Friday, Oct. 31
YINKA SHONIBARE: Miami Art Museum, 101 W. Flagler St. Miami, is hosting a new exhibit celebrating the works of British Nigerian artist Yinka Shonibare. Shonibare's renowned work merges “stereotypically Western ideas about ‘high’ art and traditional categorizations of African art.’’ Recently, Shonibare premiered his Miami Art Museum-commissioned work that shows an idealized family clothed in his wax-printed, 19th century attire astride human-powered flying machines. The exhibit will run until Jan. 18, 2009. For more information, please call 305-375-3000.
FALL FESTIVAL: Antioch Missionary Church of Carol City, the City of Miami Gardens and Calder Race Course host the Fifth Annual Family Fall Festival, a fun, yet safe family-friendly Halloween event, at Dolphin Stadium, 2269 Dan Marino Boulevard, Miami Gardens. Sponsors promise there will be “no tricks, just treats.’’ Tickets are $5. Festivities will begin at 6 p.m. and end at 10 p.m. For more information, please call 305-623-6286.
Saturday, Nov. 1
MIAMI CENTRAL HIGH SCHOOL ALUMNI: Miami Central's Alumni Chapter presents its annual Alumni Dance. The party will be held at the Firefighters Hall on 2908 N.W. South River Drive, Miami. Tickets are $15 at the door. For more information, please call 305-342-5864.
FAMILY FEST: The Adrienne Arsht Center, 1300 Biscayne Blvd, Miami, presents Family Fest, the first of a series of free, family-friendly events. From 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., families with children of all ages can enjoy various performances, hands-on demonstrations, and mini-workshops. Learning about different cultures and various art forms has never been more fun as you create your own puppets, hear new songs, and practice new dance moves! For more information, please call 305-949-6722.
Sunday, Nov. 2
TINA TURNER: No need to introduce the diva Tina, but a few things you might not know about her: In 2005, she was honored as one of Oprah Winfrey's Legends, recognizing African American women who broke barriers through their work, and she was one of the recipients in Washington, D.C. of the Kennedy Center Honors, the highest form of recognition of excellence in the arts in America. In February, she performed with Beyoncé at the 50th Grammy Awards in Los Angeles. She electrified the audience, and the overwhelming requests from fans to perform live again fueled her decision to do some select concerts in North America and Europe this year, lucky us. Don't miss the chance to see Tina Turner perform on Nov. 2 at the Bank Atlantic Center, One Panther Parkway, Sunrise. Doors open at 6 p.m. and the show will start promptly at 7 p.m.! Ticket prices range from $59.50 to $152.75. For more information, please visit www.bankatlanticcenter.com <http://www.bankatlanticcenter.com> or call 954-835-7825.
BOYZ II MEN: When the super-popular trio of Boyz II Men graces the stage of the Miami Marriott Biscayne Bay Hotel (1633 North Bayshore Drive, in the Omni area in Miami), for the Thirteenth Annual M. Athalie Range Musical Celebration of Life Gala, on Sunday, Nov. 2, they will be part of a very special tribute. Three distinguished pioneers will be honored for their decades of dedicated community service. Dorothy Jenkins Fields, founder of the Black Archives; Historic Preservationist Enid Curtis Pinkney, and the International Longshoremen's Association Local 1416 are this year's honorees. They will receive awards at the gala event, which begins with a cocktail reception and open bar at 5 p.m., followed by dinner and the Boyz II Men performance. Tickets, which include the open bar, dinner and the performance, are $150, $200 and $300, based on the location of the seating (seats closer to the stage cost more). For tickets, reservations and other information, please call 305-893-5468.
Saturday, Nov. 8
Lou Donaldson: Saxophonist Lou Donaldson performs at the Embassy Suites Hotel, 1100 S.E. 17th St, Fort Lauderdale. The evening also includes a buffet and silent auction. The tickets are $100. The concert benefits the African American Success Foundation, an organization dedicated to combating the stereotypical and negative portrayals of African Americans by promoting positive images and research of African-American successes. For more information about the concert, please call 954-792-1117.
Sunday, Nov. 9
Jamaican Jerk Festival: Think nobody’s jerk recipe can top your mom’s? Then put your theory to the test and check out this year’s Jamaican Jerk Festival! Enjoy a food court that features jerk cuisine, watch a jerk cook-off contest and witness demonstrations by professional chefs. The festival even includes a kid ‘fun’ zone. It will be held at the Markham Park, 16001 W. State Road 84, Sunrise, from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. For more information, please call 954-389-2000.
CORNEL WEST AND TAVIS SMILEY: Educator and philosopher Cornel West will join TV and radio host Tavis Smiley in kicking off The Miami Book Fair International’s 25th Anniversary. The event will happen at 7 p.m. on Nov. 9 in the Chapman Room on the second floor of Building 3 at Miami Dade College’s Wolfson Campus, 300 N.E. 2nd Ave., Miami. The book fair will continue through Nov. 16. Joining a host of other authors at the book fair, Nikki Giovanni will do a book reading at 12:30 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 15 at the Freedom Tower, Biscayne Blvd. and Northeast Sixth Street, Miami. For free tickets that must be reserved in advance, call 305-237-3258 or log onto www.miamibookfair.com.
Kaila.Heard@Gmail.com
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