May 6 & 7 - NJPAC’S Alternate Routes Series Annual GLBT FESTIVAL

Work! A Big Ol’ Gay Dance Party takes place onstage in NJPAC’s

Vogue Evolution from MTV’s America’s Best Dance Crew

OUT, LOUD & PROUD V is a provocative evening featuring international spoken word artist/folk poet Alix Olson. Olson twice headlined HBO’s

Alix Olson, spoken word artist/folk poet

Cornelius Jones

Monte Wolfe

Tim'm T. West

Pandora Scooter, the host and guest curator of Out, Loud & Proud V, is a self-identified “QUEERMAMASAPIEN,” whose words and rhymes have inspiring effects on audiences. Her work has included everything from stand-up comedy to hip hop to folk poetry to performance art. Scooter, will premiere a new work about coming out at the performance. Among her numerous credits, including a critically acclaimed and timely anti-bullying work “Outwordly Fabulous,” this frequent NJPAC collaborator has performed multiple solo shows and four sold-out performances of Out, Loud & Proud.

Pandora Scooter, the host and guest curator of Out, Loud & Proud V

Work! A Big Ol’ Gay Dance Party will include performances by Vogue Evolution (from MTV’s America’s Best Dance Crew) and house music by DJ Naeem Johnson, who will mix contemporary, urban-flavored tracks with dance classics in an effort to resurrect the height of the club era, including the glory days of The Paradise Garage, The Loft, and Newark’s own Zanzibar.

New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC), located in downtown Newark, New Jersey, is the sixth largest performing arts center in the United States. As New Jersey’s Town Square, NJPAC brings diverse communities together, providing access to all and showcasing the State’s and the world’s best artists while acting as a leading catalyst in the revitalization of its home city. Through its extensive Arts Education programs, NJPAC is shaping the next generation of artists and arts enthusiasts. NJPAC has attracted over 6 million visitors (more than one million children) since opening its doors in 1997, and nurtures meaningful and lasting relationships with each of its constituents. Visit www.njpac.org for more information.

Programming has been made possible in part by funds from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State, a Partner Agency of the National Endowment for the Arts and by funds from the National Endowment for the Arts.

NJPAC is a wheelchair accessible facility and provides assistive services for patrons with disabilities. For more information, call 888-GO-NJPAC.

Media Contact: JOSH BALBER, NJPAC 973-353-8051, or jbalber@njpac.org

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NJPAC and GKT Presents Sonic Superstars A New DJ Concert Series on Wednesday Nights During July

NJPAC’S FREE SUMMER CONCERT SERIES, SOUNDS OF THE CITY, THURSDAY EVENINGS, JUNE 24 – AUGUST 26

JAZZ HAPPY HOUR TUESDAYS AT CALÇADA JULY 6 – JULY 27

NEWARK, NJ, June 30, 2010 – This summer, NJPAC is the place to be every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday night. The Arts Center’s popular series, Sounds of the City, rocks Theater Square with FREE music, dancing, and a hopping social scene. The State’s hottest weekly music series, featuring Newark’s, New Jersey’s and the region’s best jazz, pop/rock, R&B and world music artists, includes over 30 bands, DJs, a vendor marketplace, and a multi-thousand-person party Thursday evenings, June 24 through August 27 (with one Wednesday, June 30), from 5:00 – 10:00 p.m. New this year, on Wednesdays in July, NJPAC turns up the heat with Sonic Superstars, a free DJ series headlined by some of the world’s top DJs. And on Tuesdays throughout the summer, NJPAC and WBGO 88.3 FM radio partner for Jazz Happy Hours in Calçada, Theater Square Grill’s outdoor, tented restaurant.

NJPAC and GKT Present Sonic Superstars Wednesday Nights Featuring Internationally Renowned DJ D-Nice on
July 7

Sounds of the City
Sounds of the City continues an annual summer tradition by bringing the top talent from the New Jersey and the region to its outdoor stage in Theater Square. Sounds of the City kicks-off on June 24 with a blow-out tribute to the King of Pop, Michal Jackson, co-resented with Purpose Music Group, featuring eleven different artists and a DJ, all performing classic Jackson songs including “I Want You Back,” “Human Nature,” Off the Wall,” “Baby be Mine,” “I’ll Be There,” “Man in the Mirror,” “PYT,” and more.

A special Wednesday night event on June 30th includes performances by Gabrielle Stravelli, Frank Vignola and Lorraine Klaasen. The concert features an eclectic mix of classic rock and jazz standards, sounds of Township music from South Africa to the Caribbean, and the beats of DJ Joey Mazza.

Sounds of the City also features a vendor marketplace in NJPAC’s arrival court. Vendors from around the area will set up tents each Thursday evening at which concert-goers can shop.

A full list of artists performing at NJPAC’s Sounds of the City can be found below.

NJPAC Sonic Superstars Wednesday features DJ Naeem Johnson on July 14

Sonic Superstars
Sonic Superstars is a new addition to Newark’s summer nightlife and features some of the hottest DJs working today, including Derrick “D-Nice” Jones, who mentored under Scott La Rock of Boogie Down Productions and who produced the Stop The Violence Movement’s number one single, “Self Destruction,” before going on to a solo career, Questlove of The Roots, currently the house band for “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon,” a Ladies Night with Beverly Bond and DJ Reborn, and Newark’s own Naeem Johnson.

Check out the Artist Line-Up!
D-Nice: http://www.d-nice.com/
Questlove: http://www.theroots.com/
Beverly Bond: http://www.blackgirlsrockinc.com/
DJ Reborn: http://www.ubiquitanyc.com/uNYC/about/djReborn.php

Naeem Johnson: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Naeem-Johnson/87862856550

DJ Tee Mallory will open the NJPAC Sonic Superstars concert on July 14 for DJ Naeem Johnson

Happy Hours
Every Tuesday this summer, WBGO 88.3 partners with NJPAC to host a Jazz Happy Hour in Calçada, featuring music from WBGO and drink and food specials. Calçada will host general happy hours each night preceding Sounds of the City and Sonic Superstars as well.

For the most up-to-date performance information, call the Sounds of the City Hotline at 973-353-8046; 1-888-GO-NJPAC (1-888-466-5722); or visit the NJPAC Web site at www.njpac.org.

This summer’s Sounds of the City and Sonic Superstars series are co-sponsored by Chase, Richmond County Savings Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, Berkeley College, BD (Becton, Dickinson & Company), Absolut, Boost Mobile, Bud Light, and the New Jersey State Council on the Arts.

NJPAC Sonic Superstars DJ Genghis-Grizzly is the opener for D-Nice on July 7

NJPAC and GKT present DJ sHaKe to open for Questlove on July 28

New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC), located in downtown Newark, New Jersey, is the sixth largest performing arts center in the United States. As New Jersey’s Town Square, NJPAC brings diverse communities together, providing access to all and showcasing the State’s and the world’s best artists while acting as a leading catalyst in the revitalization of its home city. Through its extensive Arts Education programs, NJPAC is shaping the next generation of artists and arts enthusiasts. NJPAC has attracted over 6 million visitors (more than one million children) since opening its doors in 1997, and nurtures meaningful and lasting relationships with each of its constituents. Visit www.njpac.org for more information.

Programming has been made possible in part by funds from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State, a Partner Agency of the National Endowment for the Arts and by funds from the National Endowment for the Arts.

NJPAC is a wheelchair accessible facility and provides assistive services for patrons with disabilities. For more information, call 888-GO-NJPAC.

MEDIA CONTACT: Josh Balber, 973-353-8051 or jbalber@njpac.org

Source: New Jersey Performing Arts Center

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ComeUnity Wire is a service of FEMWORKS LLC. Issuers and not FEMWORKS LLC are solely responsible for the content, facts and accuracy of all information submitted by them for transmission or posting by ComeUnity Wire. FEMWORKS LLC does not warrant or make any representations concerning the content, accuracy, likely results or reliability of the use of the materials it transmits or posts.

Lee Truesdale

Lee Truesdale performs live at the Key Club on May 1, 2010

NEWARK, NJ, April 15, 2010 – Clubhouse Music Enterprises and GLT Arts & Entertainment presents Live in Concert Broadway & Recording Artist, Lee Truesdale on Saturday, May 1, 2010 at the Key Club located at 58 Park Place, Newark, NJ. For more information call 973-799-0306.

Who: Lee Truesdale, Broadway and Recording Artist
What : Live in Concert
Where: The Key Club, 58 Park Pl. / Newark, NJ (Downtown Arts District)
When: May 1, 2010 (Saturday) / 8:00pm / $20.00

leetruesdalelive@keyclubback2.jpeg-1

Media Contact: 973-799-0306

Source: Clubhouse Music Enterprises and G.L.T Arts & Entertainment

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NJPAC Alternate Routes

NJPAC Alternate Routes Presents Toshi Reagon, Bernice Johnson Reagon and BIGLovely

NEWARK, N.J., March 17, 2010 – The New Jersey Performing Arts Center’s Alternate Routes series teams up genre-bending singer-songwriter, Toshi Reagon, and her band, BIGLovely, with her mother, the composer/scholar/teacher and founder of Sweet Honey in the Rock, Bernice Johnson Reagon, for one night only, Saturday, March 20 at 7:30 p.m. in the Victoria Theater. Tickets are $39 and are available by telephone at 1-888-GO-NJPAC (1-888-466-5722), at the NJPAC Box Office at One Center Street in downtown Newark, or by visiting the NJPAC website at www.njpac.org. All tickets can be purchased by telephone at 1-888-GO-NJPAC (1-888-466-5722), at the NJPAC Box Office at One Center Street in downtown Newark, or by visiting the NJPAC website at www.njpac.org. Alternate Routes is made possible, in part, by American Express, the Ford Foundation, the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts and the New Jersey State Council on the Arts. For more information: www.njpac.org.

Toshi Reagon and Bernice Johnson Reagon have collaborated on previous projects together, including the musical score for the award winning films “Africans In America” on PBS and “BEAH: A Black Woman Speaks” for HBO. Their performances together are rare but always a welcomed opportunity. This concert will feature Toshi’s powerhouse band BIGLovely with Fred Cash on bass, Judith Casselberry on vocals and guitar, Robert Burke on drums, and Adam Widoff on electric guitar.

Known for energetic performances and a gift for writing engaging songs that provoke listeners to think and have fun at the same time, Toshi Reagon jumped into the spotlight when she dropped out of college after Lenny Kravitz tapped her to open for him on his first world tour. She has been touring and recording ever since, having shared the stage with the likes of Ani Difranco, Pete Seeger, Dar Williams, Elvis Costello and her own band, BIGLovely. www.toshireagon.com

For more than 40 years, Bernice Johnson Reagon has been a major cultural voice for freedom and justice; singing, teaching—speaking out against racism and organized inequities of all kinds. A singer of extraordinary emotional depth and vocal power, Reagon became active in the Civil Rights Movement while a college student at Albany State College in Albany, Georgia. She was a member of the original SNCC (Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee) Freedom Singers formed in 1962 by SNCC field secretary Cordell H. Reagon, and in 1966, a founding member of the Atlanta-based Harambee Singers. Early in 2004, Reagon retired after thirty years from the acclaimed African American women’s a cappella ensemble Sweet Honey In The Rock, which she founded in 1973. www.BJReagon.com

New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC), located in downtown Newark, New Jersey, is the sixth largest performing arts center in the United States. As New Jersey’s Town Square, NJPAC brings diverse communities together, providing access to all and showcasing the State’s and the world’s best artists while acting as a leading catalyst in the revitalization of its home city. Through its extensive Arts Education programs, NJPAC is shaping the next generation of artists and arts enthusiasts. NJPAC has attracted over 6 million visitors (more than one million children) since opening its doors in 1997, and nurtures meaningful and lasting relationships with each of its constituents. Visit www.njpac.org for more information.

Programming has been made possible in part by funds from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State, a Partner Agency of the National Endowment for the Arts and by funds from the National Endowment for the Arts.

NJPAC is a wheelchair accessible facility and provides assistive services for patrons with disabilities. For more information, call 888-GO-NJPAC.

Media Contact: Josh Balber, Public Affairs, 973-353-8051, jbalber@njpac.org

Source: New Jersey Performing Arts Center

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ComeUnity Wire is a service of FEMWORKS LLC. Issuers and not FEMWORKS LLC are solely responsible for the content, facts and accuracy of all information submitted by them for transmission or posting by ComeUnity Wire. FEMWORKS LLC does not warrant or make any representations concerning the content, accuracy, likely results or reliability of the use of the materials it transmits or posts.

Tickets for GEM Fest are available at the website (www.grooveevolutionfest.com) in advance for $15 or $20 at the door. Attendees who purchase three (3) raffle tickets for $80, receive free admission and a chance to win a roundtrip ticket to South Africa to volunteer with Artworks For Youth (www.artworksforyouth.org).

Learn More:
HOW – www.haitianorphans.com
Artworks for Youth – www.artworksforyouth.org

When asked what prompted her to create this festival, Sky Dietrich said, “I am not only here to play music but to grow the dreams and aspirations of my fellow world citizens. GEM Fest is one way to make that happen for those in need and my fellow artist comrades.”

The missions of both recipient organizations clearly resonate with the Groove Evolution Music Festival goal to inspire, enlighten and motivate people to act on their visions and passions for a better world. HOW ‘s mission is to provide nutritional, financial, medical, and spiritual relief to the orphaned children of Haiti. Artworks for Youth is dedicated to providing free after school visual art instruction, mentoring, and academic support to under-served students in South Africa.

About Groove Evolution Music (GEM) Festival
GEM’s purpose is to raise funds for non-profit organizations globally, while providing a venue throughout the year for progressive artists, actors, and poets. Their artistic endeavors are of substance and groove and make profound statements that empower and move the world. Key artists who are donating their performances to this event are Sky D & LeGrange Evolution, Beyond Belief & Kwame, Dani Fonseca, and DJ Structure.

About Sky D and LeGrange Evolution
Sky D and LeGrange Evolution is a modern powerhouse of funk and rock with gritty tones. Sky D’s fierce lyrical call for unity in an “every man for himself” type of world is potent and relentless. After realizing that negative trending rap was not for her, Sky broke out of that box to express her contempt for prejudice, violence, repression, and the cut-throat nature of society. Her music, which ranges from aggressive power rock to hip hop and soul, was featured in many NYC venues, and her solo performances have been showcased on VH1, NBC, and UPN.

Media Contacts: Moya Mills, (862) 452-3968, moyamills@yahoo.com or Sky Dietrich, (201) 491-2836, skyd@skydandlegrange.com.

Source: Groove Evolution Music (GEM) Festival

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ComeUnity Wire is a service of FEMWORKS LLC. Issuers and not FEMWORKS LLC are solely responsible for the content, facts and accuracy of all information submitted by them for transmission or posting by ComeUnity Wire. FEMWORKS LLC does not warrant or make any representations concerning the content, accuracy, likely results or reliability of the use of the materials it transmits or posts.