Indianapolis Recorder, Indianapolis, Marion County, 2 December 2005 — Page 19

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C SECTION FRIDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2005

City cultural events begin final month of THE BIG RED ARROW

Special to the Recorder

This has been a remarkable year for art and culture in Indianapolis. The year was marked by more than $360 million worth of investments in the city’s cultural offerings coming to fruition, the Indianapolis 2005 citywide celebration and a Big Red Arrow moving from venue to venue marking

the latest hotspot. The Big Red Arrow begins its final month-long tour of the city’s cultural venues on Dec. 3. And while the entire month is full of activities, those visiting any of 19 participating cultural attractions on Dec. 3 will be in for a few additional surprises, including live entertainment, door prizes or even free

cake from Kroger. Everyone also can register to win the Big Red Arrow Grand Prize - a year’s worth of tickets and memberships to the city’s major arts and cultural offerings, plus a hotel room, dinner and gas to get there. Visitors can register to win at one or more of the participating venues.

Activities on Dec. 3 include: • The Children's Museum of Indianapolis, Jolly Days, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. • Conner Prairie, Gingerbread Village, 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. • Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians and Western Art, Annual Winter Market, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. • Indiana History Center, Holidays in the Heartland Family Day, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. • Indiana State Museum, The Lord of the Rings Motion Picture Trilogy - the Exhibition, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. • Indianapolis Art Center, Fire and Ice Holiday Open House and Indianapolis Symphonic Band, 1 to 5 p.m. (regular hours 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.). • Indianapolis Museum of Art, Eastern Star Church Recording Choir, 1 p.m. (museum hours 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.). • Indianapolis Zoo, 5 to 9 p.m.; Christmas at the Zoo, and White River Gardens, Holiday Trainland, noon to 9 p.m. (regular hours noon to 9 p.m.).

And performances include: • American Cabaret Theatre, Holidays at the Hop, 2 p.m. • Asante Children's Theatre, Fourth Annual Haughville Story Fest, Indiana History Center, 1 to 4 p.m. • Butler Ballet, The Nutcracker, Clowes Memorial Hall, 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. • Christel DeHaan Fine Arts Center, Christmas Is for Caring, 2 p.m. • Footlite Musicals, "The Sound of Music," Hedback Theatre, 8 p.m. • Gregory Hancock Dance Theatre, The Nutcracker, Pike Performing Arts Center, 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. • Indiana Repertory Theatre, "A Christmas Carol," 3 p.m. and 8 p.m. • Phoenix Theatre, "Every Christmas Story Ever Told!!," 8 p.m. • Indianapolis Children's Choir, Indianapolis Artsgarden, 1 p.m. • Indianapolis Symphonic Choir Festival of Carols, St. Luke's United Methodist Church, 8 p.m. • Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra “Yuletide Celebration," Hilbert Circle Theatre, 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. (free photos with costumed characters from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.).

REVIEW 'WHY GOOD GIRLS LIKE BAD BOYZ' Charlie Wilson and Angie Slone couldn't pack house By ERICKA P. THOMPSON Staff Writer

Angela Dunlap has had tremendous success with her gospel stage play “Why Good Girls Like Bad Boyz.” I can understand why. It has a positive message about a church going girl whose future looks bright as she is the first in her family to attend college. Shannon, played by Taral Hicks (“A Bronx Tale,” “Belly”) is a daddy’s girl who is the pride and joy of her family. She dates the choir director of her church and is focused on pushing forward and not letting anything stop her. Plans change when Shannon moves in with her older cousin who lives closer to the university (though it was never made clear why Shannon moved in with her cousin and not in a college dorm). While living with her cousin, Shannon breaks up with her choir director boyfriend and falls hard for a drug dealer named Silk who when treating her like a queen buys her cars and jewelry but when treating her less than a lady makes her crawl to him on her knees like a dog. Being a “gospel” play it’s easy to figure out that once her family gets wind of how Shannon is living they’ll do a lot of praying and shouting to Jesus to bring her back to reality. Though synopses of the play uses words like “explosive,” “unforgettable” and “heart-wrenching,” I left the play not agreeing with any of the adjectives. It wasn’t a bad play; it just didn’t keep my interest, which is why I made an early exit. The acting was tolerable and the singing was suitable, but since the play had been around and around again, the plot was boring, which made the play repetitive and lackluster. It was nice to see Charlie Wilson, lead singer of The Gap Band and neo-soul singer Angie Stone. Wilson received boisterous applause when he first took the stage and an even louder ovation when he sung his latest hit off of his solo debut “Charlie, Last Name Wilson.” Judging by the scarce crowd that ventured to the Murat Centre on a rainy, after Thanksgiving Sunday, I wasn’t the only one who was uninterested in the play. My suggestion is that the next time Dunlap brings her stage plays to Indianapolis it’s one that the city has never seen before.

Thanksgiving Throwdown

The Brothas and Sistas in Brown, a social organization that’s comprised of UPS, USPS and Federal Express employees held their annual Thanksgiving Throwdown at the Oasis Ballroom over the holiday weekend. Several past and present employees from the different businesses demonstrate their moves on the dance floor. (Photo/J. Hurst)

SITES PROPOSED FOR AFRICAN-AMERICAN MUSEUM

By SHANTELL SHERMAN Special to the NNPA From Afro Newspapers

WASHINGTON, (NNPA) - About 50 D.C. residents braved the rain to take part recently in a town hall meeting at the Smithsonian to assess four possible sites for the new National Museum of African American History and Culture. Scheduled to open in late 2006, the museum is the latest in a succession of museums and cultural centers proposed for the Washington Mall. With continued growth in the city, there was some concern about already existing overcrowding at national landmarks, but legislation directed the Smithsonian Board of Regents to select one of four locations specified by Congress for the museum. The regents’ decision will be based in part on the results of an engineering study and other factors, including public sentiment. On hand at Baird Auditorium were broadcast journalist Renee Poussaint,

NMAHC founding director Lonnie Bunch and D.C. Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton. Norton said all of the sites seem wellresearched and emphasized how essential it is that the community remains involved in the museum’s completion. ‘I was one of the original composers of the legislation to get this museum built, and year after year, we fought to get it through the House and Senate. But this fight began more than 115 years ago with African-American soldiers who had served in the Civil War being denied the right to march in a parade honoring military soldiers,” said Norton. ‘’There were more than 100,000 Blacks who served, and all they wanted was to march. Once they were denied the right to march, it morphed into the idea among those who supported them to honor them with a museum all their own. Over the years, it morphed into the very museum we are establishing today.” Ensuring that the museum would be placed within the corridor of other museums - and in an area conducive

to foot and automobile traffic - made finding the perfect spot tricky. But as the site assessors found, there were plenty of plans and alternative plans to be had. Plexus Scientific Corp., an engineering and infrastructure consulting firm, and PageSoutherlandPage, an architectural and engineering firm, conducted the site evaluation study. The four sites under consideration are: (1) The Arts and Industries Building Located between Jefferson Drive and Independence Avenue at Ninth Street S.W, the site is adjacent to the Haupt Garden and the Smithsonian Castle on the south side of the Mall. It is near the Smithsonian Metro. (2) The Monument Site Located between Constitution Avenue, Madison Drive and 14th and 15th streets N.W., immediately west of the National Museum of American History, the site is on the Mall at the base of the Washington Monument. It is near the Federal Triangle Metro stop and the proposed underground Monument

Visitors’ Center. (3) The Liberty Loan Site Located at 14th Street S.W., just south of the Bureau of Engraving and Printing Building, overlooking the Tidal Basin and at the foot of the 14th Street Bridge, the site is occupied by a government office building that would most likely need to be demolished. It is one block south of the Holocaust Museum and two blocks from the Mall, adjacent to the Tidal Basin and the Jefferson Memorial. (4) The Banneker Overlook Site Located at the south end of 10th Street at the end of L’Enfant Plaza Promenade, the site is nearly four blocks from the Mall, on an axis with the Smithsonian Castle. It is the terminus of L’Enfant Promenade. The site is the location of the Benjamin Banneker Park and memorial site. The site overlooks the Southwest waterfront along Maine Avenue. L’Enfant Promenade crosses 1-395, which is adjacent to the site. It is near the L’Enfant Plaza Metro.

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