5/7/23 O&A NYC SUNDAY AFTERNOON JAZZ CONCERT: Untamed Elegance Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis (Full Concert) 

Watch the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis commemorate the Jazz Age with Untamed Elegance, a suite composed by master saxophonist and veteran JLCO member Victor Goines. The Roaring Twenties were defined by jazz. A grand decade when “the parties were bigger, the pace was faster, the buildings were higher, the morals looser.” 

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3/6/22 O&A NYC MUSIC: Staten Island Jazz Festival 33- Her Legacy Continues

By Walter Rutledge

In August Universal Temple of The Arts founder Sadja Musawwir Ladner joined the ancestors. A fixture in Staten Island arts scene for over fifty years Ladner provided arts education, performance opportunities and outreach to the underserved communities of her beloved borough- Staten Island. Her untimely passing shocked and saddened all who encountered this “community spirit”, fortunately her legacy lives on. On Saturday March 12, at 5pm the Universal Temple of the Arts will present the Staten Island Jazz Festival 33 at the historic St. George Theatre located at 35 Hyatt St, downtown Staten Island.

The festival will feature jazz music seven artists/groups including Nikara Presents…Black Wall Street (Nikara Warren), Bria Skonberg, Winard Harper & Jeli Posse, The Leopoldo F. Fleming Afro Caribbean Ensemble, Danny Mixon Quartet featuring vocalist Antoinette Montague, Dal Segno Trio featuring Darrell Smith, Michael Morreale and Houston Person and The Universal Temple of the Arts Jazz Ensemble. The evening will honor Women’s History Month as it celebrates the life and legacy of Ladner. There will also be a spoken word presentation featuring Professor Charles Thomas, Jordan Bracy and dancer Nubia Briathwaite, and a dance tribute choreographed by Walter Rutledge featuring Roumel Reaux, Briathwaite and Rutledge.

Musician Darrell Smith will make his debut in the role as the festival’s Music Director. Smith first met Ladner as a sixteen-year-old jazz enthusiast, now his many credits include imbuing and inspiring the next generation of young jazz aficionados at Jazz at Lincoln Center. O&A Editor-in-Chief sat down with Musical Director Smith to discuss the upcoming festival and all things jazz.

Staten Island Jazz Festival 33

Tickets can also be purchased at the St. George Theatre Box Office.

6/10/18 O&A NYC WHAT’S HAPPENING THIS WEEK: JUNE 10- 17, 2018

New York City in late spring, and the city is in full bloom. We have art blossoming in Uptown and Midtown, dance swirls around Lincoln Center and Chelsea, female jewels thieves stealing the movie box office and Denzel on Broadway. Here are a few of the many events happening in the city that never sleeps guaranteed to keep you Out and About. Continue reading

Dance Theatre of Harlem New York Season 2014 (Review)

By Walter Rutledge

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 The Dance Theatre of Harlem held their New York season at the Frederick P. Rose Hall, Jazz at Lincoln Center Wednesday, April 23 through Sunday, April 27. Two very ambitious programs were offered featuring works by five choreographers. The season, which had something for everyone, could best be described as uneven. Continue reading

A Conversation with Dance Theatre of Harlem Artistic Director Virginia Johnson (originally posted 2/1/2012)

By Walter Rutledge

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Dance Theatre of Harlem will present their second New York season April 23 through April 27 at the Rose Theater, Jazz at Lincoln Center. The company can best be described as a “Phoenix Rising”. Continue reading