The first annual BlackStar Film Festival is being held at the International House in West Philly (3701 Chestnut St.) this weekend. The mission of the new festival is to showcase films not always featured in other festivals by celebrating “the visual and storytelling traditions of the African Diaspora and to showcase independent film and video works by and about black people from around the world.” The four-day festival includes forty films of all genres, including documentaries, music videos, and experimental films along with traditional narratives. Tickets ($8) are available online.

One of the films being featured at the festival is FunkJazz Kafé: Diary of a Decade, a documentary chronicling the evolution of black and popular music told by musicians themselves – old, current and future. Famous faces in the film include: Roy Ayers, Erykah Badu, Jill Scott, George Clinton, Dick Gregory, Chuck D, Dallas Austin, Cee Lo, and many others. The film was written, directed, and produced by Jason Orr. There will be a Q&A session with him after the screening, which is tomorrow (Aug 4) at 8 p.m. Check out the trailer below.

– Kelly Lawler

Last night Clark Park hosted the first performance of the “Merry Wives of Windsor” as part of the annual summer “Shakespeare in Clark Park.” It was great – see the review below written by Kelly Lawler. Also, please check out our photos of the merry performers and the crowd watching them. Not only is Shakespeare in Clark Park a great chance to connect with friends and neighbors and see a great show, it’s also a great place to people-watch.

If they weren’t using Shakespearean language, a passerby might mistake the performance of The Merry Wives of Windsor for a party or a dance or a barbecue in Clark Park’s bowl. And indeed, everyone has fun with the play; the actors, the musicians, and the audience all revel in the ridiculousness and hilarity. And the result is a very pleasant theater experience.

The play, one of Shakespeare’s less-famous comedies, follows several wives and lovers through an absurd series of events. Falstaff, a knight, is in debt and decides to alleviate this problem by seducing the wives of two rich merchants, Mistress Ford and Mistress Page. Meanwhile, Mistress Page’s daughter, Anne, is in love with Fenton, but her father wants her to marry Slender and her mother wants her to marry Dr. Caius. Hilarity ensues.

Merry Wives takes place in Elizabethan Windsor in England, but as is the norm with Shakespeare productions now, it is put in a different setting. The director, Rebecca Wright, chose to place it in an old West setting, complete with cowboy hats and boots and country music. It works well in an outdoor performance like this, where the physical space is so large and so distinct that the actors and the set and the props must also be large and hammy to compensate. If the play were inside a normal theater it might have seemed cheesy, but instead it worked well in the park. The production was at its best when it utilized the space it was in. Not being able to have a traditional “back stage” area the actors were forced to stay in character for the whole performance, even when not in the scene. But this allowed things like young lovers Fenton and Anne to wander off and have a romantic talk under a distant tree.

The production also utilized music very well. A three piece band accompanied much of the show, complete with a banjo and a real washtub-bass. Original songs were written for the production, which was more of a musical than other Shakespeare, but worked really well both with the absurd story of Merry Wives, and with the Western setting. It was also great for the audience who got to clap along to the beat, and join in the party-like atmosphere of the play.

All in all the performance is a lot of fun. The story is easy to follow and quite funny. With a picnic blanket and basket, Shakespeare in Clark Park is a really lovely way to spend a summer evening.

– Kelly Lawler

If you missed last night’s show, there are four more left. For more information, go here.

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Shakespeare is coming to Clark Park this week, and all I have to say is: to picnic or not to picnic, that is the question.

From this Wednesday, July 25, to Sunday the 29, Shakespeare’s comedic classic, The Merry Wives of Windsor will be performed in Clark Park at 7:00 p.m. The play chronicles Falstaff, a poor sod in Elizabethan England, who decides to solve his debt problems by wooing the wives of wealthy merchants. But of course, the wives have a plan of their own. The play is directed by Rebecca Wright and stars Jess Conda as Mistress Ford, Mary Tuomanen as Mistress Page, and Robert DaPonte as Falstaff.

All shows are free (although donations are accepted) and are performed outdoors in the park by the Shakespeare in Clark Park company. It is recommended that you bring chairs and blankets, as the performance is just under two hours, and there is no intermission. The play is family-appropriate and a great treat for those who’ve never seen it before.

Shakespeare in Clark Park was started in the fall of 2005 and has grown immensely since then. The free outdoor performances have become a much-anticipated event of the West Philly summer. As Mistress Quickly says, in the play, “Here will be an old abusing of God’s patience and the King’s English.” In the most fun way possible, of course.

Look for our review of this performance later this week.

– Kelly Lawler

Trust us when we tell you that the wait for the re-opening of Locust Moon Comics (Facebook page) in its new digs on 40th Street is well worth the wait.

Check it out for yourself. Locust Moon’s new shop, which includes a great gallery space, quietly opened this week at 34 S. 40th Street. The shop’s grand opening – complete with comic and graphic novel decadence – is tomorrow. Do yourself a favor and check it out – even if you’re not into comics (yet).

Owners Josh O’Neil and Chris Stevens are comics creators themselves and their passion comes through in the renovation of the new space. Original artwork lines the walls and the bookshelves are packed with comics, graphic novels and awesome vintage and new action figures. They also have board games and movies for rent and sale. The shop moved from their old site – the old Urban Outfitters building on Locust Street near 40th –  last Fall.

In addition to the main retail space, the new Locust Moon also includes a gallery with original works that will double as a movie screening room complete with a ceiling mounted projection system.

The shop’s hours are 11 a.m. to 11 p.m., seven days a week. Oh, and by the way, you have to see their fish tank.

Here are the details on the grand opening and a tantalizing invitation from their Facebook page:

“Expect food, drinks, art, comix, and a super-sexy anything-goes atmosphere. Chris will dress as Mr. Peanut and perform a lengthy, emotionally complex tap routine. Other stuff too. Don’t miss it.”

Locust Moon Comics
34 S. 40th St.
7:30 p.m.

Here is a great video about the renovation of the new shop (sent by an anonymous e-mailer):

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Here’s some stuff to do this weekend for kids and adults alike. For more upcoming local events, visit our Happenings page.

• Saturday, July 21, 11:30-3 p.m., White Rock Baptist Church (5240 Chestnut St.) – Community Science Carnival

The First Annual Community Science Carnival is organized by the Science Education Academy, a community partnership between the White Rock Baptist Church and the Ernest E Just Biomedical Society at the University of Pennsylvania. Children from grades K-6 are invited to be Curious Scientific Investigators and assist Penn graduate students and Post-doctoral fellows with scientific experiments. Children will learn about microbes, how to make batteries with potatoes, how planes fly and how to solve mysteries using chemistry! Parents are welcome too – there will be a workshop on how to help your children with science fair projects. See the flyer for details. This is a free event and open to the public. RSVP is not required but appreciated – email sea.philly2008@gmail.com or call 215-882-9797.

• Saturday, noon-6 p.m., Saunders Park (39th & Powelton Ave.) – Lancaster Avenue Jazz and Community Arts Festival

Also this Saturday, don’t miss the Lancaster Avenue Jazz and Community Arts Festival taking place at Saunders Park in the Powelton Village section of West Philadelphia. Doc Gibbs & Friends, Glenn Bryan & Reference Point and Planet Jazz will perform. Also there will be free family activities, a moon bounce, crafts, a vendor market and more. We also hear that  a shredder truck will make a stop at the park from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., so bring all that used paper cluttering your house and then enjoy some great music. For more information, visit the event’s Facebook page.

• Sunday, July 22, 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m., The Rotunda (4014 Walnut Street) – Kripalu Yoga Preview Class

Kripalu Yoga classes begin at The Rotunda in August and a free preview class is being held this Sunday, from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Kripalu Yoga is a form of Hatha Yoga using standard yoga poses, inner focus, breathwork, meditation and relaxation. For more information, contact Katie Bonier at kripaluyogaphilly@gmail.com or visit www.therotunda.org.

Bill “Ready” Cash traveled far and wide during a baseball career that included stops at baseball diamonds all over North and South America and the Caribbean. But he called Southwest Philly home.

Cash’s career, which included a lengthy stint with the Negro National League’s Philadelphia Stars (another West Philly institution), is chronicled by Cash himself along with West Philly journalist and baseball fan Al Hunter Jr. in the book Thou Shalt Not Steal: The Baseball Life and Times of a Rifle-Armed Negro League Catcher. Hunter will discuss Cash’s life and read from the book at Bindlestiff Books (4530 Baltimore Ave.) on Thursday, July 19 at 8 p.m. (after the Dollar Stroll).

Hunter, who spent 17 years at the Philadelphia Daily News writing about music and later as a member of the editorial board, spent hours interviewing Cash for the book.

Cash reportedly got his nickname after being benched during a game when he told his manager, “When I put on the uniform, I’m ready to play.” His career took him all over the United States, to Canada, Cuba, Mexico, Venezuela and the Dominican Republic. At the age of 33 he signed with the Chicago White Sox of Major League Baseball in 1952, but he never made it to the major league roster. Cash believed that he may have been blackballed after he accidentally clipped a white umpire during the 1946 season. Like many black ball players of his generation, baseball historians say Cash would likely have been a star in the majors had he gotten the chance earlier in his career.

Cash, who attended Overbrook High School, died last September at the age of 92.