On June 21, Philly will join over 500 cities world-wide as a landscape for live music—and West Philly needs to get in on the action.

Dubbed “Make Music Philly,” the free multicultural festival is the city’s inaugural entrance into Make Music Day, a global carnival of melodies that started in France in 1982 and came to the states as National Music Day in 2006. Make Music Philly, which will run from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., will be an experiment in do-it-yourself ingenuity, with artists and venues city-wide taking the helm in planning casual gigs and formal concerts.

Musicians of all calibers, ages, and genres, and venues of all types are invited to participate. So whether you’re an amateur ukulele player, local post-psych outfit, established folk singer-songwriter, or high school drumline, Make Music Philly has a space for you. And anywhere in West Philly can serve as a stage—from the Clark Park Dog Bowl and the basement of the Calvary to street corners, sidewalks, and your best friend’s backyard.

To be considered an official MMP event, all venues, artists, and volunteers must register for free through the official website. Participants can either register already-curated events or use MMP’s matchmaking software to connect with other venues and artists to organize performances.

WXPN is MMP’s lead organizer in partnership with the City of Philadelphia, and METRO Philly is the official print partner.

For more information, visit makemusicphilly.org or check out MMP’s Facebook and Twitter pages.

– Annamarya Scaccia
 

One of the most popular events in the ‘hood, the Go West! Craft Fest, is returning this weekend with a large group of talented folks who will be showcasing beautiful, handmade gifts and wares. We hear that this will be the biggest and best Go West! yet with over 100 Philly region’s finest artists and craftspeople participating. The festival will take place at the beautiful historic Woodlands mansion and cemetery (40th & Woodland) on Saturday, Apr. 20, 11 a.m. -5 p.m. (rain date: Sunday, Apr. 21).

If you’re looking for a unique gift check out Go West! where you can find jewelry, art prints & originals, paper goods, clothing, bath & body products, candles, home wares, children’s items and more (see the full vendor list here).

The festival will also feature great performers, like the well-known Tinycircus by Tangle Movement Arts, presenting artful acrobatics, music by Cassendre Xavier and Sour Mash and songs and entertainment for children by Jay Sand of All Around This World, Ann from the Green Tambourine, juggling throughout the day and free face painting (for the full line-up of entertainers go here).

For your palate there will be various food options provided by local eateries, including the debut of Taco Angeleno, West Philly’s new mobile taqueria serving LA-style Mexican cuisine.

Tinycircus performing at Go West! Craft Fest.

Congressman Chaka Fattah is hosting an informal meet and greet for local residents on Friday, Apr. 19, at the Calvary Center for Culture and Community (48th & Baltimore). Rep. Fattah will share his work in Congress and provide information about how you can get assistance from his office with federal related issues, including social security, IRS, immigration, Veteran Administration, and others. Staffers will also be on site to answer your questions.

Rep. Fattah is one of the longest serving representatives, beginning his work for Pennsylvania’s 2nd Congressional District in 1995.

For more information please contact Algernong Allen III at 267-934-5551.

Coffee & Chat with Congressman Chaka Fattah
Friday, Apr. 19, 6:00 – 8:00 p.m.
Calvary Center for Culture and Community
815 S. 48th Street

West Philly Runners are joining running clubs around the city tomorrow (Thursday, Apr. 18) for a run to honor those impacted by the tragedy in Boston.

Anyone interested in joining the run should meet at the West Philly Runners usual starting spot at 45th and Locust at 7 p.m. The run will proceed to City Hall where runners from different clubs around the city will meet up and run for a little while together.

Runners who do not typically run as part of a group are also encouraged to join in and invite friends who might be interested.

The run is “meant to be a show of strength and unity for our community,” according to the West Philly Runners website.
 

Love is awfully complicated and blissfully chaotic. It’s also ever-evolving, morphing into unrecognizable shapes without forewarning. In essence, love is a free-for-all.

It’s this complexity that’s at the heart of MAYA (view trailer below), Dan Papa’s first independent feature film project. Shot entirely in black and white, MAYA explores love’s profound transformation through time, and the ways people bend and react to that variance. It will premiere Sunday at the International House (3701 Chestnut St.).

“This is the sort of movie you are supposed to feel, and not necessarily understand everything. There is definitely some mystery there,” the 27-year-old writer-director wrote in an email. “Love is a universal subject all viewers can relate to. Maybe the movie will help people pay more attention to the world underneath, the fact that we are all the same at the core.”

In its own right, MAYA, which was shot on a $7,000 budget, is a quintessential Philly project. Papa used the city’s “layers of history, and the empty spaces” to serve as MAYA’s primary backdrop, with interior shots based in Cedar Park (it was also shot on a beach in Cape May.) West Philly’s “unique flavor” is also offered through local actor and Curio Theatre company member Harry Slack’s supporting role.

“Having lived in Philly almost 10 years, I feel a deep connection to certain areas,” wrote Papa, who, while currently living in the Poconos, still considers West Philly home. “It shows that living in the city is not always about brick and concrete.”

But MAYA’s mysticism transcends the screen—according to Papa, local actors Amy Frear and Dan McGlaughin, who play leads Maya and Leo respectively, started dating after filming. “I think we captured some real chemistry,” he wrote.

The screening will follow an improv performance based on the movie score featuring musicians from West Philly’s Flat Mary Road. Dock Street Brewery will provide free draft beers.

Here are the details:

Sunday, April 14, 7 p.m.
International House Philadelphia
3701 Chestnut Street
Tickets: $8 (http://maya.brownpapertickets.com/)

– Annamarya Scaccia

Maya – Trailer # 2 from Dan Papa on Vimeo.

Penn Museum is organizing two great family events this month and inviting West Philly kids and their families to attend.

Philadelphia READS! community night (free):
On Wednesday, Apr 10, Penn Museum celebrates literacy with a free community night and kickoff to a month-long book drive, from 5 to 8 p.m. The event, co-hosted by the Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance’s Groundswell Initiative, will include storytelling in the galleries, dance performances, a poetry workshop, and a hieroglyph-writing workshop. Guests are asked to bring a new or gently used children’s book to contribute to Philadelphia READS, a program that provides books to educators in the city.

For more information go here.

Rome’s Birthday:
On Sunday, April 21, “All roads lead to Rome,” as the museum celebrates the founding of Rome (753 BCE) with an afternoon of gladiatorial bouts, toga wrapping, ancient hairdressing, arts and crafts, a pasta demo, pop-up poetry readings in the galleries, and a talk about Rome. This event will take place from 1 to 4 p.m. and is free with Museum admission.

For more information visit this page.