Celebrate Juneteenth With The Antonyo Awards, JUNETEENTH JUBILEE and More Theater Events

Today is Juneteenth, the holiday which commemorates the end of slavery in America. To honor Black culture, theatre and more, arts organizations are presenting events including the inaugural Antonyo Awards, a celebration of the Black Broadway and Off-Broadway community; the Juneteenth Jubilee featuring LaChanze, Anastacia McCleskey, and more.

Celebrate Juneteenth with a list of theater events below:

The Antonyo Awards

Broadway Black, the multimedia organization highlighting the achievements of Black theatre artists, will present the inaugural Antonyo Awards, a celebration of the Black Broadway and Off-Broadway community. This joyous online event will take place tonight, June 19 (7pm), also known as Juneteenth, a holiday which commemorates the end of slavery in America. The streamed ceremony will include a pre-show virtual red carpet, original musical numbers, star presenters and performers, and more.

Tune in right here for the Virtual Red Carpet (6pm), the ceremony (7pm), and the Virtual After Party presented by TodayTix - follow @TodayTix on Instagram for registration details.

JUNETEENTH JUBILEE

The Blacksmiths, a new national coalition of artists, curators, producers, and organizers that forges culture for Black liberation, are kicking off a summer series of events and activities in New York City this Juneteenth Weekend, June 19 & 20, 2020.

On Friday, The Blacksmiths are partnering with two groups, Intersectional Voices Collective and the Wide Awakes, to organize JUNETEENTH JUBILEE, an artist-led musical celebration that will lift up and center Black Queer and Trans folks. Musical phenoms Russell Hall & Michela Marino Lerman will lead a marching band through the streets playing 150 years of Black music. Stages along the route will feature appearances and performances by LaChanze, House Lives Matter, Maluca, Stretch Armstrong, Mila Jam, Vuyo Sotashe, and others.

Carnegie Hall's Juneteenth Celebration

On Friday, June 19 at 7:30PM EDT, Live with Carnegie Hall presents a Juneteenth Celebration-commemorating the nation's true independence-the day dating back to the end of the American Civil War in 1865 when all members of the newly formed Union were finally declared free.

More than 400 years after the first Africans were brought to the English colonies, the fight for equality continues. Hosted by Rev. Dr. James A. Forbes Jr. and featuring music and commentary from the 2019 Juneteenth event at Carnegie Hall, this episode will celebrate the importance of this historic day and acknowledge the long road still ahead.

The event will feature performances by Joseph Joubert & the Juneteenth Mass Choir, speeches by Bill Moyers and Bishop Michael Curry, and comments from Carnegie Hall's Chairman Robert F. Smith and Wynton Marsalis.

Ailey All Access's Premiere Streaming of GREENWOOD

During this challenging time, the Company continues to use dance to inspire, educate, and unite all in a universal celebration of the human spirit through Ailey All Access, a series of online offerings including free streaming of performances, conversations, short films created by the dancers, classes, and more. To observe Juneteenth this week, Donald Byrd's powerful Greenwood, a riveting ensemble work that draws on the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre as a source, will make its broadcast premiere beginning Thursday, June 18 at 7pm EDT.

As Americans continue to come together to demand equal justice for all, the thought-provoking work will be available online through Thursday, June 25th at 6:30pm EDT, along with videos that invite viewers behind-the-scenes at the Ailey studios during the creative process, a short film that re-enacts the incident sparking the bloodshed, and a conversation with Artistic Director Robert Battle and Donald Byrd on Greenwood.

Black Women and The Ballot: 3 Radio Dramas

Phylicia Rashad will be starring in the June 19th presentation of Black Women and The Ballot: 3 Radio Dramas "that highlight rebellions large and small mounted by Black Women to progress voting rights," presented by American Slave Project.

The three radio dramas being presented are:

-In The Parlour (written by Judy K. Tate & dir. by Dianne Kirksey-Floyd)
- Don't / Dream (written by Saviana Stanescu & dir. by Judy K. Tate)
- Pulling The Lever (written & dir. by Judy K. Tate)

The online event begins at 7:30pm (EST).

For more information visit: https://www.facebook.com/events/282067906259116/

and https://www.americanslaveryproject.org/.

Downtown Variety: Juneteenth

La MaMa and CultureHub have teamed up to create Downtown Variety, which uses emerging technologies to create a new venue for artistic expression and creative connections.

La MaMa and CultureHub will pass the mic to POETIC SOCIETIES' residents Ava Ansari, Salakastar, Ian Fink, Ahya Simone, Jonah Mixon-Webster, Halima Cassells, Rafael Leafar, and Salar Ansari who will offer an ancestral healing tele-protest to extend the resilience of Detroit and Flint artists to the multiverse of the global Black movement.