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Reel-ality TV Talk

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Marquesa

By Marquesa LaDawn
NNPA Columnist 

 

It was the last episode of the season for Blood, Sweat and Heels and it was good! Demetria had her nice wedding, with zero bridesmaids. Hmmm. Chantelle had her event, though the ladies couldn’t really engage because of their own “stuff.” Daisy looked pretty, as always, and ready to have some fun until her cancer side effects kicked in. You can’t help but melt when you see her trying to hang in there, but, despite he best efforts, she can’t.

Her good friend Mica takes care of her, and the two avoid the biggest brawl of the season. Melissa and Arzo arrive with a bit of a ’tude towards Geneva, who promptly ignores them and tries to enjoy the event. Melissa is not having it and wants Geneva to know she’s wrong for talking about their mutual friend Demetria behind her back. Now, come on, Geneva was hurt and had every right to express herself, but she chose the wrong person to do this around. Arzo happily shared this news with Melissa and Demetria in a previous episode Melissa was not happy to hear that Geneva and Demetria have patched things up and she’s now invited to the wedding. Melissa, is annoyed and seems to want to force Geneva into admitting she was wrong. The three ladies go back and forth yelling and within minutes glass is thrown and chests are cut with glass and Geneva gets arrested.

The wedding the next day was attended by the newest cast member, Arzo. Demetria and her now husband were a part of creating this situation by disinviting Geneva to the wedding, ended up with just one guest from the cast. Geneva, looked defeated and acknowledged her embarrassment. She needs some anger management, for sure.

The other ladies, Mica and Chantelle, waited at Daisy’s apartment to celebrate her last treatment and join her in a glass of champagne, something she’s been longing for since her cancer battle begin. They saw a picture of Arzo at Demetria’s wedding and felt jilted. I hope there’s a reunion!

The Real Housewives of New York City (RHONY) was a rollercoaster version of “tit for tat.” My girl Bethenny is still wound tight and needs some help chilling out. Throw in wild child Ramona and there’s a ton of drama. Looks like the ladies are headed to a sexy island and things will be crazier than ever next week: Sonya is getting yelled at, Bethenny losing it again, Ramona pissing everybody off all mixed in with a little bit of fun!

The “tit for tat” queens, Married With Medicine, my medical reality TV girls, are angry! That seems to be a popular emotion last week in reality TV. Simone and Toya cannot get it together. Looks like Toya hit a big emotional button last season and Simone cannot heal. The husbands intervened and tried really hard to fix the broken relationship between their wives. Simone is really angry and refuses to calm down and deal with the pain – she screams, yells and runs away. Next week, looks like we’ll get the details on what’s really going on with her.

Quad is the queen of “tit for tat.” She’s pissed off at Lisa for running a background check and plans to get her back on TV. Lisa’s husband is also pissed about Lisa running the background check since it leads to the spotlight being on them out of vengeance.

The Braxton ladies are not immune from the “tit for tat” game. Trina wants to show the world and her ex-husband that she can move on. But the only problem is she’s famous for making the worst decisions when it comes to her personal life.

On another note, Tamar, is feeling the shake off of her sisters. They are tired of her not listening and they stopped talking. Toni, who seems to get along with everyone is officially back, between her book, album with Baby Face and Grammy win, she is the Toni we know and Love!

The godmother of “tit for tat” on the Real Housewives of Orange County is Tamara. The other housewives are interesting, but Tamara knocks it out of the park.

Shannon seems so desperate to make her marriage work. I just hope she finds a purpose for herself on this season other than trying to persuade her husband to love her.

Newsflash: Did you hear about the shuffle on The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills (RHOBH)? Brandi Glanville is out, which is shocking. I think they needed a fresh direction and Brandi sort of stalled the show with her antics for too many seasons. I will miss her, but I get it. We already know that Kim Richards is out and her sister Kathy Hilton is in.

Real Housewives of Atlanta news: I think Cynthia Bailey’s husband may be cheating! It’s been all over the news, a video of Peter kissing another woman and as always Cynthia is defending. I hope this was a true misunderstanding and that Peter does not screw up again. Whew!

 

Marquesa LaDawn is a professional businesswoman who escapes the pressures of living in New York City by retreating into the real world of reality TV. Follow me on twitter @realityshowgirl and subscribe to her podcast at www.RealitytvGirl.com.

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Arts and Culture

In ‘Affrilachia: Testimonies,’ Puts Blacks in Appalacia on the Map

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Author Chris Aluka. Photo courtesy of Chris Aluka.
Author Chris Aluka. Photo courtesy of Chris Aluka.

By Terri Schlichenmeyer
The Bookworm Sez

An average oak tree is bigger around than two people together can reach.

That mighty tree starts out with an acorn the size of a nickel, ultimately growing to some 80 feet tall, with a canopy of a hundred feet or more across.

And like the new book, “Affrilachia” by Chris Aluka Berry (with Kelly Elaine Navies and Maia A. Surdam), its roots spread wide and wider.

Affriclachia is a term a Kentucky poet coined in the 1990s referring to the Black communities in Appalachia who are similarly referred to as Affrilachians.

In 2016, “on a foggy Sunday morning in March,” Berry visited Affrilachia for the first time by going the Mount Zion AME Zion Church in Cullowhee, North Carolina. The congregation was tiny; just a handful of people were there that day, but a pair of siblings stood out to him.

According to Berry, Ann Rogers and Mae Louise Allen lived on opposite sides of town, and neither had a driver’s license. He surmised that church was the only time the elderly sisters were together then, but their devotion to one another was clear.

As the service ended, he asked Allen if he could visit her. Was she willing to talk about her life in the Appalachians, her parents, her town?

She was, and arrangements were made, but before Barry could get back to Cullowhee, he learned that Allen had died. Saddened, he wondered how many stories are lost each day in mountain communities where African Americans have lived for more than a century.

“I couldn’t make photographs of the past,” he says, “but I could document the people and places living now.”

In doing so he also offers photographs that he collected from people he met in ‘Affrilachia,’ in North Carolina, Georgia, Kentucky, and Tennessee, at a rustic “camp” that was likely created by enslaved people, at churches, and in modest houses along highways.

The people he interviewed recalled family tales and community stories of support, hardship, and home.

Says coauthor Navies, “These images shout without making a sound.”

If it’s true what they say about a picture being worth 1,000 words, then “Affrilachia,” as packed with photos as it is, is worth a million.

With that in mind, there’s not a lot of narrative inside this book, just a few poems, a small number of very brief interviews, a handful of memories passed down, and some background stories from author Berry and his co-authors. The tales are interesting but scant.

For most readers, though, that lack of narrative isn’t going to matter much. The photographs are the reason why you’d have this book.

Here are pictures of life as it was 50 years or a century ago: group photos, pictures taken of proud moments, worn pews, and happy children. Some of the modern pictures may make you wonder why they’re included, but they set a tone and tell a tale.

This is the kind of book you’ll take off the shelf, and notice something different every time you do. “Affrilachia” doesn’t contain a lot of words, but it’s a good choice when it’s time to branch out in your reading.

“Affrilachia: Testimonies,” by Chris Aluka Berry with Kelly Elaine Navies and Maia A. Surdam

c.2024, University of Kentucky Press, $50.00.

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Oakland Post: Week of December 18 – 24, 2024

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of December 18 – 24, 2024

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Arts and Culture

Promise Marks Performs Songs of Etta James in One-Woman Show, “A Sunday Kind of Love” at the Black Repertory Theater in Berkeley

“The (show) is a fictional story about a character named Etta, aka Lady Peaches,” said Marks. “She falls in love with Johnny Rhythm, leader of the Rhythm Players Band and headliners of Madam G’s Glitta Lounge.” Marks channeled the essence of Etta James, singing favorites such as “Sugar on the Floor” and “At Last.”

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Photo Courtesy Of Promise Marks.
Photo Courtesy Of Promise Marks.

Special to the Post

It was “A Sunday Kind of Love” at the Black Repertory Group Theater in Berkeley on Saturday night, Dec. 7. The one-woman musical based on the music of Etta James featured the multi-talented singer Promise Marks

Marks, who wrote and directed the musical, also owns PM Productions.

“The (show) is a fictional story about a character named Etta, aka Lady Peaches,” said Marks. “She falls in love with Johnny Rhythm, leader of the Rhythm Players Band and headliners of Madam G’s Glitta Lounge.”

Marks channeled the essence of Etta James, singing favorites such as “Sugar on the Floor” and “At Last.”

In between her soulful songs, Marks narrated impactful moments of the love story and journey of blues and forgiveness.

Marks sultry voice carried the audience back to an era that echoed with the power of Black music and a time of great change.

Marks said James shared love for the Black community by singing at gatherings during the Civil Rights Movement uplifting the people.

“She spoke to the movement, spoke to the people, and let her music speak for itself,” Marks said.

Backing the musical’s monologues, images and videos of Etta James are projected for the audience to view. While the production is fictional, Marks infused script with the unfairness and heartbreak James experienced while performing.

Marks performed gospel artist Donnie McClurkin’s “We Fall Down” as she narrated acts of reconciliation and forgiveness among the characters at Johnny Rhythm’s deathbed.

Marks, who regularly sings for the Miss America Pageant, was asked to perform as Etta James last year. “(At the event) a lady yelled out to me: ‘You’re Etta James!’ And then the audience went crazy. I said to myself, ‘I may have something here,’” she said.

Within 12 months, Marks created the musical production, which featured a dozen songs honoring “the great legacy of Etta James,” she said.

Marks says she was saddened to see how Etta James was often judged by the struggles in her life and wanted to offer attendees a more layered view.

“Etta’s life was so big. I want people to know that she was more than her drug addiction,” said Marks. “We can’t make that her legacy. Her catalog is too amazing. You can’t just be that and have the catalog that she (created). I don’t want the addiction to be the focus: I want her music, her element, her sassiness, and what she brought to be the focus – her woman-ness, that she was strong, and I wanted to honor that.”

Set Designer Nora Burnette says she created the set segments to mirror James’ life story. A set designer for BRG since 2016, she explained that her process of researching the scenario and the character serve as her inspiration for her design.

“I try to design a set as close to real life as possible so that the actress can deliver the performance sincerely,” said Burnette. “By creating the right setting, it helps the actors release the true essence of a character.”

The set brought the story to life and absolutely floored Marks. “Once Promise (Marks) saw the actual set, she understood my vision: ‘Wow, you get me. You get it,'” Marks told the designer.

Born Jamesetta Hawkins, Etta James, began her career in 1954 and gained fame with hits such “At Last” and “I’d Rather Go Blind.” She faced a number of personal problems, before making a musical comeback in the late 1980s with the album “Seven Year Itch.”

Co-producer and BRG Development Director, Sean Vaughn Scott, works with Overseer Production. According to producer Pamela Spikes, “Marks talent truly does Etta’s life story justice.”

Pam Jacobs of Hercules, a friend of Marks’ mom, Jackie Smith, said, Marks “was fabulous and sang all of those songs flawlessly.”

“I’m so proud of my daughter,” said Smith.

Marks, who has served as an instructor for BRG, will return on Feb. 21- 23 for an encore run of the musical.

“It’s an honor to be a part of the BRG (Black Repertory Group) family and continue our executive director Dr. Mona Vaughn Scott’s vision for the Black Repertory Group theater,” said Marks.

The Black Repertory Group Theatre is located at 3201 Adeline St., Berkeley, CA 94703. For information, visit: BlackRepertoryGroup.com

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