UNCA will celebrate Black History Month throughout February with a variety of cultural programs. Among the highlights will be a keynote address by acclaimed poet Nikki Giovanni and a performance of the popular musical "Blues in the Night." Events are open to the public and free unless otherwise noted.

Giovanni will speak at 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 24, in Lipinsky Auditorium. She is one of the most widely read American poets, with more than one hundred thousand copies of her nearly 20 books sold. Her most recent book, "Blues: For All the Changes," made the Los Angeles Times Best Seller List, the first book of poetry to make the list.

The smashing Tony-nominated musical hit by the Arkansas Repertory Theatre, "Blues in the Night," will be staged at 8 p.m. Monday, Feb. 28, in Lipinsky Auditorium. Set in Chicago, "Blues in the Night" is a celebration of life expressed through the Blues. Tickets are $18 general admission and are available Monday-Friday, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. in Highsmith Center room 27 or by phone at 828/251-6584. The performance is presented by UNCA’s Cultural and Special Events Office in partnership with YMI Cultural Center and UNCA’s African-American Student Association.

Other events include:

-- The "Impact of Black Americans on the Blues in Popular Culture" series will kick off with the gallery opening of "They Call’em the Blues: A Collection of Images Celebrating the Blues," by UNCA Photographer Randy Marrs from 6-8 p.m. Friday, Feb. 4, in Blowers Gallery, located on the first floor of Ramsey Library. The exhibition runs through February 28.

-- The next installment of the Blues Series will be a discussion on "The Impact of the Blues on American Culture" led by UNCA Political Science Department Chair Dwight Mullen at 6 p.m. Monday, Feb. 7, in the Whitman Room, Ramsey Library.

-- The award-winning movie, "Slam Nation," starring poet Saul Williams will be shown at 8 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 8, in the Highsmith Center Lounge. A discussion will follow.

-- Acclaimed poet Saul Williams will give a reading of his poetry at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 9, in the Highsmith Center Lounge. Williams, who has been called the super-nova of the young Black poetry movement, will read selections from his two published collections.

-- The audience is invited to join Healing Forces as the troupe explores African culture through drumming, storytelling, games and dance at 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 10, in the Highsmith Center Lounge.

-- Local writer and activist Glennis Redmond will give a reading of her poetry at 9 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 16, in the Highsmith Center Lounge.

-- Anita Singelton-Prather, a native of the Beaufort, S.C. sea islands, will present a monologue performance of Gullah stories at 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 17, in Lipinsky Auditorium. She will be joined by Gullah Kinfolk, a choral group specializing in plantation melodies.

-- Distinguished UNCA African-American alumni will be honored at the Alumni of Color Reception at 5 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 19, in the Highsmith Center Lounge.

-- The Blues Series concludes with a lecture on the impact of the Blues in literature by Warren Wilson College visiting poet Van Jordan at 7 p.m. Monday, Feb. 21, in the Whitman Room, Ramsey Library.

-- Ugandan philosopher Kibujjo M. Kalumba will discuss "The Political Philosophy of Nelson Mandela," at 3:15 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 24, in the Humanities Lecture Hall. Kalumba is co-editor of an anthology of classical African philosophy.

For more information, contact Octavia Wright, UNCA Multicultural Student Programs Coordinator, at 828/251-6671.

Media Contacts:

• Octavia Wright, UNCA Multicultural Student Programs, 828/251-6671
• UNCA Public Information, 828/251-6526