San Francisco-December 19, 2011-Utilizing the Lorraine Hansberry Theatre's generous fundraising theater night model, Wright
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Call 474-8800 with promotion code "WE" to purchase tickets. Call 415 525 0410 for sponsorships beginning at $500 with promotion and visibility through January 2012 . |
Enterprises and LaHitz Media present "Our Media Matters" Theater Night in honor of
Willie and Mary Ratcliff,
publishers of the San Francisco BayView Newspaper, 7 p.m. Thursday,
December 29, 2011. The Lorraine Hansberry Theatre is located in the
heart of Union Square at it's new home 450 Post Street, 2nd Floor of the
Kensington Park Hotel.
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Reggie D. White as Joseph & Kate Ball as Mary in REJOICE!, directed by Margo Hall,
playing December 8 through 31, 2011 at Lorraine Hansberry Theatre.
Photo by Richard Peña-Lopez
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"We are pleased that the Lorraine Hansberry Theatre is giving not only a
platform for multicultural dialogue and cultural change, but they are
giving back to the community in a financial way by allowing this
fundraiser to begin funding our Youth Media Project, said Mary Ratcliff, co-publisher and editor of the San Francisco BayView Newspaper, which was founded by Mohammed al Kareem in 1976.
"Rejoice,"a world premiere, written by the Bay Area's own Ron Stacker Thompson
founder of Oakland Ensemble Theater and now professor at the University
of North Carolina, is the current play at the Lorraine Hansberry
Theatre, which has a new home at 450 Post Street in the Heart of Union
Square.
Tickets
for "Our Media Matters Theater Night," the perfect launch for the New
Year's celebrations, are $45 for general admission. A no-host bar will
be provided 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. prior to the performance. Also in advance
of "Rejoice" there will be a short ceremony honoring the Ratcliffs.
VIP
Tickets are are $55. VIP Tickets include an after-party with the cast of
Rejoice, hors d' oeuvres, and special guest Tony Saunders, who
has written music for television and films, and will be sharing from his
latest CD, "Romancing the Base." Visual Art by artist Malik Senefuru,
and others will be on display. A percentage of the artists' sales will
be donated to the Youth Media Project.
"The
Lorraine Hansberry Theatre is creating an atmosphere of unity as it
reaches out to individuals, businesses and nonprofits that can utilize
an entertaining play to raise capital," said Jacquie Taliaferro,
filmmaker and director of LaHitz Media. "We hope everyone comes out for a
wonderful time and in support of Willie and Mary, who has sacrificially
given to the community via the San Francisco BayView Newspaper," added
Taliaferro.
"I'm
excited to be a part of an event that honors Willie and Mary Ratcliff,
who I have admired for their devotion to telling the truth even when
its uncomfortable," said Jackie Wright, owner of Wright
Enterprises, co-presenter of "Our Media Matters" Theater Night at
"Rejoice." Their work is important to our democratic way of life and
developing the Youth Media Project is a way to carry on their legacy
for years to come. Young people will get hands on experience and be
trained by people with ethics to hopefully swing the pendulum away from
media trends like that of the Rupert Murdoch's of the world," added
Wright.
The Lorraine Hansberry Theatre is an independent black-owned arts company that has
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On a happy occasion,Lorraine Hansberry Theatre founders, Stanley
Williams (L), Quentin Easter (R) present flowers to Jackie Wright (2nd
from L) at her Jubilee Celebration. Talk Show Host, Janice Edwards (Bay
Area Vista) joined the fun at Faz's former famous hotspot Lavash!
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overcome many challenges over the years including the deaths of founders Quentin Easter and Stanley Williams
within months of each other in 2010. "Community, businesses,
nonprofits, visitors from around the world can continue to enjoy the
legacy started by Quentin and Stanley and the thousands of supporters
and volunteers that held the Lorraine Hansberry Theatre together for
over thirty years," said Wright.
"Thanks to Shirley Howard Johnson, Al Dixon
and the board of directors, the theatre functioned in its darkest
period last year until they found a new home in Union Square and hired
their new Artistic Director, Steven Anthony Jones. Now in it's
31st year, The Lorraine Hansberry Theatre is worthy of our support as
it gives a platform for Black voices and Black talent in a
multicultural enterprise that benefits all of San Francisco and the arts
world," added Wright.
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"Rejoice" Magi-Terry Stanley, Luther Michael Spratt and Rudy Guerreroas. "Rejoice" runs through December 31, 2011. Photo by Richard Peña-Lopez
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"The Lorraine Hansberry Theatre is a multicultural artistic business that positively impacts the City's tourism," said Shirley Howard Johnson,
General Manager. "By allowing individuals, businesses and nonprofits to
benefit from Theater Nights which are available throughout our entire
season, it's our way of promoting community combined with commerce."
Just recently New Birth Church of Antioch and Oakland headed by Bishop
C. Carl Smith, bought out the house to thank their more than 400
volunteers for their year-long service. "New Birth not only enjoyed
"Rejoice" but they also brought additional commerce via parking,
shopping and dinning into the City. We thank New Birth for thinking of
the Lorraine Hansberry Theatre as a place to honor the community as well
as LaHitz & W.E. for seeing the LHT vision," said Howard-Johnson.
To purchase tickets call the Lorraine Hansberry Theatre Box Office, 415 474-8800
with the code "WE." Tax-deductible Sponsorships for "Our Media Matters
Theater Night" includes promotion and visibility into January 2012 and
are still available. Contact Jackie Wright at 415 525 0410
for sponsorships that begin at $500. The San Francisco Chapter of the
National Coalition of 100 Black Women is the fiscal agent.
For more information about the Lorraine Hansberry Theatre, visit
www.lhtsf.org. Group sales and Theater Nights are still available through December 31st.
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FUNDRAISING WITH THE LORRAINE HANSBERRY THEATRE
Related Media Story Underscores the importance of "Our Media Matters" Theater Night-
What Happened at KGO Radio December 1, 2011 Does it Matter?-
http://www.wrightnow.biz/apps/articles/default.asp?articleid=75923&columnid
Connecting the Dots--Jackie Wright's Commentary on the Nielsen's State of the African American Consumer Report
http://www.wrightnow.biz/apps/articles/default.asp?articleid=75705&columnid
There is a need to shore up minority and alternative media companies given the state of corporate media.
NEWS POSTED ON PRLOG
