Check out the Spring Art Star Craft Bazaar Mother’s Day Weekend at Cherry Pier on May 10-11. https://www.cherrystreetpier.com/.
FunTimes Magazine Culture + Entertainment column, week of April 28, 2025.
“The more you praise and celebrate your life, the more there is in life to celebrate.”
– Multi-media guru Oprah Winfrey
As April surrenders to the rise of May, let’s look at what the new month has in store. May is National Pet Month, National Women’s Health Week, National Mental Health Month, National Military Month, Mother’s Day, and Teacher Appreciation Week. There’s a dedicated day, week, and month for every devoted interest and passion. To help celebrate the joys of life in the merry month of May, here are a few entertaining ideas. And don’t forget: When event-going, consider taking precautions, especially when among groups and while indoors, with the risk of COVID-19 variants and other still-existing infectious health concerns.
Thursday, May 1 to Thursday, May 18, 2025. The theatrical production of The Return of Benjamin Lay has been described as a “hallucinatory exploration” of one of the first revolutionary abolitionists. Benjamin Lay, a sailor by trade, was a disrupter and one of the British Empire’s first revolutionary freedom fighters. At four feet, he stood tall in the face of oppression. As a man on a mission, he returned from the grave almost 300 years after his death. He tried to re-enter the Quaker community which cancelled him for his abolitionist ideas. Based on a novel, the award-winning London production is created by playwright Naomi Wallace and historian Marcus Rediker and directed by Ron Daniels. Led by Mark Povinelli’s portrayal, the original London-based award-winning play is irrepressible just like its main character. Individual tickets: $50; seniors: $45; $30 for those 18 and under; $30 for active military. Show times vary. The Sedgwick Theater, 7137 Germantown Ave. 215-987-4450 or boxoffice@quintessencetheatre.org
Trailblazing Journalists Honored
Friday & Saturday, May 2-3, 2025. It will be a rare chance to step out from behind their bylines as news creators. Check out A Timeless Journey: Then, Now & Ahead, two days of recognition ceremonies and timely panel discussions at The National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ). The trade organization of media professionals will tip their hats to the journalists who founded the Association of Black Journalists (ABJ) communications organization and helped form the local NABJ chapter in the 1970s. The founders emerged as leaders and champions for improved conditions in newsrooms in the area and nationwide. Said Michael Days, NABJ Philadelphia’s President: “They demanded journalism roles for themselves and for the many who followed. We celebrate them and give thanks to them.” Some of the accomplished journalists participating are: Vanessa Williams, formerly of The Washington Post and president of NABJ; Irv Randolph, ThePhiladelphia Tribune’s managing editor; Tyree Johnson, former president of ABJ, CBS Philadelphia investigative reporter and founder of the Westside Weekly, and Elmer Smith, a reporter for the old The Philadelphia Bulletin and later a Philadelphia Daily News columnist. The event will include discussions about how today’s press corps can add to their predecessors’ legacy of Black journalism and community service. Dr. Eric Nzeribe, publisher of FunTimes, will be part of a state-of-community journalism discussion, “Breaking the Mold: New Opportunities in Journalism,” focusing on digital media efforts. The two-day event will kick off Friday evening with a reception, a guest speaker, and a “Fireside Chat” with the organization’s founders. On Saturday, two panels will look at issues like the effect of misinformation on journalists and the communities in which they cover, and at nonprofit digital local news operations that are filling the void left by traditional news outlets. In concert with the event, NABJ assembled an insightful history of Black journalism in Philadelphia. Check it out at https://nabj-philadelphia.org/black-journalists-in-philadelphia/. The Philadelphia Foundation gave NABJ Philly a grant to help fund the events. Free but pre-register; Friday’s event: 6 p.m. EST (program at 7 p.m. EST) and Saturday, starting at 9:30 a.m. EST. African American Museum in Philadelphia, 701 Arch St. 301-405-0248 or bit.ly/celebrationofblackjournalists or nabj-philadelphia.org.
Classic Novel Takes The Next (Dance) Step
Friday & Saturday, May 2-3, 2025. For a deep dive into the human condition, check out Jennifer Archibald’s Maslow’s Peak, a daring dance presentation by South Philly-based BalletX. The work is inspired by the themes in British author William Golding 1954 novel, Lord of the Flies. In the classic book, schoolboys are stranded on an empty island and are left to fend for themselves, with no adult supervision and moral compass. Explore human nature, savagery, and survival through these two riveting full-length dance shows complete with hanging ropes to create a jungle effect of dangling vines. With art and agility, the performances incorporate street-style dance. It will be part of the Festival at the Mann 2025 entertainment series. Bring a picnic and enjoy pre-show performances by local artists and family fun. Individual tickets per show: $25; 7:30 p.m. EST. TD Pavilion at the Mann, 5201 Parkside Ave./ West Fairmount Park. 215-225-5389 (Ext. 250) or boxoffice@balletx.org or https://balletx.my.salesforce-sites.com
Race To A Philly Finish
Sunday, May 4, 2025. Registration has been closed, but you can “high five” and cheer on 40,000 runners who will hit the road this weekend on the world’s longest continuous street in Independence Blue Cross Broad Street Run. The Philadelphia Park and Recreation-organized 10-mile foot race was established in 1980. The race has come a long way from its initial 1,500 runners. In recent years, Runner’s World magazine named the race as one of the country’s largest and fastest 10-milers. Participants will compete for their health and a cause. They have the option to raise money for five charitable organizations, ranging from the American Cancer Society to the Fairmount Park Conservancy. Free, 7 a.m. start, Central High School Athletic Field, Sommerville Avenue to Philadelphia Navy Yard, South Philadelphia. Email: info@broadstreetrun.com, 215-683-3594 or broadstreetrun.com
A Drive to Dive…
Through Monday, June 16, 2025. It takes a certain vision to see art in the trash. But 15 – let’s call them art-cyclers — have that gift of grab; they grab it before the sanitation department shows up. And those 15 art finders are being rewarded and recognized for their craftiness in the exhibition Made and Remade – the Art of the Philadelphia Dumpster Divers. It’s called a “celebration of imagination by a unique artist collective from the Philadelphia region,” who turn trash into treasures of art. They are the warriors of the unwanted, the reclaimed, and the repurposed. Sustainable art is their jam. Some of the show’s participants are part of a tight community of found-object artists known as the Philadelphia Dumpster Divers, who even have meetings to revel in their finds. City Hall Art Manager Tu Huynh thought it would be a keen idea to showcase their thrifty passion at City Hall, one of the city’s most famous public buildings. Check out his idea. The free public exhibit, 10 a.m. EST to 4 p.m. EST. Creative Philadelphia Art Gallery (Rm. 116), Broad Street and John F. Kennedy Blvd. 215- 686-8446 or https://www.creativephl.org or https://dumpsterdivers.org/
This Guy’s Still In Love With You
Thursday, May 15, 2025. Herb Alpert’s music has stood the true test of time as a National Medal of Arts-awarded trumpeter, composer, and record label executive. At age 90, he still brings the brass. Alpert and his Tijuana Brass are in Philly for a one-night stand — Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass & Other Delights. From Alpert and his group’s dominance of the 1967 GRAMMY® Awards to now, they have been part of a timeless hit-making machine. You could fill up an entire jukebox with his smash songs: Taste of Honey, “The Lonely Bull,” “Spanish Flea,” “Mexican Shuffle,” “Tijuana Taxi,” “Zorba the Green” — all American pop-jazz music anthems. His concert will hit many high notes on the stage and the screen through a giant video screen nostalgically showing photos, videos, art (Alpert is an accomplished artist), and memorabilia from Alpert’s long music career. Alpert even will take questions from the audience, sharing his memories in music. Alpert has earned five number-one hits, nine GRAMMY® Awards, 15 Gold albums, 14 Platinum albums, and sold more than 72 million records worldwide. He is the only artist who has had number-one hits for both an instrumental (“Rise”) and a vocal record (“This Guy’s In Love With You“) on the American music charts. He co-founded an independent record label in 1962, jumpstarting the careers of Sergio Mendes & Brasil 66, The Carpenters, and Burt Bacharach. Individual tickets: $65 to $119; 7:30 p.m., Miller Theater, 250 S. Broad St. 215-893-1999 or ensembleartsphilly.com.
Time To Sing, Songbirds…
Through Thursday, May 22, 2025. Songwriters: Do you have a song in your heart, or at least in your notebook ready for the world to hear? WXPN public radio station (88.5 FM in the Philadelphia area) wants to know. Try your chops at the WXPN 24-Hour Song Challenge. Create an original song in one day. Individuals, groups of songwriters, or bands are invited to write, record, and submit a song via YouTube based on a creative prompt announced at noon on Saturday, May 31st. Winners get cash, a music gift card, free studio time, a WXPN membership, and a chance to perform the song live at the XPoNential Music Festival 2025 in September in Camden, NJ. Free to enter. The deadline to register is by midnight on Thursday, May 22nd. https://songchallenge.xpn.org/
