‘The Wiz Live!’ and an art show, closes out summer
A local production of the Broadway musical, “The Wiz Live!” and an art show will close out the summer offerings of the SBC Community Development Corp.
“The Wiz Live!” is a creative retelling of the 1975 Broadway musical “The Wiz.” It aired in 2015 on NBC, and is described as “celebrating Black brilliance, culture, and natural beauty in a positive way. The production will highlight Dorothy with natural hair, a lion with dreadlocks, and a good witch with braids. The plot focuses on key characteristics for children to embody like remembering where you came from, community support, teamwork, courage, love, wisdom, faith, and determination regardless of the obstacles.”
Youth work on the props: The yellow brick road and the Emerald City backdrop for the production with Nate Dee, one of the featured artists in the free art gallery curated by MUCE. Nate Dee did three art workshops with the children leading up to the production week.
Photos courtesy of the SBC
A local production of the Broadway musical, “The Wiz Live!” and an art show will close out the summer offerings of the SBC Community Development Corp.
“The Wiz Live!” is a creative retelling of the 1975 Broadway musical “The Wiz.” It aired in 2015 on NBC, and is described as “celebrating Black brilliance, culture, and natural beauty in a positive way. The production will highlight Dorothy with natural hair, a lion with dreadlocks, and a good witch with braids. The plot focuses on key characteristics for children to embody like remembering where you came from, community support, teamwork, courage, love, wisdom, faith, and determination regardless of the obstacles.”
Dorothy and her friends work together, face numerous obstacles, and never give up their dreams as they ease on down the yellow brick road.
Sharon EA Coleman is the producer and Lateshia McFarland, the production director. Both artistically directed the culminating vision — production, gallery and field trips.
“All of the above-mentioned lessons are key attributes we used within our summer curriculum to build character and future leaders out of our youth, which ultimately creates community changers,” said Coleman.
About 150 youth helped to stage the free performing arts show, scheduled for 6 p.m. Aug. 4, at Second Baptist Church, located at 11111 Pinkston Dr, Miami, FL 33176, in South Miami-Dade.
An art show, entitled, "There’s No Place Like Home" will be on display, starting at 9 a.m. daily Aug. 2-4 at the church.
Bart Mervil and the Miami Urban Contemporary Experience (MUCE) curate the pop-up exhibition. It will feature visual art from Erica Appleby, Nate Dee, Bermy Dorvil, Tavares Hill, Anthony Lumpkin, Robert McKnight, Joe Wesley, Art by Nuno, Lavish -n- Looney, and other Black artists. The gallery also features the work of community students from K-12th grade attending and/or interning at the five collaborating summer programs: SBC CDC Youth Zone S.T.R.E.A.M.S Summer Program; Richmond Park: Fit to Lead; Youth Impact; A Place of Refuge Academy; and Children's Learning Center of Richmond Heights.
"What's most exciting is that [the] programs were able to come together to produce a free event for their own community,” McFarland said. “We teach them each day that we are one team, one body, one community, so why not work together to serve each collectively."
