This week is rich in art happenings in the area, from outdoor theatre to a film festival to art shows. We already reported on Shakespeare in Clark Park presenting Henry IV in the park’s bowl. The performances, which feature a community army of over 100 people, begin tonight at 7 p.m. and go on through Sunday.

Also tonight, at 5:30 p.m., Penn Museum (3260 South St) invites music lovers to enjoy an outdoor concert by the West Philadelphia Orchestra. The concert is part of the weekly P.M. @ Penn Museum music series. Tickets are $10 and include museum admission. More details are available here.

Photo from BlackStar Facebook page.

BlackStar Film Festival, featuring films by and about people of African descent in a global context, kicks off on Thursday, July 31. The four-day festival features film screenings (many of them free) and events at the following West Philly venues: International House Philadelphia (37th and Chestnut), Scribe Video Center (4212 Chestnut St), Annenberg School for Communication, Penn (3620 Walnut St), and Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA), 118 S. 36th St. An opening night reception with DJ Mr. Sonny James will take place at ICA from 7 – 10 p.m. on Thursday. This event is also free and open to the public. For more information and schedule, visit blackstarfest.org. Follow the festival @blackstarfest and #BlackStar14.

UPDATE: Gush Gallery is opening on Friday, Aug. 1 at 5015 Baltimore Ave. The grand opening show, Embark, is from 6 – 9 p.m. (more info coming soon)

​Sharp with Art Group is presenting an art exhibit titled “Levels” at the Urban Art Gallery (52nd and Spruce) from August 2 – 31.  There will be a free opening reception on Saturday, Aug. 2, from 6 until 9 p.m. “Levels” will feature a diverse selection of art styles, such as street art, abstract art, sculpture, and mixed media works. Six amazing artists will be featured in the show: Natalie Flor Negron, Jae Martin, Nebulus Flair, Seven X, Noni Red and Vinson Houston. In addition there will be live performances by Raw Sinister Theatre, Chase Smiley The RockStar and April Fool Child.

And last, but not least, American Queen TJD, a West Philly artist we featured last fall (Meet American Queen TJD: Not the female Basquiat), invites neighbors to support her at a major art show on Saturday, Aug. 2  at the Arch Enemy Arts Gallery in Olde City (109 Arch Street). The one-day only show, titled “Too Many Basquiats Not Enough New Artists,” features over 100 pieces of art. The event will take place from 6:30 – 10 p.m. and includes music, food and an open bar. More details and tickets ($10.50) are available at americanqueentjd.com.

Artwork by West Philly artist American Queen TJD will be on display at the Arch Enemy Arts Gallery in Olde City Aug 2. (Photo via americanqueentjd.com)

Preparations have begun in Clark Park’s bowl (45th and Chester) for one of the most epic outdoor theater productions in the history of Shakespeare in Clark Park. This summer, the company presents Henry IV for five nights starting Wednesday, July 30. We watched a rehearsal and took this photo over the weekend. This production has an unprecedented number of actors: A community army of over 100 people was selected for battle scenes in the play. These are folks from 36 Philadelphia neighborhoods, from teens to seniors. More details about the production are here. The free shows begin at 7 p.m.

Henry IV cast members: Marla Burkholder, Brian Ratcliffe, Brian Anthony Wilson and Jennifer Kidwell. (Photo by Jen Cleary/Shakespeare in Clark Park Facebook page)

The awesome people who bring Shakespeare plays to Clark Park every summer have prepared something of epic proportions this year. Shakespeare in Clark Park (SCP) is teaming up with Team Sunshine Performance Corporation (TSPC) for an unprecedented collaboration featuring a five-night production of Shakespeare’s HENRY IV, intimate pre-show events at the Gojjo and a nightly conversation station in the park.

The play, titled HENRY IV: YOUR PRINCE AND MINE, combines aspects of both Henry IV: Parts 1 and 2, and features a community army of over 100 soldiers, selected during a multi-month open call. The army encompasses a diverse array of folks, ranging in age from 13-59, and representing 36 neighborhoods. The production also stars leading performers of stage and film including Brian Anthony Wilson, Charlie DelMarcelle, and Brian Ratcliffe, and is directed by TSPC’s Co-Founder and Resident Director, Alex Torra.

The shows are scheduled for July 30 – August 3, beginning at 7 p.m. Continue Reading

Click to enlarge.

The Friends of Malcolm X Park and local resident, historian and educator Rhone Fraser are teaming up to bring dramatic readings of seven historical plays to the park located at 51st and Pine Streets. The focus is on dramas dealing with important figures and events in African American history. The series, titled “Readings At The X,” will kick off July 8 and will be presented every Tuesday, starting at 7 p.m., until August 26 (see the flier for more details).

Currently, the organizers are raising funds for this community theater project. $3,000 is being raised to pay the venue, actors (some are coming from New York and Washington, DC), and videographer who will record the readings (not for commercial purposes). A portion of the raised funds will go to the Friends of Malcolm X Park for future events.

If you would like to support this project or want to learn more about it, please visit this Indiegogo page. There is only one week left to help the project with your donation.

Curio Theatre’s 2013-2014 season is coming to an end, with only three shows of Oedipussy remaining. Oedipussy is Curio’s North American premiere of British theater troupe Spymonkey’s hilarious adaptation of the well known Greek myth of Oedipus. Tickets are still available for this Thursday, Friday and Saturday’s shows, so grab them while they last.

The show received some great reviews.

“I can say in all honesty, it was one of the most enjoyable evenings I’’ve had in the theatre…,” writes Ellen Wilson Dilkes for Stage Magazine.

Aetna Gallagher in Oedipussy.

Oedipussy is a physical comedy. “Leaping, climbing, hurling themselves around the simple set while downing painkillers, they barrel through the tragedy in a hilarious and weirdly touching meditation on life, love, theater, and aging gracelessly,” writes The Inky‘s Wendy Rosenfield praising the actors’ physical stage fitness (three of the four cast members are nearing 50).

And here are six reasons why you should not miss this show, according to Curio’s Managing Director Gay Carducci:

1) Not one bad review
2) Standing ovations nearly every night
3) Neighbor reviews posted on telephone poles
4) Nobody is really naked
5) You will laugh…there is no doubt
6) And it’s the last show of the season!

Performances take place in Curio’s home base, the Calvary Center for Culture and Community at 4740 Baltimore Ave. at 8 p.m. Tickets ($20-$25) are available here. Parental discretion is advised.

Paul Kuhn (left) and Harry Slack in Oedipussy. Photos courtesy of Curio Theatre.

Photo by JR Blackwell.

If you haven’t been to West Philly’s Curio Theatre recently, you probably should go soon. Curio has just premiered its last show of the season, Oedipussy, a hilarious fusion of the well-known Greek tragedy and James Bond. Oedipussy was originally created by super inventive U.K.-based company Spymonkey, and this is its North American premiere.

Inspired by Barbarella and a little bit of Bond, this is a tale of the ultimate dysfunctional family: a jealous father, a messed-up son, and one mother of a brilliant comedy. The Times in London called the show, “Remarkable.Powerful. Joyful.” The Guardian said, “’Riotous laughter. Funny but shocking.”

The play is adapted by Emma Rice and written by Carl Grose and Spymonkey. The cast includes Curio Company members Aetna Gallagher, Paul Kuhn, Brian McCann and Harry Slack.

Previews began last night (this is your last chance to use 2013-2014 Dollar Stroll tickets!). The official premiere is Friday, May 2. All performances run Thursday-Saturday night at 8 p.m. The closing date is Saturday, May 24.

Tickets are $20-$25 and can be purchased here.