For Immediate Release 5/18/2007
Media Contact: Thomas R. Simpson
Public: Thomas R. Simpson
415/771-2376
thomas@afrosolo.org


AFROSOLO INTERNATIONAL ARTS FESTIVAL
 May 24 -27, 2007
 SAN FRANCISCO, CA

The AfroSolo Theatre Company in partnership with the San Francisco International Arts Festival (SFIAF) present AfroSolo International, featuring dynamic solo performances celebrating the lives, experiences and creativity of people of African descent, from around the world.

Based on the theme, The Truth in Knowing/Now, a Conversation across the African Diaspora, and under the artistic leadership of Rhodessa Jones, AfroSolo International will present five outstanding artists, Marc Bamuthi Joseph (USA), Nawal (Comoros Islands), SuAndi (England), Yossi Vassa (Ethiopia/Israel) and Brian Freeman (USA). The events take place Thursday, May 24 - 27, 2007 at the African American Art and Culture Complex, 762 Fulton Street in San Francisco.

Founded in 1993, AfroSolo's Theatre Company provides a forum for nurturing, promoting, and presenting the experiences of African Americans and those from the African Diaspora through solo performances, and the visual and literary arts. Through art, we bring people of all ethnicities together to explore and share the human spirit that binds us all. For more information, contact AfroSolo at: 415/771-AFRO (2376) or visit: www.afrosolo.org.

AFROSOLO INTERNATIONAL Arts Festival
 Thurs-Sun, May 24 - 27
African American Art & Culture Complex, 762 Fulton Street
$15 General Admission
Presented by SFIAF, AfroSolo Theatre Company, AAACC and the Israel Center
Four varied and engaging performers traveling very different roads cross paths in the historic Fillmore district to share their stories as part of AfroSolo International, hosted by AfroSolo Theatre Company artistic director Thomas Simpson.

AfroSolo International Sampler
 When: Thurs. 24, 8:00pm
Where: African American Art & Culture Complex, 762 Fulton Street
Cost: $15 General Admission

A special opportunity to plan your week at AfroSolo, excerpted performances by SuAndi, Nawal, Yossi Vassa and Marc Bamuthi Joseph all for one ticket price (see below for show descriptions)

SuAndi (England), The Story of M
Fri, May 25, 7:00pm
Sat, May 26, 9:30pm
African American Art & Culture Complex, 762 Fulton Street
$15 General Admission

M is dying. She has raised her two children in a time when England simply wasn't prepared to acknowledge its Black population. She raised them with a smile on her face pumped by her warrior heart and through it all her humor is sharp, witty and sometimes it will make you laugh until you cry.

Nawal (Comoros Islands) Music of the Comoros Islands
Fri, May 25, 9:30pm
Sat, May 26, 11:00pm
African American Art & Culture Complex, 762 Fulton Street
$15 General Admission

Celebrating the release of her second CD titled Aman (peace of the soul), singer and composer Nawal kicks off her US tour on the AfroSolo stage. Nawal originates from the Comoros Islands located in the Indian Ocean off the eastern coast of Africa. Between traditional and contemporary, her music weaves a rich dialog of cultures, a reflection of the diverse character of life in her native islands. Indo-Arabian-Persian music meets Bantu polyphonies, the syncopated rhythms and Sufi trance of the Indian Ocean.

Yossi Vassa (Ethiopia/Israel) It Sounds Better in Amharic is a moving personal account of the artist's 435 mile journey on foot from Ethiopia; first to a refugee camp in the Sudan, and then to Israel. The show portrays nostalgic memories of life in Ethiopia, interspersed with a hilarious perspective on lifestyle adjustments made by Ethiopians living in Israel.

Yossi immigrated to Israel in 1985, at the age of 10. After graduating from the Haifa University's Theatre Arts Department, Yossi completed his compulsory military service, where he was an actor in the IDF Theatre Company. Yossi has produced two television programs with Shmuel Beru - in Amharic - about life in Israel.

When: Saturday, May 26, 4:30pm; Sunday, May 27, 7:00pm
Where: African American Art & Culture Complex
Cost: $15 General Admission

Marc Bamuthi Joseph (USA), The Spoken World

Representing the Bay Area, internationally renowned spoken word artist Joseph is one of an emerging class of hip-hop theater artists who combines a variety of art forms in his work. This evening's performance will feature excerpts from his evening length works, Word Becomes Flesh and Scourge, as well as new material from the 2008 premiere "The Breaks".

When: Sat, May 26, 7:00pm; Sun, May 27, 4:30pm
Where: African American Art & Culture Complex, 762 Fulton Street
Cost: $15 General Admission

SFIAF NEW SCRIPT LABORATORY
 Brian Freeman (USA), Here and There (a staged reading)
When: Sat-Sun, May 26-27 2:00pm
Where: African American Arts & Culture Complex
Cost: $5 General Admission
Presented by The Magic Theatre, SFIAF, AfroSolo, Queer Cultural Center & AAACC

Here and There, a play about AIDS in South Africa. Here and There examines the AIDS crisis, in South Africa, as seen through the eyes of activists involved in reforming the treatment and cultural acceptance of the disease.

Funding for the AfroSolo Theatre Company is made possible in part through the support of the African American Art and Culture Complex, LEF Foundation, San Francisco Art Commissions' Cultural Equity Grants Program, San Francisco Foundation, San Francisco Grants for the Arts/Hotel Tax Fund, The Israel Center, The National Endowment for the Arts, WESTAF and the Zellerbach Family Foundation.

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