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Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater Graces Brooklyn Academy of Music, June 4-9, 2024

Dance is expression. Dance is spiritual. Dance is activism. Dance is life. I feel most alive when I am listening to music and dancing.  As a spectator and fan, some of my fondest moments of watching dance performances have been witnessing the dignity and grace of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. Every time I see the Ailey company, I am inspired, moved, and grounded in the beauty and complexity of the African American experience.  Photo by Paul Kolnik For me, the highlight is always "Revelations," Mr. Ailey's three-part ode to his upbringing in the Black Baptist church. The three sections -- "Pilgrim of Sorrow"; "Take Me to the Water"; and "Move, Members, Move" -- tell the story of African American faith and persistence from slavery to freedom. Over the weekend,  I had the pleasure of taking an outdoor Community Workshop in downtown Brooklyn, where we learned some of the choreography for "Revelations." I beamed from ear to ear
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DanceAfrica 2024 Returns to Brooklyn Academy of Music

The DanceAfrica Bazaar is one of my favorite annual street fairs. I love to watch folks show up and show out in their flyest Afrocentric garb and to shop for handmade beaded bracelets and earrings from the African vendors.  And when I'm fortunate enough to snag a ticket as I did this year courtesy of BAM, I enjoy watching the kinetic African dancers (this time the country featured is Cameroon) during the spirited and spirit-filled DanceAfrica performance at the Howard Gilman Opera House.   (Photos courtesy of BAM/Tony Turner) If you want to join in the fun, here's the weekend lineup that's truly for the culture. DanceAfrica 2024:  The Origin of Communities / A Calabash of Cultures Artistic Director Abdel R. Salaam DanceAfrica Spirit Walkers, Women Of The Calabash, The Billie's Youth Arts Academy Dance Ensemble, and Siren – Protectors of The Rainforest Fri, May 24 at 7:30pm; Sat, May 25 at 2pm & 7pm; Sun, May 26 at 3pm BAM Howard Gilman Opera House   (Peter Jay Sharp
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Wendy Williams Diagnosed with Dementia and Her Lifetime Documentary Reveals Struggles with Health and Finances

Wendy Williams has always been a friend in my head, as the former talk show host was fond of saying about celebrities she liked and admired.  Before her eponymous "The Wendy Williams Show" became a nationally syndicated treasure trove for all the goss, I listened to Wendy's daily chat fest on WBLS in New York City. That radio show was a source of afternoon delight while working 9 to 5, and  I've been a fan of the "Queen of All Media" for a long time. So it has been hard to watch Wendy devolve into a hot topic -- while publicly dealing with the embarrassment of infidelity in her marriage, a nasty divorce, losing her hit talk show and subsequent health and financial woes.  While she was still doing her talk show, which ran for 12 years, the gossip girl openly discussed her battles with substance abuse and her medical struggles with Graves' Disease and Lymphedema. I was even watching when Wendy fainted on live television during a 2017 Halloween episode of h
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Tony! Toni! Toné! Reunites and Does It Again With Their 'Just Me and You Tour 2023'

(Tracy E. Hopkins) The first time I saw Tony! Toni! Toné!  in concert, I was a sophomore at Howard University. The New Jack Swing-leaning lineup for the 1989 Homecoming concert at Cramton Auditorium also included Guy (Aaron Hall, Damian Hall and Teddy Riley).  Photo credit for all photos: David “Odiwams” Wright Back then, Guy was the silk set wearing headliner and the boho cool Cali trio – brothers Raphael Saadiq (real name Charles Wiggins) and D’W ayne Wiggins and their cousin Timothy Christian Riley – were the opening act, trying their hardest to win over the East coast-heavy crowd with an energized performance punctuated by choreographed dance moves and their single at the time, “Little Walter.” But if you ask me which group’s music catalog resonates more deeply with me now and hits the right nostalgic notes (like in that Bee Gees “How Deep is Your Love” way), without any Verzuz battle necessary the answer would clearly be Tony! Toni! Toné!. Although they only recorded four studio a
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