Entertainment
Nilaja Sun Livens Up the Jersey Shore with “No Child”
A play within a play within a play is how Nilaja Sun describes No Child
A play within a play within a play is how Nilaja Sun describes No Child. Sun brings to life 16 characters including, students, their family members, a janitor, principal, and a security guard in a run down school in the Bronx, NY. With only 3 chairs, no costume changes, and a back drop of the school, Sun along with director Hal Brooks makes the process a one person show seem simple.
No Child by Nilaja Sun
Sun has a story to tell, and she tells it well with a strong comedy to match. No Child is based on her experience as a teaching artist in the New York City public school system. She uses her body and tone variations to distinguish each character and ethnicities.
Nilaja mastered her art form and the characters that she plays. She is intense, funny, and hilariously skilled as she takes us on a journey of her life, educational system, and the realities the students have to face.
Nilaja narrates the story through the eyes of a janitor, who in the beginning gives the audience a view of the unfortunate reality in the public New York school system. To enter the school, the janitor talks about “two metal-detecting machines, five school guards, two armed police officers, and seven metal-detecting wands.”
Ms. Sun attempts to get 10th-graders to learn, analyze, and perform Our Country’s Good, a play by Timberlake Wertenbaker’s about prisoners in Australia. However, the task is not going to be easy.
Sun is faced with a classroom full of students who’s never done a play before and not really willing to do it. But somehow, despite the hardship of getting them to work together, she gets the job done.
No Child gives a broad view on what goes on in the educational system: underpaid teachers, undeserved students, and even tackles the “No Child” left behind policy. This story is not just for educators, but a story with a massive lesson: Sometimes in life, we are all educators so who is really accountable?
In conjunction with the production, Two River will work with local students to create an original play, inspired by the themes of No Child. In this intensive 12-week program, participating students work with professional teaching artists to create a play drawn from their own lives, experiences, and questions about the world. Students will have the opportunity to work with Nilaja Sun on the play. The play back will be announced at a later date.
Everyone that lives in the local area and in and around the tri-state area should come to out see Nilaja Sun. Unheard Voices gives No Child and Nijala’s magnificent performance five shining stars and two thumbs up.
No Child runs until November 20th at the Two River Theater in Red Bank, NJ. For more information please visit the ttheate’s website
Black Excellence
Inside the 17th Annual ESSENCE Black Women in Hollywood® Awards
Hosted by Clifford “Method Man” Smith, the star studded event premiered March 15, exclusively on the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN).
Get a look inside the 17th Annual ESSENCE Black Women in Hollywood Awards.
Hosted by Clifford “Method Man” Smith, the star studded event premiered March 15, exclusively on the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN).
About ESSENCE Black Women in Hollywood Awards
The ESSENCE Black Women in Hollywood honors women who are making their undeniable mark in film and television and amplifies their strides in defining what it means to be a Black woman in Hollywood.
Honorees
This year’s honorees and entertainment industry trailblazers include Academy Award nominated actress & Grammy Award winner, Danielle Brooks, six-time Grammy nominated singer and leading-actress Halle Bailey, acclaimed screenwriter and showrunner of All American, All American: Homecoming and Found, Nkechi Okoro Carroll, and industry powerhouse & President of Original Programming for STARZ, Kathryn Busby.
Check out some photo highlights inside the 17th ESSENCE Black Women in Hollywood Awards
For more, please visit http://www.essence.com/bwih2024
Culture
U.S. Virgin Islands Announces the Performance Line-up for St. Thomas Carnival Village Featuring Shaggy, Sizzla, Patrice Roberts, and Machel Montano
The Village will be headlined by Caribbean superstars Shaggy, Patrice Roberts, Sizzla Kalonji, Kes, and Machel Montano, who will kick off the six-night free Village concerts on Monday, April 29.
The U.S. Virgin Islands Department of Tourism and Division of Festivals has announced the performance line-up for the 72nd Annual St. Thomas Carnival Village.
72nd Annual St. Thomas Carnival Village
The Village will be headlined by Caribbean superstars Shaggy, Patrice Roberts, Sizzla Kalonji, Kes, and Machel Montano, who will kick off the six-night free Village concerts on Monday, April 29.
“The anticipation around this year’s St. Thomas Carnival is at an all-time high, and the Village night performers reflect the continued influence and growth of our territory’s three carnivals,” exclaims USVI Department of Tourism Commissioner Joseph Boschulte.
Center Stage
Adam O, Rudy Live, Temisha, Karnage, Blind Earz, VIO International, and Spectrum Band are among the performers who will take center stage to represent the U.S. Virgin Islands.
“Every year, our goal is to pay homage to the vast Virgin Islands and Caribbean culture that is at the cornerstone of these annual celebrations for natives and visitors alike,” added USVI Division of Festivals Director Ian Turnbull.
Haitian kompa band VAYB and Dominican salsa orchestra Chiquito Team Band will provide a cross-cultural immersion of sound, highlighting the diverse musical interests of Virgin Islands residents.
First-time performers
Rounding out the village are a few first-time performers in the territory, including TeeJay, Jada Kingdom, and Kollision Band, and returning favorites Edwin Yearwood and Krosfyah, and Grandmasters.
Kids Night Out Village Night
This year, the Division of Festivals will host its first Kids Night Out Village Night, with activities including the Toddlers Derby, Best Dressed Doll, and performances by TMK and OTB.
More information on 72nd Annual St. Thomas Carnival Village
For up-to-date information about the 72nd Annual St. Thomas Carnival, visit https://www.instagram.com/usvifestivals/.
Culture
Online romances get a dose of reality in OWN’S all-new love & relationship series ‘The Never Ever Mets’
Hosted by Ta’Rhonda Jones, this 10-episode series features seven couples who have been virtually dating for some time and believe they may have found lasting love – only they have never met each other in person.
OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network has announced an all-new relationship series that takes online dating into the real world, The Never Ever Mets.
About The Never Ever Mets Series
Hosted by Ta’Rhonda Jones, this 10-episode series features seven couples who have been virtually dating for some time and believe they may have found lasting love – only they have never met each other in person! Now, they’re meeting face-to-face for the very first time and sharing a house together for three weeks to see if their internet love can survive off the screen and in real life.
Synopsis
As all seven couples convene under the same roof, dating in person rather than through their computers or phones quickly proves to be the biggest challenge yet.
While many couples have been years in the making, some quickly find the in-person relationship is not what they anticipated.
To test the strength of their love connections, the group participates in a series of fun and flirty relationship activities, couples therapy and for some, a trip to the “boom boom room.” But visits from discerning loved ones, meddling opinions and tension from others in the house challenge their bonds even further. At the end of their stay, some will go home together…and some will be signing off for good.
Premiere
The series premieres on Friday, April 19 at 8pm ET/PT, on the OWN Network.
Check out the trailer below:
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Tim
November 9, 2011 at 3:14 pm
I absolutely loved “No Child”!
gilda rogers
November 11, 2011 at 9:01 pm
Great review and as stated everyone should get out to see this tour-de-force. It is unbelievable how Nilaja Sun goes in and out of the many different characters with ease. She is an AMAZING artist. Two Thumbs up to Two River Theater for bringing such compelling art to the Jersey Shore . . . Peace. Gilda