WBFO Sponsored Events
Shaw Festival 2010
The Shaw Festival’s 2010 season resonates with the wit, social commentary and relevance for which Bernard Shaw himself was well known and features two plays by the Festival’s namesake: The Doctor’s Dilemma, Shaw’s relevantly comedic exploration of the medical establishment, and John Bull’s Other Island, Shaw’s exploration of the culture of misunderstandings and misconceptions.
Crossroad BluesOn stage through February 7th
MusicalFare Theatre
A world premiere from MusicalFare, featuring some of the greatest Blues music of the 20th century. CROSSROAD BLUES tells the story of a father attempting to reconcile his relationship with his estranged son. Emotional and evocative, MusicalFare will be rocking with the sound of the Blues at its best! The cast includes local blues singer Billy McEwen (1989 Buffalo Music Hall of Fame Inductee 1989), Sharon Bailey (Buffalo Music Award Top R&B vocalist 2000, 2001, 2002 and 2005), r&b singer and MusicalFare favorite Terrie George, George Brown and Don Hunley. It is directed by Richard Satterwhite with a book by Randall Kramer based on a story by Jim Runfola and Mr. Kramer. Jim Runfola is leading a 5 piece onstage band and creating all of the music arrangements.
Ancient Amber: Letting the Past Shine ThroughMuseum of the Earth
On view through February 21st
Amber is ancient tree resin that has been preserved over millions of years. Trees produce resin to defend themselves from predators and other threats. If the conditions are just right with proper burial, pressure, and temperature, after millions of years the resin will cross-link and polymerize sufficiently to be classified as amber. Sometimes before amberization, small insects or plants get trapped in the sticky goo. Over time, they become mummified providing valuable clues about ancient forest ecosystems. Museum of the Earth will host a special display of amber from its permanent collections in the exhibition Ancient Amber: Letting the Past Shine Through. Come learn more about this unique treasure of the past and explore the creatures locked in its primordial grip.
A Light LunchOn stage through February 21st
Road Less Traveled Theatre
He kept tabs on you for eight years; now it’s your turn to find out what a recently dethroned, highly controversial U.S. President does after he’s been escorted from the Oval Office. Fresh from its NYC premiere: a wicked comedy of art, commerce, and politics from one of Buffalo’s favorite sons. A Light Lunch is the first installment of RLTP’s three-year A.R. Gurney retrospective. You may think you know Gurney, but you’ve never seen Gurney like this!
Cornel WestFebruary 5th
UB Center for the Arts
One of America's most provocative public intellectuals, Cornel West has been a champion for racial justice since childhood. His writing, speaking, and teaching weave together the traditions of the black Baptist Church, progressive politics, and jazz. The New York Times has praised his "ferocious moral vision". Currently the Class of 1943 Professor at Princeton University, West has received more than 20 honorary degrees. He burst onto the national scene in 1993 with his best-selling book, Race Matters, a searing analysis of racism in American democracy. Race Matters has become a contemporary classic, selling more than a half a million copies to date. West has published numerous books since, including Democracy Matters, in which he analyzed the arrested development of democracy both in America and in the crisis-ridden Middle East.
Ira FlatowFebruary 6th
Buffalo Central Library
Join award-winning science journalist, author and host of NPR’s "Science Friday." The event also features craft activities and special appearances from The Buffalo Zoo, Hawk Creek Wildlife Center, Niagara Frontier Orchid Society, Buffalo Audubon Society, Tifft Nature Preserve and Reinstein Woods Nature Preserve.
Free and open to the public!
Ani DiFrancoFebruary 8th
Babeville
Ani DiFranco has written hundreds of songs, played thousands of shows, captured the imaginations of legions of followers, and jammed with folkies, orchestras, rappers, rock and roll hall-of-famers, jazz musicians, poets, pop superstars, storytellers and a martial arts legend.
The Bluest EyeFebruary 12th - March 7th
Paul Robeson Theatre
Adapted by Lydia R. Diamond, the stage play is based on Nobel Laureate Morrison’s haunting first novel, The Bluest Eye. The story follows 11-year-old Pecola Breedlove, whose coming of age in Loraine, Ohio in the early 1940s is defined by fervent prayers for her eyes to turn blue. The narrative takes place over four seasons of her life, told by her girlhood friend Claudia MacTeer and Claudia’s older sister Frieda.
Preservation Hall Jazz BandFebruary 12th
Kleinhans Music Hall
Music is Art presents the 3rd Annual Mardi Gras Jam, part of The Big Easy in Buffalo music education and concert series. Headlining the February 12, 2010 concert will be the world-famous Preservation Hall Jazz Band of New Orleans. The Preservation Hall Jazz Band derives its name from Preservation Hall, the venerable music venue located in the heart of New Orleans’ French Quarter, founded in 1961 by Allan and Sandra Jaffe. The band has traveled worldwide spreading their mission to nurture and perpetuate the art form of New Orleans Jazz. Under the auspices of current director, Ben Jaffe, the son of founders Allan and Sandra, Preservation Hall continues with a deep reverence and consciousness of its greatest attributes in the modern day as a venue, band, and record label.
Valentine's Weekend at Barton HillFebruary 13th and 14th
Barton Hill Hotel and Spa, Lewiston, NY
They say tango is the "dance of love." Sweep your someone special off their feet with a night of romance and entertainment. The evening will start with classes and an exhibition by renowned instructor Travis Widrick. After that, enjoy a romantic dinner prepared by the Barton Culinary Brigade. Then dance it off as you practice the skills you learned as Travis and his partner host open Tango "Practica" time with tips and instruction for all.
If You're From Buffalo, Is Suicide Really Redundant?February 16th
WBFO's Allen Hall Theatre on UB's South Campus
Whether you've lived in Buffalo, all your life or have never visited, chances are, you're from Buffalo. In this powerful presentation, John Howell uses his Buffalo roots as a starting point for an exploration of the interaction between origin and identity, individual and collective self-esteem, and how to use the interaction between roots, community and adversity to our advantage. Howell uses self-deprecating humor as a point of departure to explore the dynamics of individual and collective identity as it relates to the where and the who of community.
Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra with BabikFebruary 19th
Performing Arts Center at Rockwell Hall
The popular Buffalo-based gypsy jazz band, Babik, will debut their new full-length orchestral show in a concert with the world-renowned Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, under the direction of Paul Ferington. Formed in 2005, Babik has won seven Buffalo Music Awards and makes frequent appearances at concert halls and jazz festivals throughout America. The group plays a special brand of jazz known as gypsy swing. The style blends American big band swing with the exotic sounds of European gypsy folk-songs.
Fat Tuesday PartiesTuesdays in February and March
Lafayette Tap Room
Fat Tuesday Parties are coming to The Lafayette Tap Room! The parties will start on January 12th, and run February 2nd and March 2nd thus far. Event time will be 7:30pm to 11pm, with an hour of dance instruction followed by live music with LeeRon Zydeco and the Hot Tamales. There will be a $5 admission that covers the dance lessons, gumbo and live music. A professional dance instructor Ester Brill will be providing the lessons.
Margaret AtwoodMarch 3rd
UB Center for the Arts
Throughout her years of writing, Margaret Atwood has received numerous awards and many honorary degrees. She is the author of more than thirty-five volumes of poetry, fiction, and nonfiction and is perhaps best known for her novels, which include The Edible Woman, The Handmaid's Tale, The Robber Bride, The Blind Assassin, which won the prestigious Booker Prize in 2000, and Moral Disorder and Other Stories.
Azar NafisiMarch 5th
Kleinhans Music Hall
Nafisi's bestselling book Reading Lolita in Tehran: A Memoir in Books has gained a great deal of public attention and has been translated into 32 languages. It was 117 weeks on the New York Times Bestseller list, and has won numerous literary awards, including the 2004 Non-fiction Book of the Year Award from Booksense, and the Europe based Persian Golden Lioness Award for literature. The book has led to criticism about Nafisi's perceived connections to neoconservatism and colonialism. She has a new memoir out called "Things I've Been Silent About: Memories" (2008), in which she narrates the upheavals in her dysfunctional family, including her childhood sexual abuse, where her father, the mayor of Tehran, was jailed for alleged financial irregularities under the Shah, an incarceration Nafisi yearned would bring about her parents' reconciliation.
