7:00pm | BEAUTY, THE BEAST: A DANCE THEATER PRODUCTION
An excerpt of Delina Brooks' breathing self-portrait
Followed by Q&A
Wisconsin Historical Society | 7pm | FREE
Beauty, The Beast: A Dance-Theater Production is a collaboration between drum & body, voice & spirit, crying & calling. Expressed is the story of a woman desperately trying to hold her appearance together while harboring within, a spirit which is destroyed. Originally staged for a 10-person ensemble, Brooks taps into her African & Filipino heritages to sing, dance and explore issues of domestic violence, drug abuse, bi-raciality and mental illness, during a quest for self-acceptance and inner peace. She coins this production as her unabashedly honest "Breathing Self-Portrait."
PLUS Special Guest Percussionist
Sun Of A Drummer
“Music is Oxygen and Musicians are Magicians,” says The Sun Of A Drummer (Mosheh A Milon Jr.) “I couldn’t live in a world with out music,” says the accomplished drummer, percussionist, producer, and songwriter. “It’s the foundation of expression”.
Born In Chicago, Ill., The Sun Of A Drummer began his musical tutelage at the age of three under the guidance and training of his father Mosheh Milon Sr. then musical director of Muntu Dance Theater. The pair traveled throughout New York, St. Louis, Washington D.C., and a host of other big cities as the premier father son duo. All the while, The Sun Of A Drummer was learning to play West African drums originating from Mali, Senegal, and Guinea, The Dejemba, The Dun Dun’s, The Kutero, Saba Drums, and Log Drums called Cring are a few of his first learned instruments. He was also trained in Latin and Cuban percussion mastering the art of, The Timbales, The Bongos, The Congas, The Bata, The Cajon, and various percussive Bells, Whistles, and Claves providing flavor, texture and color to any style of music.
The Sun Of A Drummer is also an accomplished trap set player sighting Hip-Hop, Soul/R&B, Alternative Rock, and Jazz music as his favorite and most proficient styles to play. These focused and intense learning experiences have made him the musician he is today. His efforts landed him in many performance opportunities as a young musician often playing aside professional adults on big stages like they were small venues. The Sun Of A Drummer has since performed and /or participated in musical and artistic cultural exchanges with Zimbabwe, London England, Germany, Switzerland, Brazil, South America, The Caribbean, Canada, Australia, Japan, China, Cuba, Amsterdam New York, Atlanta, Chicago, Los Angeles, and San Francisco as his short list.
He has also had the privilege of sharing the stage with artist such as Lauren Hill, Dead Pres, Mos Def. Sister Solider, Capleton, Airto Moreira Kevin Choice, Jennifer John’s, Pep Love, Martin Luther and Cody Chestnut to name a few. He has been privilege to perform at the 2001 and 2007 World Tourism Festival in Beijing China, the 2005 BET Awards, 2004 to 2007 Oakland’s Art & Soul Festival2001 to 2006 Ethnic Dance Festival SF, and the 1993 Monterey Jazz festival, with many more to mention. Now residing in the Bay Area this Drummer/Percussionist/Producer/Artist uses music as a powerful magic and is dedicated to producing and displaying the highest level of musicianship through his creativity and live performance. While working towards his dreams and goals of becoming a great musician and producer The Sun Of A Drummer has and will continue to amaze and inspire audiences from border to border blazing a trail of rhythm and magic for all of the world’s ears to hear and remember for years to come.
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Delina Patrice Brooks is a dancer, songwriter, poet and actress, proudly based in Oakland, CA. As a first time playwright, Brooks earned a 2008 Isadora Duncan "Izzie" Award nomination for "Beauty, The Beast: A Dance-Theater Production," which she coins as a breathing self-portrait. Brooks has studied and performed across the U.S, Western Europe, and Guinea, West Africa, where she participated in several intensive dance workshop series' with Les Ballets AFricains. She has been funded by Zellerback Family Foundation, City of Oakland's Cultural Funding Program and East Bay Community Foundation.
Most recently she was presented by Yerba Buena for the Arts, Youth Speaks, The Black Choreographers Festival, and La Pena Cultural Center, and performed with The Living Word Project's touring project "SCOURGE," Deep Waters Dance Theater, ASE Dance Theater Collective (NYC), Faustin Linyekula, and Robert Henry Johnson, among others. Favorite roles include Hubert/Tribe Member in "HAIR" with Willows Theater (Concord, CA) and the title role in "CINDERELLA" with San Francisco's African American Shakespeare Company. Brooks has a Bachelor's' Degree in Kinesiology (SFSU) and a second Bachelor's in Ethnic Studies (CSU EB). Oh, and she's a Pisces.