Soul food

The South Dallas Cultural Center serves up a week that will satisfy all four major food groups of the arts -- visual art, music, film, and theater -- for the climax of OurStory 2000: A Diaspora Perspective, the center's celebration of Black History Month.

Chris Herod used spray paint and wood to make "Middle Passage."

Details

The panel discussion for "The Fine Art of Self-Promotion"
February 17
7 p.m.
Admission: Free

Black Cinematheque's "Rap, Race and African American History"
February 18,
7:30 p.m.
Tickets: $5

Damien Womack leads Jammin' at the Center
February 18,
Midnight
Admission: free

The Meeting
February 19.
8 p.m.
Tickets: $5

More info:
(214) 939-2787

Through March 4

South Dallas Cultural Center
3400 S. Fitzhugh St.

Free

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More About

• South Dallas Cultural Center
• MC Hammer
• Shannon Sutlief
• Hip-Hop and Rap
• U.S. History

For the film portion, Black Cinematheque looks at rap and hip-hop's influence and role in African American culture with "Rap, Race and African American History." The program features Rusty Cundieff's Fear of a Black Hat, a mockumentary about rap group NWH and its members Ice Cold, Tasty Taste, and Tone Def. The only thing larger and funnier than the group's hats are the ways Ice Cold tries to disguise his lyrics' gansta and misogynistic themes under Black Power-inspired anagrams. Fear of a Black Hat, which parodies everyone from Vanilla Ice to MC Hammer to P.M. Dawn, will be screened along with the documentaries Rap, Race, and Equality and Rhyme and Reason at 7:30 p.m. February 18.

Artist Chris Herod, who sprays paint on recycled wood, will discuss his current exhibit Pride/Strength/Survival: Urban Artworks with a meet-the-artist session at 6 p.m. February 17. After the gallery talk, a panel of representatives from BMG Entertainment, Dallasblack.com, Hot 100, Kokopelli Entertainment, and Darkman Productions will discuss "The Fine Art of Self-Promotion" during the center's monthly Night Shifts Workshops for local artists.

Damien Womack will lead Roger Boykin, Jason Davis, Ben Atkins, and anyone else brave enough to take the stage during Jammin' at the Center, a midnight jazz jam session February 18.

The week ends with an encore production of The Meeting, a play about a fictional meeting between Malcolm X and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The Meeting debuted during celebrations for MLK day and is directed by actor Willie Minor (The Tuskegee Airmen, Born on the Fourth of July, and Walker, Texas Ranger). The performance begins at 8 p.m. February 19.

— Shannon Sutlief