Literary lion, Bed-Stuy resident Ntozake Shange to recite work at fundraiser

Poet and playwright Ntozake Shange will recite some of her work in - and for - her Bedford-Stuyvesant community during "An Intimate Evening with Ntozake Shange," a fundraiser at the Sugar Hill Restaurant & Supper Club, 609 DeKalb Ave. at Nostrand Avenue.

Shange is lending her prodigious talents and boldface name to a fundraiser for the Monroe Street Block Association 400. Proceeds will support the association's efforts to make the area an even better place to live and visit.

"It's my neighborhood," Shange said of why she's supporting the fundraiser.

Shange is perhaps best known for "for colored girls who have considered suicide when the rainbow is enuf," her groundbreaking Tony Award-nominated choreopoem that was performed on Broadway and Off-Broadway and won an Obie Award in 1977. A theatrical film adaptation, "For Colored Girls," was released in 2010.

Actress, community activist and comedienne Phyllis Yvonne Stickney will host the program, which, in addition to Shange, also will include musical performances and provocative conversation.

Seating for "An Intimate Evening with Ntozake Shange" is limited. Dinner and beverages will be available. Tickets are $25 each and can be purchased by calling Eugene Jensen at 347-526-9831 or Evette Lewis at 917-200-4487.