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April 22, 2022 • Schneps Media
Recognizing a fearless woman
Staged reading of new play
‘Elizabeth Jennings’ to come
to Village’s Crossways Theatre
BY ESTHER WICKHAM
Crossways Theatre presents a
staged reading of “Elizabeth
Jennings,” a true story about
a fearless woman during the 20th
century, premiering on April 30.
This story is about Jennings
(played by Broadway star Amy Jo
Phillips), an African American
school teacher who survived the
draft riots during the Civil War in
1863. Amidst the chaos of mansions
burning down, violent marches ensuing,
19 black people lost their
lives that day. Carrying on, Jennings
rose above these tragic events and
moved US history forward.
She formed the first black kindergarten
in New York until she
died in 1901. She was called “an
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
unknown hero” by her 3rd and
4th-grade class, and they met with
city officials to have Elizabeth
Jennings Place located at Park
Row and Spruce Street, named
in 2007. And a statue of Jennings
will soon be unveiled near Grand
Central Station.
Among other things, Jennings
fought a cop and conductor in
1854 to sit on an all-white streetcar.
These events happened 100
years before the infamous Rosa
Parks and her unwillingness to give
up her seat. For Jennings, though,
this tenacity ran in the family. Her
father, Thomas Jennings, a successful
business owner, formed a
legal group for black self-defense.
He sued the Third Avenue Streetcar
Company and won at Brooklyn
Civil Court in 1855.
Phillips and actor JR Carter are
excited to be a part of this production,
bringing the audience in to
display the life of this great woman.
“This play started as a term paper.
I took a course in New York
City history in 2016 with Dr.
Stephan Levine, who taught us
about Elizabeth Jennings. He said
I could write a play,” Playwright
Lionelle Hamanaka said.
Join Crossways Theatre for this
one evening event as they pay tribute
to this great unknown hero.
The influence and impact she has
made cannot go unnoticed, and
it is thanks to this production
company one can learn about the
beautiful and inspiring life of Ms.
Elizabeth Jennings.
The event will be held Saturday,
April 30 from 8 to 9:30 p.m. at
Judson Church Memorial Assembly
Hall, located at 239 Thompson
Street. There will be a suggested
donation of $20 but no one will be
turned away.
Angelika Film Center launches free membership program
BY MYRIAN GARCIA
Angelika Film Center presents
a special “Bring A
Friend Back To The Movies”
initiative for the April 22,
2022 release of the upcoming
Sony Pictures Classics dramatic
comedy, “The Duke.”
The “Bring A Friend Back To
The Movies” initiative will provide
guests one complimentary
ticket to anyone who purchases a
ticket directly from the Angelika
website, app or in a theater to see
the upcoming film, The Duke,
during the first week of its release.
The goal of the initiative is to
bring audiences back and remind
them that nothing beats seeing a
film on a big screen with a friend.
According to its website, the
original Angelika Film Center
& Café opened in New York
City’s Soho district in 1989.
The Angelika plays an impressive
and diverse mix of independent
films and is the definitive
cinema of choice for filmmakers
and film lovers alike. Since its
opening, the Angelika New York
has become the most successful
and recognized arthouse in the
United States.
“We are thrilled that the Angelika
has joined forces with us for
The Duke to ‘Bring A Friend Back
To The Movies,’” said Sony Pictures
Classics’ co-president, Tom
Bernard. “The COVID-19 pandemic
had a significant impact on
theaters and the moviegoing experience,
but with people being able
to get vaccinated and boosted, as
well as increased health and safety
protocols at theaters like the Angelika,
going to the movies is as safe
or safer than going to a bar or a
crowded restaurant. We know that
people are finally ready to get back
into their seats, and Roger Michell’s
The Duke, starring Helen Mirren
and Jim Broadbent, is the ideal film
to remind viewers and their friends
of their fondness for the movie theater
viewing experience.”
Sony Pictures Classics will release
the film in theaters in New
York and Los Angeles on April 22
before expanding to additional cities
over the following weeks. The
Duke premiered at the Venice and
Telluride Film Festivals in 2021
and is certified fresh on Rotten
Tomatoes at 95%.
The Duke is the first film to tell
the extraordinary true story of a
60-year-old taxi driver, Kempton
Bunton (Jim Broadbent), who stole
Spanish Romantic artist Francisco
Goya’s portrait of The Duke of
Wellington from the National Gallery
in London; the only painting
ever stolen from the National Gallery
in its 196-year history.
To add to the “Bring A Friend
Back To The Movies” experience,
select Angelika locations will also
offer each ticket holder for The
Duke a specially priced split of
bubbly to share with their friend
in celebration of their return to
the movies.
Following the initiative, Angelika
Film Center plans to launch
the Angelika Membership program
on Friday, April 29.
The Angelika Membership program,
which will be free to join,
offers exclusive rewards and benefits
for film lovers. Rewards and
benefits will include: earning
points on movie tickets, food and
drinks; free surprise screenings
every month; free popcorn for
you and a guest on your birthday;
select free streaming on Angelika’s
curated platform, Angelika
Anywhere; half-off tickets every
Tuesday; and member discounts
on online food and drink orders
and merchandise.
PHOTO VIA WIKIMEDIA COMMONS
Elizabeth Jennings
PHOTO COURTESY OF ANGELIKA FILM CENTER/THE DUKE
Jim Broadbent and Helen Mirren in “The Duke,” playing at the
Angelika Film Center this weekend.