstage.org/donate/our-supporters

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