Columbia College celebrates the rich and textured cultures of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast region with its African Heritage Celbration "Recovering History: On the Brink of a New Orleans Renaissance." Highlights of this comprehensive calendar of events feature the first public library display of the library archives of Columbia's Center for Black Music Research; musical presentations ranging from jazz and classical to blues and gospel; lectures on topics ranging from New Orleans jazz and Creole composersto conversations with Mississippi rap artist David Banner and renowned actor James Earl Jones.
TUESDAY, JANUARY 31
How and Why New Orleans Jazz Came to Chicago
Columbia College Chicago Music Center , 1014 South Michigan ,
* 12:30 PM (booklet time correction)*, FREE and open to the public
Lecture with Dr. Lawrence Gushee, Professor Emeritus of Musicology at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. In May, 2005, his book, Pioneers of Jazz: the Story of the Creole Band was published by Oxford University Press.
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2
Eyes On the Prize: Part one of a Three-Part Series & Panel Discussion
623 S. Wabash , Room 405, 7:00 PM, FREE & open to the public. For more info. call 312.344.7569.
Eyes on the Prize: America 's Civil Rights Years (1954-1965) is a documentary series about the American Civil Rights Movement. It uses archival footage to record the growth of the American Civil Rights Movement, with special focus on the ordinary people who affected the change. It was produced by Henry Hampton at Blackside Inc. The series has been hailed as more than just a historical document. Clayborne Carson, a Stanford University history professor and editor of Martin Luther King Jr.'s papers, remarked that “It is the principal film account of the most important American social justice movement of the 20th century.” Because of its extensive use of primary sources and the depth of coverage of the material, it has been adopted as a key reference and record of the civil rights movement.
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7
Fernando Jones Blues Band
Columbia College Chicago Music Center , 1014 South Michigan , 12:30 PM – 1:20 PM, FREE and open to the public. For more info. call 312.344.7459.
Please join us for the outstanding Fernando Jones Blues Band. Fernando Jones has been on a Blues crusade in Chicago since his college days in the mid-1980s. He has produced a play, I Was There When The Blues Was Red Hot , authored a book with the same title, written Blues poetry, produced Blues shows, and is a Blues educator.
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9
Baptized in Dirty Water: Rap Artist, David Banner Speaks
Ferguson Theater, 2:00 PM, FREE to Columbia students with current student ID. For more info. call 312.344.7188.
Ambitious rap trailblazer, David Banner continues to represent his beloved Mississippi with a pride and ferocity that has made the rapper/producer one of hip-hop's most intriguing and in-demand talents. Banner stormed the Billboard album charts with his gold-certified 2003 major label debut Mississippi -The Album (SRC) and critically hailed follow-up MTA2: Baptized in Dirty Water. Most recently David Banner has witnessed his stock rise as a much sought after track master, crafting high profile gems for the multi-platinum likes of T.I. (“Rubber Band Man”) and Nelly (“E.I.- The Tipdrill Remix”).
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9
Big Mouth featuring David Banner
Conaway Center , 1104 South Wabash , 1st Floor, 7:00 PM, 1 FREE ticket to Columbia College Students with current student ID. Non-Columbia guests $5.00 donation @ the door while quantities last. Proceeds to benefit Katrina recovery. Limited tickets available at the Hokin Annex in advance, 623 S. Wabash, 1st floor, Office A
Big Mouth's performance event includes music, poetry and performance with featured guest David Banner.
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 13
Eyes On the Prize: Part two
Ferguson Theatre, 600 S. Michigan , 7:00 PM, FREE and open to the public.
Eyes on the Prize: America 's Civil Rights Years (1954-1965) a documentary series about the American Civil Rights Movement.
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 13
Lester Sullivan
623 S. Wabash Ave. , Hokin Hall, 2:00 – 5:00 PM, FREE and open to the public.
Lester Sullivan, Archivist for Xavier University presents a lecture on African-American New Orleans History with a special focus on music.
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 14
The Untold Story of Emmett Louis Till, with Director Keith Beauchamp
Film Row Cinema, 1104 S. Wabash Ave. , 2:00 – 5:00 PM, FREE and open to the public.
Keith Beauchamp's film, The Untold Story of Emmett Louis Till is called “the most important documentary of the year” by the New York Times. Please join us for a screening and lecture with the filmmaker.
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 15
Rae Lewis-Thornton Speaks
Residence Hall, 731 S. Plymouth Ct. , 6:00 PM
Come meet Rae Lewis-Thornton. She was diagnosed HIV Positive at the age of 23 and given the ultimate death sentence. She uses her life as an example that AIDS is a non-discriminatory disease and spreads the message about understanding and preventing HIV, promotes testing and early detection, and raises awareness about how proper care has impacted the lives of those living with HIV/AIDS.
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 16
Conversations in the Arts: Up Close with James Earl Jones
The Dance Center of Columbia College, 1306 S. Michigan , 7:30 PM, Tickets $35, available @ www.ticketweb.com or call 866-468-3401
James Earl Jones, perhaps best known by generations of Americans as the voice of Star Wars' Darth Vader , joins us this winter for the second Up Close conversation of the 2005-2006 season. See the award-winning stage, screen and television actor (the Great White Hope, Master Harold…and the Boys, Fences, Field of Dreams, Gabriel's Fire, Roots: The Next Generation) in the intimate setting of our Up Close series.
TUESDAY & WEDNESDAY , FEBRUARY 21 & 22
Cerqua Rivera: Tribute to Louis Armstrong
Columbia College Chicago Music Center , 1014 S. Michigan , 12:30 – 1:20 PM, FREE and open to the public, reservations required call: 312-344-6300.
These concerts feature Bobbi Wilsyn, Joe Cerqua, Donald Neale, and Brienne Perry performing the works of Louis Armstrong.
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 21
Eyes On the Prize: Part Three
623 S. Wabash Ave. , Room 405, 7:00 PM, FREE and open to the public.
Eyes on the Prize: America 's Civil Rights Years (1954-1965) a documentary series about the American Civil Rights Movement.
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 23
Mardi Gras Masquerade Ball
Conaway Center , 1104 S. Wabash , 1st Floor, 7:00 PM, FREE to Columbia Students with current student ID.
Join the Student Programming Board for our first ever Mardi Gras Masquerade Costume Ball. The evening will include Cajun food, authentic mardi gras beads, face painting, live entertainment, DJ, PRIZES$$, The Dating Game and the inaugural crowning of the Columbia College Chicago Mardi Gras King and Queen (Best Costume).
FRIDAY & SATURDAY , FEBRUARY 24 & 25
Cerqua Rivera: The Shadow of the Blues
Columbia College Chicago Music Center , 1014 S. Michigan Ave. , Feb.24 is at 8:00 PM and Feb.25 is at 7:30 PM, Tickets are $18 - $22, available @ 773-847-0305.
Cerqua Rivera performance with special feature Langston Hughes: The Shadow of the Blues.
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 27
Katrina from Afar: Oral Histories of the Children, Grandchildren and Friends of the South
Hokin Gallery, 623 S. Wabash Ave. , 10:00 AM – 2:00 PM, FREE and open to the public.
Do you have deep family or community ties to the south or perhaps are you in Chicago because of Katrina? Maybe you have a spiritual connection to New Orleans . Please bring your stories and your artifacts to the Hokin Gallery and share your story for this Oral History project. Videotaped sessions, roundtable discussions and southern cuisine samplers will be featured.
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 28
Fat Tuesday: A Taste of New Orleans
Hokin Annex, 623 S. Wabash Ave. , 5:00 - 9:00 PM, FREE to Columbia students with current student ID.
Join us for a spicy sampling of New Orleans cuisine and old world hospitality!
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 28
Book Reading: Lerone Bennett, Jr.
Columbia College Bookstore, 2:00PM, FREE and open to the public. For more info. call 312.344.7712.
Writer and social historian, Lerone Bennett, Jr. will read excerpts from two of his books: Before the Mayflower: A History of the Negro in America 1619-1966 and Forced Into Glory: Abraham Lincoln's White Dream .
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 15
The New Black Music Repertory Ensemble
Harris Theater for Music and Dance, 8:00 PM, Tickets $35.
Featuring the world premieres of works by T.J. Anderson, Wendell Logan, and Olly Wilson with Kirk Smith, conductor The New Black Music Repertory Ensemble celebrates the wide range of music from the black musical experience. A special segment demonstrates how gourd instruments from Africa were the immediate predecessors of the American banjo and how the banjo song impacted the development of the blues song.