Black Arts Movement Series Launches with Lou Bellamy Jan.26

An informative exploration of the Black Arts Movement, a four-part lecture series, launches Thursday, January 26 when Lou Bellamy, Founder and Artistic Director of Penumbra Theatre Company speaks on Penumbra's Birth and the Black Arts Movement at 7 pm, ,Regis Arts Center's in the In-Flux Room, just across from Rarig on the West Bank.

The first lecture in a new series on "Reshaping the Black Image on the American Stage: Penumbra's Legacy and Influence" is presented by the University of Minnesota Theater Arts and Dance Department, curated by Dominic A. Taylor, Assistant Professor of Performance, in partnership with Penumbra Theatre Company.

This event has been made possible by a grant from the University of Minnesota Imagine Fund: Supported by a generous donation from the McKnight Foundation.

The series,composed of four lectures and conversations, are free and open to the public.
Upcoming speakers and topics:

· March 1, 2012: Gender and Sexuality and the Black Arts Movement with Sydné Mahone,

· April 19, 2012: Black Cultural Traffic and the Black Arts Movement with Harry Elam, Jr

· April 26, 2012: The Future of the Black Arts Movement with Paul Carter Harrison

All lectures and conversations will take place from 7pm to 9pm in The In-Flux Room at the Regis Arts Center. Each will be in an informal format, a 20 minute presentation followed by a 40 minute conversation, 20 minutes of questions from the audience, and 40 minutes to mingle.

NBC features Penumbra Theatre Founder, Lou Bellamy, Theatre Art's Professor Emeritus

NBC's prime time news magazine, "Rock Center with Brian Williams" profiled Penumbra Theatre's Founder and Artistic Director Lou Bellamy on its December 26 broadcast.
Besides being a "legend in the theatre world" according Brian Williams, Lou Bellamy is also Professor Emeritus of the U of M's Department of Theatre and Dance.
Penumbra staged its original play, I Wish You Love, written by Dominic Taylor and designed by Lance Brockman, both department faculty members, at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C.in July 2011, after it had played in St. Paul. This striking musical drama about Nat "King " Cole caught the attention of NBC as it was the network that aired his show in the 1950s.
"We are truly honored to receive this national recognition for our mission, our art and our uncompromising commitment to tell the African American story," stated Mr. Bellamy. " As with Nat's television show, NBC is now bringing Penumbra into the living rooms of millions of Americans. This television program reaches a broader and more diverse audience than we could ever get into our theatre and introduces us to people who may never have the chance to experience the power of art for social change. And, for that we are grateful." The production of I Wish You Love returned to St. Paul's Penumbra stage and concluded with a sold out run in December.