As always, I try to keep this blog open to those wanting to pub quality events regardless of location. This one isn’t in the Dallas area, but if you’re in the NY area, let me know how it is. For more information, visit the Urban Stages website.

Urban Stages “Celebrating over 25 Years of New Works”

will present the World Premiere of the musical

Langston In Harlem

By Langston Hughes, Walter Marks and Kent Gash

Music by Walter Marks, Lyrics by Langston Hughes

Musical Direction by Barry Levitt, Choreography by Byron Easley

Directed by Kent Gash

Starring Josh Tower as Langston Hughes

Performances begin April 9; Opening April 15

At Urban Stages

New York: Urban Stages (Frances Hill, Artistic Director, Lauren Schmiedel, Managing Director) will present the World Premiere of the musical Langston in Harlem book by Langston Hughes, Walter Marks and Kent Gash, with music by Walter Marks, lyrics by Langston Hughes and directed by Kent Gash, with musical direction by Barry Levitt and choreography by Byron Easley. Langston in Harlem will begin previews on Friday, April 9; opening on Thursday, April 15, 2010 and will initially run through May 2, 2010. Urban Stages is located at 259 West 30 Street (between 7th and 8th Avenues). Tickets will be $40 ($25 during previews) and are available at www.Smarttix.com / 212.868.4444. Langston in Harlem is produced by arrangement with Langston, Ltd., Jon Kimbell/SenovvA, Inc. – Executive Producer.

Langston in Harlem is an exciting new musical about one of America’s most honored poets, Langston Hughes. Set in the African-American cultural capital of Harlem from the Harlem Renaissance through the Civil Rights movement, Langston in Harlem tells the story of Langston Hughes’ journey into manhood and his emergence as one of the most beloved and forward thinking artists of our time. This groundbreaking new musical is filled with Jazz, Gospel, Rhythm and Blues, Swing, dance and spoken-word that sings, jumps, stomps and shouts. Langston Hughes’ glorious words and poetry of love, loss, joy and the blues and the people of Harlem who inspired him, come gloriously to life, in Langston in Harlem and are once again universal and unforgettable!

In this week of Easter, Passover, and faithful celebration, the President offers a holiday greeting and calls on people of all faiths and nonbelievers to remember our shared spirit of humanity.

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I received this in an email. For more information visit www.KidsForKing.org.

Due to a recent request, the Washington, DC Martin Luther King, Jr. National Memorial Project Foundation has decided to extend our submission deadline for the Kids for King Education Initiative.

The deadline for children to submit their entries is now April 30, 2010.

A few days ago, we heard from a group of teachers who want their students to participate, but they had just found out about the Kids for King Education Initiative. They realized there was no way their students could meet the deadline and be eligible for the free trip to Washington, DC, and they wanted to know if there was anything we could do.

We considered extending the deadline only for them, but in the end, that isn’t fair to anyone else who may have only recently learned about the Initiative.

That is why we have decided to make the new deadline - April 30th - apply to everyone equally.

So you now have one full additional month for us to receive your child’s:

• Essay
• Work of art
• Video

Once the submissions are finalized on April 30th, we will begin the judging immediately.

Shortly after that, winners will be announced in the three age groups.

Remember, this year’s award winners will receive free trips to Washington, DC (with one parent or guardian) to participate in our 2011 Dedication Ceremony - a once-in-a-lifetime event that will provide priceless memories for everyone involved.

So please, if you haven’t already downloaded your Kids for King Education Packet, download your packet and get started today.

from barackobama.com

No, this isn’t a bootleg shirt I printed up marking the much needed overhaul of our health care system. This is actually a legitimate shirt from barackobama.com marking the historic vote in the House to send health reform to the President.

I received an email from the website asking me to co-sign the bill along side President Obama’s name to show my pride in helping bring about this great achievement (I’m still not sure what I did). I usually read over and delete these emails, but I couldn’t help adding my name to the list of those who would also sign. After submitting my name I was sent to the usual donation page with a chance to order the shirt.

When I saw it, I couldn’t help but laugh because the best way to piss people off even more is to wear around this shirt to really rub it in. Nevertheless, I donated the $25 to get one because this really is history in the making and he’s going to need that money in a couple of years. Growing up, I used to wonder what major events would shape our society and this is one of those events. Will it work? I have no clue. But I do know something needs to be done and this is the first step in getting the ball rolling.

I admire the tenacity of the president and despite the drama in Congress, he was determined to make it happen. Most of the people complaining will probably benefit from these changes and what’s a couple of more trillion dollars to an already high national debt? The debt was already on the rise before Obama got in office, so my kids were going to pay for it either way.

2012 is going to be crazy!!!

I like local artists, especially when they can sing. I blogged about Dondria over a year ago and JD has finally posted the video premiere of “You’re the One” on his blog.

When I initially heard the song, I occasionally found myself humming it throughout the day,  so was I pleased to see the video wasn’t much different. The frequently showcased bottle of Nuvo Sparkling Vodka Liqueur was a slight distraction, but fortunately the song was catchy enough for me to move past it (I thought they should have kept the focus on the artist, but what do I know). Other than that I thought it was a good first time video for an up and coming star. Nice job Dondria.

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DONDRIA “YOU’RE THE ONE” from SO SO DEF on Vimeo.

As a key committee in the Senate takes up reforming the ways of Wall Street, the President lays down a marker: “I urge those in the Senate who support these reforms to remain strong, to resist the pressure from those who would preserve the status quo, to stand up for their constituents and our country.   And I promise to use every tool at my disposal to see these reforms enacted: to ensure that the bill I sign into law reflects not the special interests of Wall Street, but the best interests of the American people.”

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The purpose for this post is to inform you of the new laws and acts enacted by Congress and President Obama. With the advent of the Internet it’s gotten easier to watch every step our government takes. And President Obama is making some nice moves to make what they do more transparent to the American people. We elect them, so we need to make sure they are doing their job. The laws I list are posted at govtrack.us, which is a nice site for checking laws in any stage their in. As always feel free to leave any additional comments.

On Feb 3, 2010, the President signed the following bill(s) into law:
H.R. 4508: Small Business Act Temporary Extension. To provide for an additional temporary extension of programs under the Small Business Act and the Small Business Investment Act of 1958, and for other purposes.

On Feb 3, 2010, the President signed the following bill(s) into law:
S. 692: A bill to provide that claims of the United States to certain documents relating to Franklin Delano Roosevelt shall be treated as waived and relinquished in certain circumstances.

On Feb 3, 2010, the President signed the following bill(s) into law:
H.R. 1377: Amend title 38. To amend title 38, United States Code, to expand veteran eligibility for reimbursement by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs for emergency treatment furnished in a non-Department facility, and for other purposes.

Note: There were a lot of post office related name change laws this month. But since that’s not really a big deal, I decided not to post each one.

A friend of mine asked for help in spreading the word to get votes for the MLK Park Project in Winnsboro, Texas. The three playground projects with the most votes will receive equipment grants worth up to $5,000 for improvements. You can vote every day and the contest ends March 31st, so click to submit your vote for the MLK Park Project now! You don’t have to sign up for anything and it only takes a second out of your day.

The U.S. Census counts every resident in the United States, and is required by the Constitution to take place every 10 years. Mid-March the census forms will be delivered to every residence in the United States and Puerto Rico. When you receive yours, just answer the 10 short questions (they say it take around 10 minutes) and then mail the form back in the postage-paid envelope provided. If you don’t mail the form back, you may receive a visit from a census taker, who will ask you the questions from the form.

The majority of the country will receive English–only materials. Households in areas with high concentrations of Spanish-speaking residents may receive a bilingual (English/Spanish) form. Any personal data you provide is protected under federal law.

Please take the time to fill out the Census and mail it back because the information affects the numbers of seats your state occupies in the U.S. House of Representatives. People from many walks of life use census data to advocate for causes, rescue disaster victims, prevent diseases, research markets, locate pools of skilled workers and more. It also helps to determine how more than $400 billion dollars of federal funding each year is spent on infrastructure and services like:

• Hospitals
• Job training centers
• Schools
• Senior centers
• Bridges, tunnels and other-public works projects
• Emergency services

Don’t take this lightly. For more information regarding the Census and how it affects all Americans, check out the Census blog at http://blogs.census.gov/2010census.

If you are in need of a job, the U.S. Census Bureau is recruiting temporary, part-time census takers right in your own community. These short-term jobs offer good pay, flexible hours, paid training, and reimbursement for authorized work-related expenses, such as mileage incurred while conducting census work. For more information on the job opportunities they offer, visit http://2010.census.gov/2010censusjobs.

The President takes a moment to congratulate our Olympic athletes.  Discussing the unity and pride Americans feel in cheering them on, the President relates that sentiment to his own desire for bipartisanship in Washington.  He praises the recent bipartisan meeting and talks about moving forward on health reform.

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