Langston Hughes PAC in Mayor's Budget Proposal

Seattle City Council will hold a Public Hearing on the Mayor's 2013 Budget Proposal tomorrow (Thursday) at 5:30pm in Council Chambers.  Among the many, many topics to be discuss will be the Mayor's proposed budget for The Langston Hughes Performing Arts Center.  The information below should allow you to guess about when it will be discussed by Council.  They will take public testimony on the budget proposal PRIOR to the actual discussion.  So if you want to speak, go and sign up and you will speak to your issue and then you can leave an watch the rest on TV.

In regards to Langston Hughes, I expect that there will be strong support from all of the City Council Members for the Mayor's recommendations.

SEATTLE CITY COUNCIL
BUDGET COMMITTEE*
Thursday, October 25, 2012
5:30 p.m.

PUBLIC HEARING

Members:
Tim Burgess, Chair
Sally Bagshaw, Member
Sally J. Clark, Member
Richard Conlin, Member
Jean Godden, Member
Bruce A. Harrell, Member
Nick Licata, Member
Mike O'Brien, Member
Tom Rasmussen, Member

E-mail: council@seattle.gov
Committee Chair Telephone:             206-684-8806      
Council Meeting Listen Line:             206-684-8566      

Staff:
Tobias Pulliam, Legislative Assistant
Alex Pedersen, Legislative Assistant
Nate Van Duzer, Legislative Assistant
Laurel Humphrey, Council Clerk
Emilia M. Sanchez, Council Clerk

Location:
Council Chamber, City Hall
600 Fourth Avenue
Seattle, WA 98104

Homepage: http://www.seattle.gov/council/budget

*This meeting also constitutes a meeting of the Full Council, provided that the meeting shall be conducted as a comm ittee meeting under the Council Rules and Procedures, and Council action shall be limited to committee business.

Notice of Seattle City Council Public Hearings on the Mayor's 2013-2014 Proposed Budget, 2013 General Revenue Sources, the Elliott Bay Seawall Project, and the Waterfront Improvement Program

Thursday, October 25, 2012, 5:30 p.m.
City Council Chambers, City Hall, Floor 2 
600 4th Avenue, Seattle WA 

The Seattle City Council Budget Committee will conduct four public hearings on Thursday, October 25, 2012 st arting at 5:30 p.m. The hearings will be held in City Council Chambers. Councilmember Tim Bur gess will chair the hearings.

• The first hearing, scheduled to begin at 5:30 p.m. will be for comments on the Elliott Bay Seawall Project.
• The second hearing, scheduled to begin at 5:35 p.m. (or at conclusion of the first hearing, whichever is later) wi ll be for comments on the Waterfront Improvement Project.
• The third hearing, scheduled to begin at 5:45 p.m. (or at conclusion of the second hearing, whichever is later) w ill be for comments on the City's general revenue sources for the 2013 budget, including a possible property tax levy increase.
• The fourth hearing, scheduled to begin at 6:00 p.m. (or at the conclusion of the third hearing, whichever is later ), will be for comments on the Mayor's 2013-2014 Proposed Budget and will continue until all in-person comments are rece ived.

At the hearings, out of respect for everyone's time constraints, it would be appreciated if members of groups with s imilar interests could combine their presentations and limit comments to five minutes. Individual comments will be limited by the Budget Committee Chair, probably to two minutes or less.

For those wishing to testify in person at the hearings, sign-up sheets will be available outside the door to Council Chambers at 5 p.m. Access to City Hall is via 4th or 5th Avenues, between James and Cherry Streets.

The Budget Committee hearings will be cablecast live on Seattle Channel 21 and webcast live atwww.seattle.gov/coun cil.

Arts & Social Change (Free Registration)

October 12-13, 2012  -  Seattle, WA

Artists, we need your voice at the Arts & Social Change Symposium!

The Seattle Office of Arts & Cultural Affairs is happy to offer a limited number of scholarships for artists representing communities of color to attend the ASC Symposium. These scholarships are first come, first serve, so register now (must register by Friday, October 5 - instructions below)!

The Symposium will feature panels, workshops, engagement activities and artists performing or exhibiting artwork demonstrating how art can be used as a vehicle for social change.

Attending Arts & Social Change gives you the opportunity to:

• Inspire – inspire action and activism; motivate for change.
• Participate – have dialogue; make recommendations for systemic and social change.
• Learn – gain new awareness; listen, participate, communicate, share, and engage.
• Build Community - connect with artists, arts administrators, social service professionals, government representatives, and social justice leaders.

This two-day event features local and national speakers from agencies including Shunpike, Reel Grrls, Art Corps, as well as artists, critics and cultural organizers including Fernando Argosino (Alay ng Kultura sa Katipunan para sa Kalayaan), Deborah Faye Lawrence (artist and educator), Susan Platt (art historian), quiet Theatre, and Jen Graves (visual art writer, The Stranger), and more! Visit our website for a full schedule of events

The symposium is an interagency effort among Washington State Arts Commission/The Wallace Foundation, 4Culture, Seattle Office of Arts and Cultural Affairs, Seattle Center and Festál, Seattle Office for Civil Rights, and The Association of American Cultures, a national arts advocacy organization. Special thanks to the Boeing Company for their support.

To Register

Full registration includes conference materials, admission to all keynote sessions including the Friday Night Showcase, workshops, networking opportunities, and meal functions listed in the program.

1. Visit Brown Paper Tickets here: http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/254218?date=665881
2. Click on the blue text Enter a Password or Discount Code
3. Enter the code ASCScholarship and click 'Show Available Tickets'
4. A new option for 'Full Symposium Scholarship' will appear at the top of the page - choose this and click 'Add to Cart'
5. Proceed through registration

Note: The scholarship code will stop accepting registrations once the available slots are full, so register right now to reserve your space!

Contact the ASC Symposium Coordinators, ascsymposium@gmail.com, with any questions or comments!

Celebrating James Baldwin

Mark Your Calendar for the Fall Fundraiser
A Season Opener: Celebrating James Baldwin
Saturday, October 20, 2012
6:00-9:00 p.m.
at NAAM

$100 per person
Honorary Chairs: Nancy Rawles and Charles Johnson

Mark Your Calendar for the Fall Fundraiser A Season Opener: Celebrating James Baldwin Saturday, October 20, 2012 6:00-9:00 p.m. at NAAM $100 per person Click here to purchase your ticket Honorary Chairs: Nancy Rawles and Charles Johnson Bearing Witness from Another Place: James Baldwin in Turkey Photographs by Sedat Pakay   Joins us to celebrate the opening of a very special photo exhibit. Sedat Pakay, James Baldwin friend, photographer and filmmaker, chronicled Baldwin’s life and communty in Turkey from 1961-1971.  We are delighted that Sedat Pakay will be with us for an evening of music, food and readings from Baldwin's work by a host of guests, including award-winning author Nancy Rawles.    Baldwin, a self-described 'witness' of the Civil Rights Movement, chose periods of self-imposed exile to better see the country that shaped him.  During the turbulence of the 1960s he chose Turkey as a temporary refuge. Pakay’s piercingly candid photographs recreate a rich visual journey and provide a private window into the life of a very public figure whose influence still resonates thirty years after his death. For more information, contact Twanda Hill | thill@naamnw.org | (206) 518-6000 x 111 Northwest African American Museum 2300 SOUTH MASSACHUSETTS ST SEATTLE, WA 98144 Phone: 206-518-6000 | Fax: 206-518-5665 | Email: info@naamnw.org

The New Season

I am a little late but the season is in full swing.  I will be talking about the many events that are happening and  will be happening over the next few months.

Right now Cheryl L. West's play, Pullman Porter Blues is going strong at the Seattle Rep and is getting great reviews.  It will be there until October 28, so check it out.

Mercedes Nicole's Tribute to the Late Great Etta James will happen this Saturday, at The Langston Hughes Performing Arts Center.  Get ticket at Brown Paper Tickets.

The Reggie Goings Quartet will be at Tula's for the Seattle Jazz Offering First Sunday Concert from 3 pm - 7 pm.   Jazz Diva Debbie Cavitt is expected to sing a couple of songs around 5 to 5:15 pm.

Finally this evening, I attended "Our Roots Are Showing", which was a series of readings of work by four African-American women writers at the Northwest African American Museum that was a part of the Mahogany Project of ARTS Crush.  The event was produced and hosted by Sharon N. Williams.  Merri Ann Osborne, Adilla Scott, Qadriyyah Shabazz and Sandra Boas-Dupree were the featured authors. It was an outstanding performance and evening with a collection of extremely talented artist.  The next presentation of The Mahogany Project will be "Circles of Life" written and performed by Sharon N. Williams herself on Friday, October 19 at the Langston Hughes Performing Arts Center at 7 pm.  IT will be FREE. 

Merri Ann Osborne, Sandra Boas-Dupree, Adilla Scott and Qadriyyah Shabazz

Seattle Office of Arts and Cultural Affairs

On Sunday, August 19, 2012 the Seattle Times reported the following ..."Mayor Mike McGinn announced the resignation of the city’s Office of Arts & Cultural Affairs director, Vincent Kitch..."

The mayor’s office did not say why Kitch had resigned but did say Michele Scoleri, a senior advisor to McGinn, will take over the Office of Arts & Cultural Affairs as a short-term director."

This is critical position for all supporters of the arts, especially supporters of the "Arts of the African Diaspora".  

Of the many critical issues concerning the arts and arts funding that MUST BE addressed, concerns the successful continuation of  "The Langston Hughes Performing Arts Center (LHPAC)."  

LHPAC is the oldest and only arts institution that not only presents our art to the total community, it educates and foster the next generation of artist who will insure the culture, traditions and the Art itself exist in the future.   To not successfully address its continuation speaks volumes as to how those who will decide who fills this position, view not only the "Arts of the African Diaspora", but how they view the importance of its many constituents as well.    

We as a community must speak up and let those know who will be deciding on the new leadership of this crucial office know that we are as well as our ART are not to be taken for granted or ignored.  

Outspoken: An Evening of Jazz & Spoken Word

Last evening, we had the pleasure of attending a beautiful event of Jazz and Spoken Word sponsored by the James and Janie Washington Foundation & Cultural Center at the Hedreen Gallery at Seattle University. Ms. Pamela Phillips, its passionate Director, crafted a very elegant yet comfortable evening with music by the the Mount Zion Wind Ensemble, lead by Wadie Ervin.  The ensemble also included Michael Yasutake, Lonnie Williams, Richard Perry and Paul Nichols.

The spoken word artist who themselves have performed around the world from South Africa to to the Caribbean to the Seattle Central Area.  They included Paul Nichols, who performed an original and moving masterpiece called "Birdsong: A Tribute to Charlie Parker".   Mr Nichols is not only an eloquent poet, but is himself a world class actor.

Ms Toyia Taylor, recently relocated back to Seattle from Brooklyn, NY performed a wide range of her work from an Ode to Hip Hop to a deeply felt and emotional love poem to a very critical and insightful commentary on "Seattle Blacks".  Ms Taylor at one point in her life was a contestant in the Ms America Pageant.  

The last spoken word artist was Delton Mosby.  He is an admirer of Mr. Washington who is also being strongly influenced by many of the artist of the Harlem Renaissance.  Delton is a very talented young man, who composes music and lyrics, so watch for Delton to make it big in the Seattle spoken word scene in the very near future.

A cool evening from an outstanding organization.  DO NOT miss their Open House on September 8th. I will have more information very soon about the Open House, but in the mean time check out the photos below from last evening's event, "Outspoken:  An Evening of Jazz & Spoken Word"

Lonnie Williams, Paul Nichols,
Richard Perry and Wadie Ervin

Paul Nichols

Toyia Taylor

Toyia Taylor

LaVerne Hall

Delton Mosby

Delton Mosby

Wadie Ervin and Michael Yasutake

Pamela Phillips

Pamela Phillips, Director

Everette and Gretchen Adams

Maisha Barnett

Foundation Artist in Residence

4Culture Touring Arts Roster

To all my talented friends.  Please consider auditioning for the King County 4Culture Touring Arts Roster.  It is a great opportunity to get yourself OR your group major exposure to those who hire entertainers.   If you have talent, it is NOT a difficult audition.  I myself have been a judge for these auditions in the past and if you need advice, message me!

LINK TO 4Culture Touring Arts Roster Audition Page