DuEwaWorld News! by DuEwa Frazier

Tyler Perry is bringing Ntozake Shange's award winning play For Colored Girls, to the big screen . I am eager to find out which actresses will be cast in the roles for the movie. First staged in New York in 1974, Shange's "For Colored Girls..." became one of the most influential plays of its era. Following its acclaimed production at the Public Theater, the play moved to Broadway in 1976 with playwright Shange playing one of seven women who "reveal themselves, their lives, loves, hardships, and ultimately their discovery of strength and love." The production was nominated for a 1977 Best Play Tony Award, and actress Trazana Beverley won a Tony in the category of Best Actress in a Featured Role (Play), running for two years. In 1982, a version of the play was filmed for television with Shange and Beverly repeating their roles alongside Laurie Carlos, Alfre Woodard and Lynn Whitfield.

Eisa Davis has become one of my Supersheros! She's now in the same category of high genius art and inspiration for us emerging women artists, as Suzan Lori Parks, another creative sista I deeply admire. Eisa is an accomplished playwright, actress, poet and singer/songwriter. Her latest play "Angela's Mixtape" is a memoir, which in its genius, blends her perspective of life growing up as a post-civil rights/hip hop music loving/braniac girl, her thoughts on the meaning of her aunt's life (Angela Davis), and all that young Eisa aspires to be despite her family's criticism. I loved the play, which I saw this past Saturday night. It is running at the Ohio Theater until early May, featuring Eisa Davis and a full cast of actresses playing Eisa's family members (including Angela Davis). "Angela's Mixtape" is produced by the Hip Hop Theater Festival . You'll love the music featured in the play - a mix of 70's soul, 80's pop/rock a...

I've known about Suzan Lori-Parks for quite some time. I remember when her play Topdog/Underdog ran on Broadway featuring Mos Def and Jeffrey Wright. I kicked myself for not having gone to see it because I love theater, especially productions written by and about people of color and women. Several years ago (I don't remember the year exactly), an acquaintance of mine gave me a promotional postcard. The postcard listed a discount ticket price for the London production of Topdog/Underdog. Of course I couldn't go, and this was after T/U closed here in New York City. Fast forward to my work as a middle school English teacher this past year (2006-2007). I gave my students a writing project. The project was for them to research a person who they may consider to be a modern day hero. So they wouldn't procrastinate in their search, I came up with twenty to thirty people who I believed would be great women and men for the students to know about (in the fields of literat...