Proclamation from San Francisco
Mayor's Office (click to view)
Proclamation from California
Assembly (click to view)
San Francisco's award-winning AfroSolo Theatre Company presents its 18th annual AfroSolo Arts Festival, celebrating African American artists giving voice to the Black experience. This year's theme, UNITED IN PEACE II: Artists, Clergy, Legislators, and Community, promotes the power of peace through live performances, the visual arts, and other events to envision and celebrate peace.
AfroSolo Arts Festival 18 will include our second collaboration with the Commonwealth Club with a panel discussion entitled The Arts: A Medium for Peace. On July 28, the panelist will discuss the role the arts have made in peace-making in the past, as well as share their vision of how the arts can help create peace in the future
On August 6th, we will present our 10th annual concert in Yerba Buena Gardens. We will showcase The Jerome Clay Ensemble, with special guest Gaylyn Arnold. We will also present the 18 year-old saxophone whiz kid, Ranzel Merritt and his trio Future Sound.
August 7th AfroSolo teams up with the San Francisco Theatre Festival in presenting Black Voices, AfroSolo's seminal event.
CBS 5 Interview —
"Jefferson Award Winner:
Thomas R. Simpson" »video
SF Chronicle —
"JEFFERSON AWARD: Presented to Thomas Robert Simpson" »article
Very special for this year, we are teaming up with the New Conservatory Theatre to premier Jewel Gomez's Waiting for Giovanni, August 19th through Sept 18th. We are very excited about this project as Waiting for Giovanni,had its first staged reading in San Francisco as part of our 16th annual Festival. This production provides us with another opportunity to support this talented playwright.
On September 25th we will host a gala concert featuring the new Jacqueline Hairston Ensemble. This concert will be a fundraiser supporting Jacqueline Hairston's Carnegie Hall concert in February 2012.
In addition we will hold our annual Community Health Fair August 13th at the Ella Hill Hutch Community Center. Thanks to the many health care providers and agencies contributing to this event last year, we served more than 1500 people in about three hours.
There is also a visual art exhibit and more. I encourage you to save these dates as we prepare for our uplifting, peace-oriented Festival this year.
I can hardly wait and look forward to seeing you.
Sincerely,
Thomas Robert Simpson
Artistic Director
AfroSolo's mission is to nurture, promote, and present African American and African Diasporan art and culture through solo performances and the visual and literary arts. Since 1993, we have provided a forum to give an authentic voice to the diverse experiences of Black people. Through art, we bring people of all ethnicities together to explore and share the human spirit that binds us all.