Reading focuses
on black women’s
civil-rights fight
By Julianne McShane They are women of their words.
The voices of the black
women who led the civil rights
movement of the 1960s will ring out
at the Weeksville Heritage Center
in Crown Heights on March 16. The
reading event “The Black Woman:
She Does Exist,” co-sponsored by
the National Black Theatre and the
historic Center, pays tribute to the
often-overlooked women who pressed
for progress during a pivotal period of
history, said the show’s director.
“Knowing that the ’60s were such
a time of social revolution, we wanted
to look at, who are the mothers of that
revolution? The mothers are never
given homage or acknowledgement,
especially the black women,” said
Jonathan McCrory.
The show features four pieces
written by black women in the 1960s,
each dealing with the stereotypes,
prejudice, and resistance the authors
faced. And all of the works rings true
nearly six decades after they were
written, said the show’s co-curator.
“What surprised me most about
reading these women thinkers from
the ’60s is the outlook that they had,”
said ChelseaDee Harrison, who lives
in Cypress Hills. “It’s going to amaze
people to see how relevant the conversations
still are.”
The event takes its name from
the first reading, a 1967 essay published
in the New York Times by
National Black Theatre founder Dr.
COURIER L 58 IFE, MAR, 15-21, 2019 24-7
Barbara Teer about the stereotypes
facing black actresses. Other historic
readings will include an article
on preservation by the first director
of the Weeksville Society, Dr.
Joan Maynard; activist Ella Baker’s
“Address at the Hattiesburg Freedom
Day Rally,” which she read at a 1964
protest in Mississippi against voter
By Aidan Graham It is more than a panel discussion!
A new cartooning workshop
will teach aspiring illustrators
how to turn their ideas into complete
comic books, at the Brooklyn Public
Library on March 23. The class is
designed to provide support to artists
of all experience levels, according to
its curator.
“We want to lower the barrier to
entry for cartoonists who maybe don’t
have the money, or don’t know where
to start. But also, we want to allow
cartoonists to meet other cartoonist,
editors, and publishers,” said Leigh
Hurwitz, an outreach coordinator at
the library.
“Everything is Comics: How to
Make Anything You Want” is the latest
installment in the monthly “Cool
Work x Interesting People” comics
workshop series at the Brooklyn Public
Library’s Central branch, which will
continue through June. Each class is
taught by a different artist, who can
provide a distinct perspective on the
comic industry, said Hurwitz.
“Each class is hosted by an indie
cartoonist at the forefront of a new
and progressive movement in the
industry,” she said.
A professional illustrator, who has
contributed to the New York Times
and Entertainment Weekly, will lead
the upcoming workshop. She hopes
to teach cartoonists of all stripes to
experiment with new techniques.
“It would be fun to try out different
things with people who are
already cartoonists, but if there are
any first-timers, I would love to reach
them before they are taught the usual
comics ‘dos and don’ts,’ ” said Laura
Lannes.
Illustrators are too often expected
to follow arbitrary rules passed down
in comics classes and how-to books,
which can restrict their creativity,
she said.
“I think comics can be anything
the artist wants. A lot of the so-called
‘rules’ of comics strike me as gatekeeping,”
said Lannes. “I would love
for anyone who attends my workshop
to take home that however they want
to make comics, that is the correct
way to do it for them.”
Previous classes have drawn a
diverse crowd of approximately 40,
according to Hurwitz.
“We had a wide range of people.
We’ve had seasoned comic artists,
and we had a parent with their
12-year-old,” she said. “It’s a great
environment. It’s a great vibe.”
“Everything is Comics” workshop
at the Brooklyn Public Library
Central Library, Trustees Room 10
Grand Army Plaza at Atlantic Avenue
in Prospect Heights, (718) 230–2100,
www.bklynlibrary.org. March 23 at
1 pm. Free.
By Colin Mixson Call it a meta-soprano!
An offbeat and
often risque operetta will
belt out its satiric tunes
at Fort Greene’s Brooklyn
Playhouse on March 15
and 16. Audiences at “La
Farranucci,” will discover
a saucy show that mocks
the stodgy world of divas
and double arias, according
to its director.
“It’s as if Mel Brooks
wrote an opera in the
’70s,” said Shelly Watson.
“There’s a lot of touchy
subjects and definitely a lot
of things that people would
call un-PC.”
The musical comedy,
written by composer David
Chesky, is an opera about
an opera, and it turns a
satirical eye on the practical
concerns that underpin
— and often undermine —
the artistic endeavors of the
medium’s cash-strapped
creators.
Chesky’s “La
Farranucci” opens on a
troubled production of a
fictional opera with the
same name, as members
of a Texan theater company
struggle to meet the
demands of their new producer,
a former stripper
who married into wealth,
and is now afflicting her
high-brow beneficiaries
with her low-brow sensibilities.
“There’s a reason they’re
called the nouveau riche,”
said Watson. “Money can’t
buy taste.”
Soon, the opera has
been renamed “Hickery
Dickery C---,” and its hippie
composer, Chuck, has
been locked away for violating
the Lone Star State’s
stiff indecency laws, following
an ill-fated effort to
fund his creative endeavors
through the liberating art of
pornography. Chuck’s road
to redemption leads to the
production really going off
the rails, and — between
starting a successful gun
business and founding a
new religion — the starryeyed
composer begins to
transform into the very
thing he sought to escape.
“Slowly, throughout the
opera, his ethics go to the
wayside and he starts to get
a taste for what money is
like,” Watson said.
The fat lady may strike
a sobering note at the end
of “La Farranucci,” but
Watson makes no excuses
for the state of contemporary
opera. She has seen
enough productions draw
the final curtain to see that
money can often override
artistic integrity.
“Is it tragic, or is it truthful?”
the director asked.
“It’s sad that all these opera
houses are closing, but the
most important thing is to
understand why they’re
closing.”
“La Farranucci” at
Brooklyn Playhouse (126 St.
Felix St. between Lafayette
Avenue and Hanson Place
in Fort Greene, lafarranucci.
brownpapertickets.com).
March 15–16 at 8 pm. $40.
Revolutionary woman: The 1967 essay “The Black Woman: She Does Exist,” written by Dr.
Barbara Teer, founder of the National Black Theater, provides the title of a reading event
in Crown Heights on March 16. Dwight Carter
Cast away!: The cast of “La Farranucci” prepares for opening
night on March 15. Photo by Stefano Giovannini
Delivering comics: Laura Lannes, who drew
this image, will lead a class on comics at
the Brooklyn Public Library on March 23.
Laura Lannes
Tantrum of
the opera
MOTHERS OF THE
REVOLUTION
Comic-can!
A new musical mocks
backstage meddling
Continued on page 61
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