BROOKLYN MEDIA GROUP JULY 21 - JULY 27, 2017 31
COMPILED BY JAIME DEJESUS
SWEET MEGG AND
THE WAYFARERS
Head over to the Brooklyn Public Library
as the Plaza Swing Series presents “Sweet
Megg and the Wayfarers.”
Sweet Megg and her wayfaring musicians
blend New Orleans swing, Harlem swing, Parisian
cabaret, and gut bucket blues into one
charming musical performance. Saxophonist
Ryan Weisheit reimagines a world where Sidney
Bechet, Lester Young and Charlie Parker
perform side by side. Together, Sweet Megg,
Ryan and all the Wayfarers create a world
where jazz is alive and well and living in New
York.
The free event will take place at the Central
Library Plaza, 10 Grand Army Plaza. Dance
lessons are at 6:30 p.m. and the performance
starts at 7 p.m. For more information, visit
www.bklynlibrary.org.
BOOKS BENEATH
THE BRIDGE
Bookworms are invited to Brooklyn Bridge
Park’s Books Beneath the Bridge, an annual
literature series that has returned to the
Granite Prospect steps for six evenings curated
by local, independent bookstores.
Each program includes a reading, Q&A, and
book signing with the authors. On Monday,
July 24, the quarterly Greenlight Poetry Salon
will present an evening of poetry in performance,
hosted by Angel Nafis and featuring
t’ai freedom ford, Phillip B. Williams, Kevin
Coval, Charif Shanahan and Patricia Smith.
The event will kick off at 7 p.m. at Granite
Prospect in Brooklyn Bridge Park, 334 Furman
Street. For more information, visit www.
brooklynbridgepark.org.
SUMMER PLAZA SERIES
Get the party started in Sunset Park as
the Sunset Park Business Improvement
District (BID) hosts its second Summer Plaza,
produced in conjunction with NYC DOT
Weekend Walks.
Join us the BID on July 22 for a festive day
that will include plenty of activities for the
kids such as an inflatable obstacle course, kid
high striker, portable reading room, stage
with entertainment, dance lessons, fashion
shows, MTA vintage bus and more.
The free event will take place on Fifth
Avenue on Saturday, July 22 from 39th to
41st Street beginning at 2 p.m. For more
information, visit www.facebook.com/
sunsetparkbid.
BUZZ BROOKLYN
Longtime Bay Ridge actor lands
role in "The Neighborhood"
BY JAIME DEJESUS
JDEJESUS@BROOKLYNREPORTER.COM
Bay Ridge has its own star
on the rise — actor and
filmmaker Charles Mandracchia,
who recently landed a
role on the upcoming show “The
Neighborhood,” a mob drama
based in Brooklyn in the ’80s.
Mandracchia, 55, who described
himself as a shy child, was
born and raised in Bay Ridge. He
found his love of acting as early
as two years old. “Drama was
just something I knew how to do
well,” he said. “As a kid, I was always
creating plays, doing scenes,
writing and performing them in
the basements of friends’ houses.
I would dress up like Geraldine
from 'The Flip Wilson Show.' Everyone
would laugh. I charged the
other kids in the neighborhood 25
cents to see the show.”
The actor attended P.S. 104 and
got a part in his first musical,
“Meet Me in St. Louis," receiving
encouragement from faculty.
“Principal Dennis Moore took
me under his wing and encouraged
me to perform in the arts,”
Mandracchia recalled. “I won the
Drama Award for School District
20, though it wasn’t until eighth
grade that I knew I was destined
for a life on Broadway and in film.
My mom took me to see ‘Grease’
on Broadway and I knew my calling
was to be an actor.”
Mandracchia attended Fort
Hamilton High School then Brooklyn
College, where he majored in
television, acting and film. “I was
proud to be a Bay Ridge actor
and be on Broadway at the same
time,” he said. “As a performer,
I have appeared in numerous
Broadway and Off-Broadway
productions." These include the
original Broadway cast of 'Grand
Hotel the Musical,' 'South Pacific'
and 'Porgy and Bess' at New York
City Opera and the Equity Library
Theatre.
His neighborhood has played a
major role in his career and life.
"Bay Ridge is amazing," Mandracchia
said. "It is a place that looks
and acts like New York City, but
there is a strong neighborhood
bond that you can only understand
if you’re from Brooklyn. It’s
a real family."
Landing his latest role on “The
Neighborhood” has been another
big break for the actor. “‘The
Neighborhood’ caught the essence
of the words family, friends
and neighborhood,” Mandracchia
explained. “I think audiences will
relate to it because anywhere you
go in the world, people want to be
a part of a family.”
He met the show’s director at
a festival and the rest is history.
“I first met William DeMeo and
Chris Victor at the Hang Onto
Your Shorts Film Festival where
DeMeo was honored with an
Honorary Achievement of the
Arts in Acting Award,” he said.
“I won my 14th IMDB award at
the same festival for Best Animation
for 'You Got a Problem,'
a short film that I directed and
animated.
"Festivals are a great way for an
actor to network with directors,"
Mandracchia added. "It was a
great opportunity to shake their
hands. Little did I know it would
lead to them casting me in a part.
I play one of the bouncers in the
Bay Ridge Disco Nightclub. I am
very thankful.”
Mandracchia described his
time with lead actor and writer
DeMeo as a positive experience.
“He is a true gentleman and a
fine artist, and an elegant and
intelligent writer, director and
actor with a keen eye for talent
and creativity," he said. "He is
a fine man of great stature that
has put together a team of truly
great Brooklyn patrons, actors,
film crew and especially loved
ones and friends. They all love
working with him and Chris
Victor. DeMeo is a people person
and always has time for anyone."
Besides "The Neighborhood,"
Mandracchia said he would
continue promoting "You Got a
Problem," which will be shown at
the Brightside Tavern Shorts Film
Festival (July 28 to 30).
There is no set date for the
premiere of "The Neighborhood."
CULTURE BRIEFS
Photo courtesy of Charles Mandracchia
Actor and filmmaker and Bay Ridge native Charles
Mandracchia.