Arts & Lifestyle
Of Interest ...
Moscow Festival Ballet
to perform 'Swan Lake'
The Moscow Festival Ballet will perform "Swan
Lake" on Tuesday, April 7 in the University of North
Carolina at Greensboro's Aycock Auditorium as part of
the University Concert & Lecture Series
Tickets for the 8 p . m performance are $28-535 and
can be purchased from the University Box Office at
(336) 334-4849 or online at boxoffice.uncg.edu
Written by Russian composer Peter Tchaikovsky,
"Swan Lake" tells the story of Prince Siegfried and his
search for love. He finds it in Odette, the Swan Queen,
but a plot by an antagonist interferes with their blos
soming affection.
The Moscow Festival Ballet was founded 20 years
ago when Sergei Radchenko, the legendary principal
dancer of the Bolshoi Ballet, pursued his vision for a
dance company that would meld the highest classical
^elements of the great Bolshoi and Kirov Ballet compa
nies in an independent new company within the frame
work of Russian classic ballet
The ballet has toured extensively, including two
tours of Europe and multiple visits to the United States.
During the 2008-09 season, the company will return to
America for a 17-week tour
Miss UNCF crowned in G'boro
Brittnie L. Morris, a senior majoring in biology at
Wiley College in Marshall, Texas, is the winner of its
51st Annual Miss National UNCF (United Negro
College Fund) competition. A native of Los Angeles,
Morris received a S3 ,000 scholarship. An active member
of the Wiley College student body, her affiliations
UNCFPhdo
Brittnie L. Morris
include the Pre
Alumni Council and
Project Stop Now
The winner of
the Miss National
UNCF crown is
determined by the
amount raised by
students at UNCF
member colleges
and universities.
This year, under
Morris' leadership,
students from Wiley
College raised a total
of $45,000 for
UNCF. Morris was
crowned Miss
National UNCF at
the annual joint con
ference of the UNCF
National Alumni
Council (NAC) and
its subsidiary organization, the UNCF National Pre
Alumni Council (NPAC), which was held in Greensboro,
Feb. 5-8.
"I'm thrilled to have been chosen to represent Wiley
College and UNCF as Miss National UNCF," Morris
said after receiving her crown. "But it's an honor shared
by all the Wiley College students whose hard work and
contributions to UNCF won the competition for us. And
we're all proud that we are able to help the next genera
tion of UNCF students get the college education that
means so much to all of us ."
Morris will serve as an official UNCF representative
at national events, including "An Evening of Stars," the
annual UNCF national television special. She will also
attend regional UNCF events such as the Chicago Black
& White Black Ball, the Atlanta Mayor's Masked Ball,
the Indianapolis Classic and the Maya Angelou "Women
Who Lead" Luncheon in Charlotte.
NanoDays 2009 at SciWorks
SciWorks will celebrate NanoDays 2009 with an
event on March 28 from 12 - 3 pjn. Faculty and stu
dents from the Center for Nanotechnology and
Molecular Materials at Wake Forest University and
Forsyth Technical Community College will be at
SciWorks for the event, which will feature live atomic
force microscope demonstrations, lectures and
SciWorks' own NanoLab for children
NanoDays is organized and funded through The
Nanoscale Informal Science Education (NISE)
Network. NISE Net is a national community of
researchers and informal science educaton. dedicated to
fostering public awareness" engagement and understand
ing^ nanoscale science and technology SciWorks
admission prices are: adults S10, students (6-19) and
seniors $8, children (2-5) $6. Children under 2 years are
free. SciWorks is located on Hanes Mill Road just off
University Parkway or Highway 52.
Parisian theme Community Day
at Reynolda House is Saturday
Reynolda House Museum of American Art is invit
ing the public to its "Americans in Paris Community Day
Festival" on Sunday, March 29 from 2 to 4 p.m. Visitors
are invited to tour the historic house and the current exhi
bition, "American Impressions: Selections from the
National Academy Museum," at its only venue outside
New York. The event is free.
The afternoon will feature a variety of activities,
including art projects for children, entertainment by the
Forsyth Country Day School Concert Choirs, strolling
accordion players and mimes, storytelling, balloons, and
a calliope playing music outdoors. Local artists will be
sketching and painting on the lawn, and Cafte Prada will
sell special French pastries and glaces.
Tbe Parisian theme of Community Day is based on
the museum's current I exhibition. "American
Impressions." which featured the paintings of American
artists from the late 19th and early 2()th centuries, who
traveled to France to study with the French
Impressionists in and around Paris.
Freeman to guide writers
during upcoming workshop
CHRONICLE STAFF REPORT
Playwright Nathan Ross
Freeman and author Leigh
Somerville McMillan will lead
a Writing and Publishing
Retreat on Saturday, April 4 at
Blessings. 823 Reynolda Road.
The event is designed for
both novice and experienced
writers. Various topics will be
covered and the event will
include information about how
to self-publish.
Freeman is a published
author, award-winning film
and stage director, and
acclaimed university lecturer
and teacher He was awarded
2007 BE. ST. Outstanding
Nathan Ross Freeman
Faculty Award at the
University of North Carolina at
Charlotte as a member of the
Intensive Writing Faculty. He
is currently the 2008 Visiting
Writer at Salem College,
where he teaches creative writ
ing, introduction and interme
diate poetry and screen writing.
As a spoken word educator he
serves as the founding artist
director of Authoring Action
(formerly The Winston-Salem
Youth Arts Institute).
McMillan is the long-time
Scene & Heard columnist for
The Winston-Salem Journal.
She will talk about the world
of print-on-demand publishing
and how she published her new
book, "It All Started With a
Dog," through iUni verse.
Proceeds from the Writing
and Publishing Retreat will
benefit Authoring Action,
which has used the power of
writing and the arts to engage
and train young people since
2002.
Writing and Publishing
Retreat will be from 9:30 am to
noon. Blessings is across from
Hanes Park in the West End.
Reservations are required by
going to
www.StudioMcMillan.com or
calling 336-631-8571. The
event costs $35, which is tax
deductible.
l
Garage Theater
Photo by Will A boa
The award-winning punk rock musical "Hedwig and the Angry Inch" will be staged at The
Garage, 1I0W. 7th St., from March 27-29. There will be four shows in all. The Obie-winning Off
Broadway musical tells the story of "internationally ignored song stylist" Hedwig Schmidt. The
production is produced, designed and performed by students and staff associated with^the
University of North Carolina School of the Arts. Cast members pictured from left are Nick Bailey,
Spencer Trinwith, Alex Aucoin, Andrew Wells Ryder, Aleque Reid, Luke Smith and Chris French.
Writers to keynote CACE
CHRONICLE STAfT REPORT
Authors will keynote the upcoming
Conference on African American Culture and
Experience (CACE) at the University of
XT ?U r?
l^uiiii v. aiiMiiia a i vjicciimjuiu.
The April 2-3 conference will fea
ture the views of author/educator Curtis
Austin and novelist Ernest Hill and will
focus on the intersection of race, gender
and politics.
This year's theme is inspired by the
rise of African-American influence in
politics, according to Dr. Tara T. Green,
director of UNCG's African American
Studies Program. There are mrfre
African-American politicians now than
any other time in history. Green said,
noting Barack Obama's historic elec
tion as the nation's first African- American presi
dent and the recent election of Michael Steele to
head the Republican National Committee.
"We want to have these conversations to think
back historically, look at where we are and where
we should be going," she said.
Austin, an associate professor and director of
the Center for Black Studies at the University of
Southern Mississippi, will give a lecture at 3:30
Austin
p.m. on Friday, April 3 in the Elliott University
Center auditorium titled "The Politics of Race and
Gender in the Black Panther Party." His latest
book is "Up Against the Wall: Violence and the
Making and Unmaking of the Black
raniner rany.
Hill. whose novels include
"Satisfied With Nothin'," "A Life for a
Life," "Cry Me a River," will read from
his works during the conference's
Literary Cafe at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday,
April 2, in the Elliott University
Center's Multicultural Resource
Center. Poet Demetrius Noble and nov
elist Ashanti White are also scheduled
to participate in the conference, which
is sponsored by the African-American
Studies Program and co-sponsored by
the Office of the Provost, the College
of Arts and Sciences and the Department of
History.
The event is open to the public. The cost is
$10. Enrollment by the March 27 early registration
deadline is highly encouraged. Registration is
available online at
www.uncg.edu/afs/caceregistration2009.html or
by calling 336-334-5507.
Chicago a cappeila group coming to town
CHRONICLE STAFF REPORT
An evening of good food and
great music is planned at the
Stevens Center on Thursday. April
9
As part of its popular
Something For Everyone Series,
the University of North Carolina
School of the Arts will present
Chapter 6, a Chicago a cappella
ensemble whose catchy melodies
have earned- a slew of music
awards.
Since its debut in 2000,
Chapter 6 has won over fans and
critics alike. The three-time
Chicago Regional Harmony
Sweepstakes grand champions,
took home the 2004 National
Harmony Sweepstakes in recogni
tion of their technique, perform
ance, and unique, original
arrangements.
Members Chuck Bosworth,
Mark Grizzard, Jarrett Johnson.
Luke Menard. John Musick,
Submitted Photo
The members of Chapter 6.
Nathan Pufall and A.D.
Stonecipher say their sound has no
boundaries
Before the Chapter 6's 7:30
p.m. show, attendees will be treat
ed to a Greek-themed buffet din
ner on the 10th floor of the
Stevens Center. Everything from
classic Greek salad and
Spanakopita to rotisserie chicken
and pita bread with hummus is on
the menu. The buffet dinner will
be from 5:30 - 7:30 p.m. and costs
$22, which does not include
admission to the concert. Tickets
to the performance start at $16.
For tickets or more informa
tion, call the Stevens Center Box
Office at 336-721-1945 or go to
www.ncarts .edu/performances .
Byron Pitts
CBS' Pitts
will give
graduation
message
More than 1,000
Aggies will get
degrees
CHRONICLE STAFF REPORT
A man whose face is
familiar to millions around the
nation has been booked as
N.C. A&T State University's
2009 Spring Commencement
Ceremony speaker.
Byron Pitts is the national
correspondent for CBS News.
His reports from cities and
towns across the United States
regularly appear on "CBS
Evening News," "The Early
Show" and other programs on
the network. He is also a con
tributor to the network's top
rated "60 Minutes."
A Baltimore native, Pitts
has covered some of the
nation's and world's biggest
news events, including the
war in Iraq. Pitts was recog
nized for reporting under fire
within minutes of the fall of
the Saddam Hussein's statue
He was also the network's
lead correspondent at Ground
Zero on Sept . 1 1 . His reporting
on the terrorists attacks earned
him an Emmy for individual
reporting. He has several
other national and regional
awards, including another
Emmy for his coverage of the
Chicago train wreck of 1999,
several Associated Press
Awards and a National
Association of Black
Journalists Award.
Pitts, who earned his jour
nalism degree from Ohio
Wesleyan University, has
worked for CBS News for a
little more than a decade. He
worked at several local televi
sion stations before that,
including WSB-TV jn
Atlanta.WCBV-TV in Boston.
WESH-TV in Orlando and
WNCT-TV in Greenville,
N.C. He lives outside of New
York City in Upper Montclair,
N.J. with his wife.
More than 1,000 Aggies
are expected to graduate dur
ing the Saturday, May 9 cere
mony, which will begin at
8:30 a.m. at the Greensboro
Coliseum. The event is free
and open to the public.