Hilwa’s Gifts by Safa Suleiman and Anita Semirdzhyan: A Book Review
Hilwa’s Gifts by Safa Suleiman, illustrated by Anait Semirdzhyan, is a soulful, practical, and pertinent children’s book that masterfully blends culture, tradition, and family…
Freedom at Dawn: Robert Smalls’s Voyage Out of Slavery, by Leah Schanke and Oboh Moses
Freedom at Dawn: Robert Smalls’s Voyage Out of Slavery is a picture book that tells the remarkable story of Robert Smalls, an enslaved man who escaped captivity during the Civil War…
The National Tour of The Wiz at DPAC Is Dazzling and Soulful, with Room to Grow
Fifty years after The Wiz first hit Broadway and swept the 1975 Tony Awards®, with its all-Black cast winning seven Tonys, including Best Musical, the iconic retelling of The Wizard of Oz is back -- revitalized, resplendent, and currently rocking the Durham Performing Arts Center through Sunday, Aug. 10th…
Voices Soar in Operatic Les Misérables at DPAC
The Durham Performing Arts Center's July 15-20 presentation of Les Misérables, produced by Cameron Mackintosh and directed by James Powell and Laurence Connor, is nothing short of American Opera. I can imagine it being performed at the Sydney Opera House, with The Three Tenors in the leading male roles. Not only are the vocals the kind you hear at a church cathedral concert, but the set is akin to those of the Paris Opera at the turn of the 19th century, which isn't too far from when Les Mis is set…
Durham’s New Sinkhole: It’s Past time for a Joint City County Watershed Improvement Committee
In 2014, Durham's city-county Environmental Affairs Board considered forming a Joint City County Watershed Improvement Committee, to provide a holistic plan for *sustainable* stormwater management that will benefit all citizens in the long run… It’s time to try again.
Durham is Run By Developers
A Jun 22, 2024, article in the Durham Dispatch summarizes a persistent and historical problem in Durham: the unfair and societally and environmentally damaging influence of developers on Durham governance:
#LifeTurningMoment
I was talking to a very well-dressed, frail old woman, with perfectly styled white hair, when she became physically distraught about the horrible state our country was in.
Supply Trumps Demand
Just had one of those lightbulb moments
re why the haters (wealthy or wanna be)
think immigrants are the country's problem.
The algorithm is this:
Suka’s Farm by Ginger and Frances Park
Suka's Farm is a quietly reflective children’s picture book that offers a glimpse into the life of a poor Korean family during the Japanese occupation of Korea in 1941…
Bigger Buffers Better
… It is well known that erosion, sedimentation and pollution from industrial and agricultural activities or sewage is reduced by “maintaining forests in riparian zones along watercourses” (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations).…
Mengwe Wapimewah Gives a Broadway-Caliber Performance in Dominique Morisseau's Confederates at PlayMakers Rep
Set in two distinct periods -- during the American Civil War and in the modern day -- Confederates moves seamlessly between a one-room slave cabin on a Confederate plantation and a prestigious university professor's office in the current world. What could easily become preachy or overly sentimental instead feels strikingly personal and intimate…
History of Bullying/Unsafe Behavior at DPS Middle Schools
My letter to Durham Public Schools Superintendent and the DPS Board of Education today. in response to a student death by suicide at one of their middle schools.
A Beautiful Noise: The Neil Diamond Musical at DPAC Is FABULOUS, with Flawless Music and Acoustics
On Tuesday, Jan. 7th, I attended the opening-night performance of A Beautiful Noise: The Neil Diamond Musical at the Durham Performing Arts Center with my mother-in-law, who experienced Neil Diamond's music as it was released; but I had never been a Neil Diamond fan. Well, I am now…
Stone Soup Theatre Company's Guys on Ice Is a Fun and Quirky Musical About ... Ice-Fishing
Stone Soup Theatre Company's production of Guys on Ice: An Ice Fishing Musical is a fun and quirky performance that brings together humor, catchy tunes, and a sense of community. Directed by Melissa S. Craib Dombrowski, with music director Dr. Joanna Sisk-Purvis, the show presents a day in the life of a couple of guys from Wisconsin, combining ice fishing, friendship, and Green Bay Packers fandom in an intimate look at the upper Midwestern United States.
Howard L. Craft and Mike Wiley's The Christmas Case of Hezekiah Jones Is a Live, Local, Family-Friendly Holiday-Themed Entertainment
The story focuses on Hezekiah Jones, a Chapel Hill toymaker who is losing his joy in Christmas and just about everything else after the recent death of his wife. Hezekiah's daughter Harriet, who is studying at UNC to be an astrophysicist, is worried that her father is going to sell the store, due to rising costs, technology, and declining customers. Dizzle Jollyworth, a North Pole elf who has lost his sense of purpose, has been assigned to revive Hezekiah Jones' Christmas spirit.
The Silkroad Ensemble with Rhiannon Giddens' American Railroad Really Is A Musical Journey of Reclamation
…At two hours long with an additional 20-minute intermission, an evening performance of Silkroad's American Railroad is not for the faint hearted. But you will only benefit from this passionately auditory reflection on those nameless souls who have contributed (and continue to do so) to the freedom and convenience enjoyed in America.
Mail Order Ministers
… As long as exceptional financial benefits and protections exist for churches and religious leaders, a person shouldn’t be eligible for legal ordination simply because (s)he can click a mouse.…
We Are Free You and Me by Colin Kaepernick and Nessa Diab
Not only are Kaepernick’s children’s picture books thought provoking and fun to read aloud, they are an example of social entrepreneurship of the purest kind, as 100% of their proceeds go to Know Your Rights Camp, which provides over $1.75 million in partnerships and collaborative grants to Black and brown communities as well as all-inclusive camps that are conducted nationwide to educate and empower Black and brown youth to be the change they want to see.
Supporting Asheville and Western North Carolina’s Recovery from Hurricane Helene through Music
Hurricane Helene may have passed, but its impact on Asheville and the surrounding regions of Western North Carolina is still felt deeply. Attending upcoming concerts and music events not only provides entertainment but also contributes to the local economy and fosters community spirit. Here’s how you can get involved and help Asheville and Western North Carolina bounce back from the storm.
Homeowners Hung Out to Dry
… The legalities surrounding stormwater issues are gray at best. Apparently, the state owns the water, the city owns the pipes and streams (though even that is debatable), and the property owners own the land. So who is accountable when stormwater redirected by private developers damages property downstream?…