Spotlight Tour

RONALD K. BROWN/Evidence

Ronald K. Brown/Evidence will tour to seven venues in the mid-Atlantic region in the spring of 2008.  The tour will feature the premiere and performances of One Shot and performances of Blueprint of a Lady: The One and Future Life of Billie Holiday.

One Shot focuses on the legacy of Charles Teenie Harris, a celebrated Pittsburgh photographer and journalist who believed that everyone had “one shot” in life to create a legacy in their community.  With support from Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation’s Artists & Communities program, Ronald K. Brown collaborated with the August Wilson Center for African American Culture in Pittsburgh on the research and development aspects of One Shot in the fall of 2006.  Brown worked with community members, dancers, students, and community arts partners to create One Shot, a piece paying homage to Charles Teensie Harris and exploring issues of legacy, memory, place, community, and decadence using music from Billy Strayhorn’s jazz scores, Anonimo Conseio’s Cuban rap, the torch ballads of Phyllis Hyman and Ahmad Jamal, and projections of Teenie Harris’ photographs.  This tour of Ronald K. Brown/Evidence will kick off with the premiere of One Shot at the August Wilson Center.

In addition to the public performances of One Shot and Blueprint of a Lady, each of the seven Ronald K. Brown/Evidence presenters will offer outreach activities in conjunction with the tour. These activities will range from master classes and community workshops, to youth photography programs. A number of presenters will also host an exhibition of the photographic works of Charles Teenie Harris as an adjunct to the tour.

The Ronald K. Brown/Evidence tour will visit the following venues with support from Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation’s ArtsCONNECT program:

Apollo Theater Foundation, New York, NY                                                                 
August Wilson Center for African American Culture, Pittsburgh, PA
Christina Cultural Arts Center, Wilmington, DE                                                          
Columbia, New York, NY                                                                                         
Montgomery County Community College, Blue Bell, PA                                             
Penn State University, University Park, PA                                                                
The Performing Arts Center Foundation, Purchase, NY 

It is advised that you check each venue separately for dates and times due to possible unforeseen changes in the tour schedule.

Photo Credit: Basil Childers

One Shot” was commissioned by The August Wilson Center for African American Culture with support from Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation  and co-commissioned by the American Dance Festival and Benedicta Arts Center of the College of St. Benedict. Funded in part by the National Dance Project of the New England Foundation for the Arts, with lead funding from Doris Duke Charitable Foundation. Additional funding provided by The Ford Foundation, The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and JP Morgan Chase Foundation.