March madness - Travel Guide - celebrations for spring in various cities - Brief Article

Ebony, March, 2002 by Joy Bennett Kinnon

IT takes more than telephone hotlines or the musings of television psychics to discern the winds of March. A contrary month that holds winter's last bluster and the promise of spring, March calls the traveler from a winter cocoon to enjoy blighter and warmer days ahead. Don't let March's contrary nature spoil spring travel plans. Check your city for special events that celebrate the season.

WHAT'S HAPPENING WHERE

ATLANTA

* A Congo Chronicle: Patrice Lumumba in Urban Art. Features art portraying the life of the first prime minister of the Congo after its independence from Belgium in 1960. Clark Atlanta University Art Galleries. Through March 15.

* Wrapped in Pride: Ghanaian Kente and African-American Identity. Explores the use of kente cloth in traditional African settings and how it has been adapted as a symbol of African-American pride in the U.S. Michael C. Carlos Museum. Through June 16.

BALTIMORE

* What's It To You? Black History Is American History. Exhibit highlights African-American life and achievement in Maryland from the late 1600s through 2000 with photographs, furniture and more. Maryland Historical Society. Through December 2002.

* Master Harold and the Boys. Play presented by the Vagabond Players. Vagabond Theater. March 1-30.

CHICAGO

* Stoops. ETA play follows four friends as they grow from childhood to adulthood. March 7-April 21.

* Cleopatra of Egypt. Exhibit explores the ancient queen through archeological finds and masterpieces of ancient art. The Field Museum. Through March 3.

* "Fashion, Flappers & All That Jazz." Chicago nightlife in the roaring '20s. Chicago Historical Society. Through Sept. 29.

* NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship. United Center. March 15-17.

CLEVELAND

* Aida. Elton John and Tim Rice's musical. Playhouse Square Center. March 12-24.

DETROIT

* Black Dolls: Reflections of Precious Faces. Exhibit. Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History. Through May 4, 2003.

* The Diva Daughters Dupree. Comedy about three sisters in a Southern Black family. Plowshares Theatre Company. Anderson Center Theater in the Henry Ford Museum. March 21-April 21.

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla.

* Disney's Pop Century Resort Set to open. This 5,760-room resort features oversized icons representing each decade of the 20th century. March.

LOS ANGELES

* City of Los Angeles Marathon 5K Run/Walk. Starts in front of the Staples Center. March 3.

MIAMI

* Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre. Jackie Gleason Theater. March 8-10.

NEW YORK CITY

* 32nd Annual National Salute to Black Achievers in Industry presented by the Harlem YMCA. The Rev. Dr. Floyd Flake of the Allen AME Church of Queens is the scheduled keynote speaker. Sheraton New York Hotel and Towers. March 21.

* "Abbey Lincoln: Over the Years--An Anthology of Her Compositions and Poems." Sponsored by Jazz at Lincoln Center. Alice Tully Hall. March 7-9.

ORLANDO

* National Society of Black Engineers Convention. Orange County Convention Center. March 27-31.

ST. LOUIS

* Dred Scott, Slavery and the Struggle to be Free. Exhibit. Old Courthouse. Through Dec. 31, 2002.

* Waiting to Be Invited. Play set in Atlanta during the peak of the Civil Rights Movement. St. Louis Black Repertory Company. Grandel Theatre in Grand Center. Through March 10.

* Dreams Be Not Deferred: The Barbara Jordan Story. Play on the life of Barbara Jordan, the first Southern Black woman elected to Congress. The History Museum in Forest Park. March 1-3.

* Ugly Ways. Stage adaptation of the novel by Tina McElroy Ansa. Greeley 23rd Street Theater. March 8-10.

* Anniversary of the Dred Scott Decision. A commemoration of the 145th anniversary of the Dred Scott decision. Includes a mock trial. Old Courthouse. March 9.

WASHINGTON, D.C.

* National Association of Black-Owned Broadcasters (NABOB) 18th Annual Communications Awards Dinner. Marriott Wardman Park Hotel. March 8.

ISLAND DESTINATIONS

ARUBA

* National Anthem and Flag Day. Official holiday. March 18.

BARBADOS

* Holders Season. A celebration of opera, music and theater, the production founded in 1993 is considered to be the premier cultural event in the Caribbean. Holders House, St. James. March 5-23.

* Good Friday. National Holiday. March 29.

BERMUDA

* 11th Annual Evening of Jazz. Hamilton City Hall & Arts Centre. March 15-16.

* Palm Sunday Walk. Popular annual walk through scenic parts of Bermuda. March 24.

JAMAICA

* Caribbean Music Expo 2002. Ocho Rios-St. Ann. March 20-24.

* Jamaica Carnival 2002. Events throughout March and April in Ocho Rios, Kingston and Montego Bay.