Vision Driven Consulting (VDC), an organization supporting artists through consulting and training, has been running free professional development workshop series at The Rotunda for three years. Recently, they presented a Tax for Artists workshop and have more free workshops coming up at the historic venue at 40th and Walnut.

Intermediate Grant Writing & Funder Panel, which will feature funders from the Knight Foundation, Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance, Philadelphia Cultural Fund, and Leeway Foundation, will take place on Monday, March 11, from 6 p.m.-8 p.m. More information is available on the Facebook event page.  Continue Reading

The Juneteenth parade and music festival is coming to 52nd Street, and community members are invited to a public meeting this Wednesday, Feb. 27 to learn more about this event, how it will affect the street and how you can get involved.

Wednesday’s community meeting, which is organized by the Enterprise Center, is also an opportunity to learn more about neighborhood beatification projects. Participants will be able to sign up for free planters and trees!

The meeting will take place at the Urban Art Gallery (262 S. 52nd St.), from 6 to 7 p.m. (see the flyer below).  Continue Reading

Photo by Rebecca Gudelunas

Three Sisters, By RashDash, After Chekhov opened to  an open house at Curio Theatre Friday night. The production is a progressive, “punky” look on the Russian classic, featuring absurdist comedy and musical cabaret numbers while asking the audience vital questions. This is the North American premiere of the play by British feminist theatre collective RashDash.

The play focuses solely on the women characters – sisters Olga, Irina and Masha – played by long-time Curio Theatre Company members Colleen Hughes, Rachel Gluck, and Tessa Kuhn (they also played three sisters in last season’s Crimes of the Heart at Curio). The show is directed by Meg Trelease. Check out this review by Broad Street Review.  Continue Reading

Philadelphia public libraries will hold an array of special events throughout February in honor of Black History Month. This Saturday, Feb. 2., Lucien E. Blackwell West Philadelphia Regional Library (52nd and Sansom), in collaboration with the African American Museum, is hosting a Cultural Institution Resource and Information Fair.

The public is invited to learn more about local African-American historical and cultural institutions and get informed about their programs, activities and volunteer opportunities. Representatives from the following organizations will be on hand to provide information and answer questions:  Continue Reading

West Philly artists are invited to The Rotunda (40th and Walnut) for a couple of events this month – a planning meeting for a community arts project, and a tax workshop.

The community arts project, “When I am the Princess,” will take place on Saturday, March 9 when artists will have the opportunity to read, sing, perform, dance, show and/or exhibit at The Rotunda. The first planning meeting for the project will be this Saturday, Jan. 26, 2:00-3:30 p.m. (the second meeting is on Sunday, Feb. 24, 2:00-3:30 p.m.).  Continue Reading

On August 3rd 1965, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. spoke at 40th and Lancaster during a Freedom Now Rally in front of a crowd of 10,000 people. The Peace March ended there in 2018 with speeches from community leaders. (Photo courtesy of People’s Emergency Center).

Beginning this weekend, local universities and other non-profit organizations will be hosting many events, for adults and children alike, and volunteer projects in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Most of the events are happening on the Martin Luther King Day of Service on Monday, Jan. 21.

Here are some of these events; more events in the area from now through Monday can be found at this link. Continue Reading