Zeldra Bryant – Black Liberated Arts Center

BLAC, Inc. Annual Event Set For May 8

April 5, 2021

by Zeldra Bryant with No Comment Press Release

BLAC, Inc. Annual Event Set For May 8

Dream Girls' Jennifer Holliday Among Honorees

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Press Release

March 21, 2021 Immediate Release

Black Liberated Arts Cent (BLAC), Inc. will celebrate and recognize local and national individuals at its Annual Recognition and Benefit Celebration on May 8 at the Embassy Suites Hotel, 3233 NW Expressway in Oklahoma City. Tickets go on sale April 5. This event is one of BLAC, Inc.’s 50-year anniversary celebrations. The evening will include a special award given to Ms. Jennifer Holliday, the original star of the Broadway show, Dream Girls, for her body of work. Curtis King, founder of the Black Academy of Arts and Letters (TBAAL), Inc. of Dallas, Texas, will also be honored for his work in the arts.

Holliday catapulted to stardom 35 years ago in her show-stopping performance as Effie “Melody” White the iconic role which garnered her a Tony Award for the Best Actress in a Musical. Holliday was discovered at age 17 while singing in her church choir in Houston, Texas by dancer Jamie Patterson, who persuaded her to move to New York City where she made her Broadway debut in Vinnette Caroll’s Your Arms Too Short To Box With God as a featured soloist. Beyond Broadway Ms. Holliday appeared as Lisa Knowles on the Fox TV dramedy, Ally McBeal. Holliday has also enjoyed a successful recording

career, winning Grammy Awards for her mesmerizing performances of “And I Am Telling You, I Am Not Going” (1982) and Duke Ellington’s “Come Sunday” (1985). Ms. Holliday has also received rave reviews for her first album in two decades. The Song is You (2014). Curtis King was born in Coldwater, Mississippi. King’s father, Jonah King, was a farmer and his mother, Elizabeth McGee King, was a schoolteacher. King graduated in 1969 from segregated Tate County High School where he enjoyed writing and acting in plays. At Jackson State University, King was mentored by poet Margaret Walker Alexander,

who sent him to Chicago in 1972 for the historic Black Academy of Arts and Letters (BAAL) National Conference to assess the State of Black Arts and Letters in the United Stages. At the conference King was not only inspired by John Oliver Killens, Harry Belafonte, Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee, Romare Bearden, Alvin Ailey, Charles White, C. Eric Lincoln and other, but got their phone numbers as well. Known for his artistic and administrative skills and celebrity contacts, King produced various celebrity tributes. King also produced the National Civil War Gala at Washington’s Lincoln Theater Center for the Arts

in 2000. King is the recipient of the Larry Leon Hamlin Producer’s Award, Man of the Year Dream Makers Award, Esquire Magazine Register Award, the Dallas Historical Society’s Arts Leadership, the Texas Ambassador of Goodwill Award, and the World Peace Award in the Arts from the Interreligious and International Federation for World Peace in 2004.

BLAC, Inc. Presents: “An Evening of Recognition and Celebration”

March 25, 2021

by Zeldra Bryant with No Comment Press Release

BLACK LIBERATED ARTS CENTER, INC.

2021

"An Evening of Recognition and Celebration"

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Press Release

March 29, 2021 Immediate Release

Jennifer Holliday Celebrity Honoree

Black Liberated Arts Center (BLAC), Inc. will celebrate and recognize local and national individuals at its Annual Recognition and Benefit Celebration on May 8, 2021 at the Embassy Suites Hotel, 3233 NW Expressway in Oklahoma City. Tickets go on sale April 5th. The evening will include a special award given to Ms. Jennifer Holliday, the original star of the Broadway show, Dream Girls, for her body of work and Curtis King for his body of work in the arts. This event is one of BLAC, Inc.’s 50-year anniversary celebrations. Ms. Holliday catapulted to stardom 35 years ago in her

show-stopping performance as Effie “Melody” White, the iconic role which garnered her a Tony Award for the Best Actress in a Musical. She was discovered at age 17 while singing in her church choir in Houston, Texas by dancer Jamie Patterson, who persuaded her to move to New York City where she made her Broadway debut in Vinnette Caroll’s Your Arms Too Short To Box With God as a featured soloist. Beyond Broadway, Ms. Holliday appeared as Lisa Knowles on the Fox Tv dramedy, Ally McBeal. Ms. Holliday has also enjoyed a successful recording career,

winning Grammy Awards for her mesmerizing performances of “And I Am Telling You, I Am Not Going (1982) and Duke Ellington’s “Come Sunday (1985). Ms. Holliday has also received rave reviews for her first album in two decades, The Song is You (2014). Curtis King, founder of the Black Academy of Arts and Letters (TBAAL), Inc. of Dallas, Texas, was born in Coldwater, Mississippi. His father, Jonah King, was a farmer and his mother, Elizabeth McGee King, was a schoolteacher. King graduated in 1969 from segregated Tate County High School where he enjoyed

writing and acting in plays. At Jackson State University, King was mentored by poet Margaret Walker Alexander, who sent him to Chicago in 1972 for the historic Black Academy of Arts and Letters (BAAL) National Conference to assess the State of Black Arts and Letters in the United States. At the conference King was not only inspired by John Oliver Killens, Harry Belafonte, Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee, Romare Bearden, Alvin Ailey, Charles White, C. Eric Lincoln and others, but got their phone numbers as well. Known for his artistic and administrative skills and celebrity

contacts, King produced various celebrity tributes. King also produced the National Civil War Gala at Washington’s Lincoln Theater Center for the Arts in 2000. King is the recipient of the Larry Leon Hamlin Producer’s Award, Man of the Year Dream Makers Award, Esquire Magazine Register Award, the Dallas Historical Society’s Arts Leadership, the Texas Ambassador of Goodwill Award and the World Peace Award in the Arts from the interreligious and International Federation for World Peace in 2004.

BLAC, Inc. Recognizes First Responders, Essential Workers

March 25, 2021

by Zeldra Bryant with No Comment Press Release

First responders, essential workers to be recognized by BLAC, Inc.

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Press Release

March 11, 2021 Immediate Release

Appearing in photo from left to right: Dr. Zeldra Bryant, Deputy Director of BLAC, Inc., observes Vice-President Garland Pruitt as he gets his temperature checked. Clay Wideman operates the no-contact temperature checking machine.

Black Liberated Arts Center (BLAC), Inc. will host an evening of recognition and celebration for first responders and essential workers on May 8th at the Embassy Suite Hotel, located at 3233 NW Expressway in Oklahoma City, OK. Churches and organizations in the community have been requested to nominate up to four people who will be recognized for their untiring efforts

during the COVID-19 Pandemic. The nominee and a guest will be treated to dinner and an evening of celebration and treats, according to Anita Arnold, executive director of BLAC, Inc. Nominations are due by March 31st. “Black, Inc. is keenly aware of the suffering of families during these difficult days,” said Arnold. “Many people in the healthcare field have made tremendous sacrifices that carried great risk. “During these times, our

institution worked diligently to secure funding for Protective Equipment for the safety of everyone consistent with COVID guidelines issued by the Center for Disease Control (CDC). We are prepared with the latest state of the art no-contact temperature checking equipment, sanitizers, and mask. The Embassy Suites Hotel is continuously sanitized from top to bottom throughout. Upon inspection, we noticed as our Executive Board

toured the facility each room is sanitized and sealed after anyone enters and leaves each room whether looking, cleaning, or occupying. We were pleased,” Arnold continued. BLAC, Inc. will reschedule the event, if the pandemic worsens as indicated by the Oklahoma County Health Department.