Steven C. Dinero author of Settling For Less: The Planned Resettlement of Israel’s Negev Bedouin

March 20th, 2011
Apr ’11
13
7:00 pm

Wednesday, April 13, 7pm – Non-Fiction
Steven C. Dinero author of Settling For Less: The Planned Resettlement of Israel’s Negev Bedouin ($70 – Special Event Price: $40, Berghahn Books)

“This is an excellent study of an important and timely topic that is of relevance not only for the people involved but for the wider areas of Israel and the Arab world. It is a comprehensive detailed description and analysis of a process of change and transformation that started in 1948 and continues until the present.” • Donald AbdAllah Cole, The American University in Cairo

“The author is a geographer interested in town planning, who also has a solid grounding in anthropology. Two things make the book very attractive: that it is totally focused on town planning, and that the fieldwork was spread out over a decade which permitted the author to concentrate on the frequent changes in the plans and in their implementation.” • Emanuel Marx, Tel Aviv University

The resettlement of the Negev Bedouin (Israel) has been wrought with controversy since its inception in the 1960s. Presenting evidence from a two-decade period, the author addresses how the changes that took place over the past sixty to seventy years have served the needs and interests of the State rather than those of Bedouin community at large. While town living fostered improvements in social and economic development, numerous unintended consequences jeopardized the success of this planning initiative. As a result, the Bedouin community endured excessive hardship and rapid change, abandoning its nomadic lifestyle and traditions in response to the economic, political, and social pressure from the State—and received very little in return.
Steven C. Dinero is Associate Professor of Human Geography at Philadelphia University. He has published extensively on such topics as community planning and development, gender, identity formation, religion, education, and tourism in post-nomadic environments. His recent work addresses the impacts of globalization and climate change upon indigenous peoples, and the role of new technologies in helping such communities respond and adapt to these environmental challenges.

MPS: Ernest Hilbert, Timothy Donnelly & Matthew Zapruder

March 20th, 2011

Tuesday April 12, 7pm – Poetry
The Moonstone Poetry Series Presents
Ernest Hilbert, Timothy Donnelly & Matthew Zapruder
Matthew Zapruder
is the author of three collections of poetry, most recently Come On All You Ghosts (Copper Canyon), selected as one of the top 5 poetry books of 2010 by Publishers Weekly. His poems, essays and translations have appeared in many publications, including Open City, Bomb, Slate, American Poetry Review, Poetry, Tin House, Harvard Review, Paris Review, The New Republic, The Boston Review, The New Yorker, McSweeney’s, The Believer, Real Simple, and The Los Angeles Times. He has received a William Carlos Williams Award, a May Sarton Award from the Academy of American Arts and Sciences, and a Lannan Literary Fellowship. Currently the Holloway Lecturer at the University of California at Berkeley, as well as an editor for Wave Books and a member of the permanent faculty in the low residency MFA program at UC Riverside-Palm Desert, he lives in San Francisco.
Timothy Donnelly’s first book of poems, Twenty-seven Props for a Production of Eine Lebenszeit, was publshed by Grove Press in 2003. His second, The Cloud Corporation, was published by Wave Books in 2010. His poems have appeared or are forthcoming in Harper’s, The Iowa Review, jubilat, The Nation, The New Republic, The Paris Review, A Public Space, Washington Square Review, and elsewhere. He is poetry editor of Boston Review and teaches in the Writing Program of Columbia University’s School of the Arts.
Ernest Hilbert’s poems have appeared in The New Republic, Yale Review, American Poetry Review, Harvard Review, Parnassus, Boston Review, Verse, New Criterion, American Scholar, and the London Review. He attended Oxford University, where he edited the Oxford Quarterly. He was the poetry editor for Random House’s magazine Bold Type in New York City (1998-2003) and, more recently, of the Contemporary Poetry Review (2005-2010). He hosts the popular blog and video show www.everseradio.com. He is an antiquarian book dealer in Philadelphia, where he lives with his wife, an archaeologist.

LOS: Leon Boykins Trio & Justin Sekelewski Quintet

March 20th, 2011

Friday, April 8 – Doors: 8:30 p.m. Show: 9 pm sharp – BYOB – Jazz
$10 at the door / $8 in advance (at http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/165951)
Lucky Old Souls @ Moonstone Presents
Leon Boykins Trio & Justin Sekelewski Quintet

LEON BOYKINS TRIO: Leon Boykins, bass; Alex LoRe, alto saxophone; Dustin Kaufman, drums
Bassist/composer LEON BOYKINS strives to positively influence the public through music. Born in Pittsburgh, Pa., Leon showed an interest in music at a young age. His musical journey started on the piano, where he learned the basics of melody and harmony. He then moved to the bass, which introduced him to the foundations of rhythm. In high school, after performing with various regional high school jazz bands and all state orchestras, Leon decided to make music his career path. Upon graduating from Schenley High School, Leon enrolled in West Virginia University. In the fall of 2005, he transfered to Temple University in Philadelphia, where he received a Bachelor of Music in jazz performance. While living in Philadelphia, Leon quickly made a name for himself as both a performer and an educator. He had the opportunity to share the stage with many musical greats, including pianist Orrin Evans, saxophonist Ben Schachter, trumpeter John Swana, trumpeter Terrel Stafford, drummer ?uestlove, and many more. Currently, Leon lives in New York City, pursuing a Master’s degree in music performance at the prestigious Manhattan School of Music. He is focusing on jazz performance, classical bass technique, and composition. Bass mentors have included Harvie S, Jeremy McCoy, Larry Grenadier, Madison Rast, Mike Boone, Douglas Mapp, Dr.
Andrew Kohn, Paul Thompson, Bill Howard and Dwayne Dolphin. He would like to thank his friends, family, books, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia and New York City for all the educational experiences that they have provided.

JUSTIN SEKELEWSKI QUINTET featuring JIM HOLTON: Michael Pracher, tenor saxophone; Adam Siegel, alto saxophone; Jim Holton, piano; Justin Sekelewski, bass Nick Wight, drums
The band consists of musicians who are all based in Philadelphia and perform regularly in Philadelphia and the surrounding areas up and down the East Coast. Bassist Justin Sekelewski, pianist JIM HOLTON, and drummer NICK WIGHT have been playing together on a consistent basis for several years. Saxophonists ADAM SIEGEL and MIKE PRACHER provide the perfect complement to the ethos of this group: moving jazz in a new and exciting direction while holding a firm grasp on the history of the music and the idea that jazz was and still is music of the people. Pianist, cellist, composer, and arranger Jim Holton has performed extensively in the Philadelphia Area, New York, and New Jersey with several groups, including the critically-acclaimed Rhythm and Brass, Orrin Evans’s Captain Black Big Band, and Joe Sudler’s Swing Machine, which backed artists such as Jon Faddis, Clark Terry, Slide Hampton, and Al Grey. Some of the many musicians he has worked with over the years include bassists Tyrone Brown, Mike Boone, and Charles Fambrough; drummers Byron Landham, Mickey Roker, Billy James, Ryan Faulkner, and Cornell Rochester; and horn players John Swana, Bootsie Barnes, Larry McKenna, and Clifford Adams. In addition to performing, he teaches cello and piano, and is one of the ministers of music at Saint John’s Lutheran Church in Ambler, Pa.

The Life of The Poet Workshop with Leonard Gontarek

March 20th, 2011
Apr ’11
7
5:30 pm
Apr ’11
14
5:30 pm
Apr ’11
21
5:30 pm
Apr ’11
28
5:30 pm

Thursdays @ 5:30pm – Workshop

The Life of The Poet Workshop with Leonard Gontarek

Every Thursday, 5:30 – 7 PM. $60 for four sessions. Contact: Leonard Gontarek – gontarek9@earthlink.net

The Day Diplomacy Died, A Documentary by Bernie Dwyer & Roberto Ruiz Rebo

March 20th, 2011
Apr ’11
6
7:00 pm

Wednesday, April 6, 7pm – Film & Discussion
The Day Diplomacy Died, A Documentary by Bernie Dwyer & Roberto Ruiz Rebo
(DVD, subtitles, Spanish & English, $15)

In Spring of 2003 the U.S. media made hay over the jailing of 75 so-called independent journalists in Cuba. Here is the real story behind the headlines. The Day Diplomacy Died tells the story of four ex-Cuban state agents who sacrificed years of their lives working undercover to expose the real truth. Here they speak out for the first time on film about why the Cuban government locked up these 75 “independent” journalists, trade unionists and librarians. They tell of the inner workings of the dissident groups they had infiltrated and of the various, and often frightening, plans hatched to destabilize Cuba. The mainstream pressnever fully investigated the role played by the U.S. and their diplomats in Havana, although Cuba produced abundant evidence demonstrating that the imprisoned 75 were actually on the payroll of the U.S. tax payer for the purpose of disrupting Cuban society. The Day Diplomacy Died features interviews with two former Heads of the U.S. Diplomatic Staff in Havana, and Ricardo Alarcon, president of the Cuban Parliament (and former Ambassador to the United Nations), who briefly outlines the history of failed diplomacy between the U.S. and Cuba. We also hear from Washington-based human rights lawyer, Jose Pertierra, who explains how Cuba, under international and Cuban law, has the right to protect its country’s sovereignty from interference by its biggest and most powerful enemy. Ms. Dwyer will be present and answer questions, not only about the film, but also on the present developments in Cuba. Bernie Dwyer is an Irish woman who lives and works in Havana as a journalist with Radio Havana. She has worked there for the past 10 years. Dwyer was previously a lecturer in Women’s Studies at University Colege in Dublin. She is a membe of the International Committee for the Freedom of the Cuban Five.

Philadelphia Stories Fiction Workshop with Aimee LaBrie

March 20th, 2011
Apr ’11
4
6:30 pm
Apr ’11
11
6:30 pm
Apr ’11
25
6:30 pm

Monday April 4, 6:30 – Fiction Workshop
Philadelphia Stories Fiction Workshop With Aimee LaBrie

Philadelphia Stories Fiction Workshop: An 8-week workshop from the area’s popular literary magazine that offers writing tips, assignments, and peer critique.
Moderator: Aimee LaBrie received her MA in writing from DePaul University in 2000 and her MFA in fiction Penn State in 2003. Her collection of short stories, Wonderful Girl, won the Katherine Anne Porter Prize in Short Fiction in 2007 and was published by the University of North Texas Press.Other stories of hers have been published in Minnesota Review, Pleiades, Quarter After Eight, Iron Horse Literary Review, and numerous other literary journals. Her short story, “Ducklings” was nominated for a Pushcart Prize by Pleiades.
Fee: $200. Writing sample required (max word count of 2000 words). STUDENTS MUST BE APPROVED BY MS. LABRIE.
Schedule: Mondays, 6:15-8:15pm. WINTER SESSION Jan 24-March 14; SPRING SESSION: April 4-May 23
Location: Robin’s Books / Moonstone Arts Center, second floor of 110A S. 13th Street (convenient to parking and just 3 blocks from Suburban Station)
The course: Each week, short weekly writing assignments are due from students. Students will also be asked to read published stories and essays about fiction writing (available online) to facilitate class discussion.
The goal: This class focuses on writing short literary fiction. Students will write two short stories during the 8-week course. Excerpts from novels and genre fiction will not be critiqued. The goal of the workshop is to provide writing discussion and professional development to help experienced writers improve their writing and learn through the peer-critique process. For more information, please email christine@philadelphiastories.org

The Fifteenth Annual Poetry Ink

March 20th, 2011
Apr ’11
3
12:00 pm

Sunday, April 3, 12 noon – Group Reading

The Fifteenth Annual Poetry Ink

Poetry Ink is a unique event in that it brings together poets (almost 140 of them this year!) from many different groups and gives us all a chance to hear each others’ voices – you can expect to hear a wide diversity of local talents who vary in age, aesthetics, and performance style alike! Some of these poets may be sharing their work for the very first time, while others have been doing so for many decades.

BRING SOMETHING TO EAT AND SHARE! – We supply coffee and punch, you bring everything else. This is a potluck poetry party! Copies of the 15th Poetry Ink Anthology will be available on site.

For a list of readers go to www.moonstoneartscenter.org/poetryink

Triality Plus 1 & Conjunto Philadelphia

March 20th, 2011
Apr ’11
1
8:30 pm

Friday, April 1, Doors: 8:30 p.m. Show: 9 pm sharp – All Ages – Jazz -$10 at the door

Triality Plus 1 & Conjunto Philadelphia

Triality Plus 1: Alex Maio, drums & cymbals; Gregory Paynter, bass; Elijah Thomas, flute;

Jacob Kelberman, guitar

A jazz trio dedicated to a unique, modern reinvention of standard jazz repertoire and the transcendence of conventional harmonic and rhythmic constraints. Featuring the artistic presence of plus-one member, guitarist Jacob Kelberman.

Conjunto Philadelphia: Jeff Torchon, piano; Gabe Esposito, vocals; Luke Brandon, trumpet; Elijah Thomas, flute; Chico Huff, bass; Andres Cisneros, percussion; Christian Noguera, percussion; Victor Garcia Gaetan, percussion; Francis Gattis, percussion

Conjunto Philadelphia is a group based in the Philadelphia area performing the music of Pre-Revolutionary Cuba. The group’s main aspiration is to maintain the authenticity of the music, and perform it in a way that pays homage to Cuba’s deep and treasured musical history. Genres include Son, Cha-cha-chá, Bolero, Danzón, and Rumba

Moles Not Molar Presents release/launch celebration for the prose journal/project Encyclopedia Volume 2

March 12th, 2011
Mar ’11
27
7:00 pm

Sunday, March 27, 7pm – Poetry

Moles Not Molar Presents

The release/launch celebration for the prose journal/project Encyclopedia Volume 2.

Encyclopedia is a multi-volume hardcover book project that presents a wide variety of approaches to narrative. Part reference book, part literary journal, each volume appropriates the form of the encyclopedia—from general layout to cross-referencing—as a venue for publishing new, innovative literary and visual works.

Featuring: Amra Brooks, CA Conrad, Carolina Maugeri, Emily Abendroth, Jena Osman, Mary Hoeffel, Patrick Scanlon – **** Copies of the fresh and lovely Encyclopedia Vol. 2 will be available at the event. ****
www.molesnotmolar.com

Josiah Wise & SunShowers

March 12th, 2011
Mar ’11
28
9:00 pm

Monday, March 28, 9pm – Music – $5 Cover

Josiah Wise & SunShowers

Josiah Wise is a native of Baltimore Maryland, is a recent graduate of The University of the Arts where his concentration was in Jazz Studies. Shorty after saying farewell to college life,and entering a world of mystery, Josiah blindly moved to Paris, France; During his time abroad, he explored, composed and performed with various local musicians. He has recently returned from France and is excited to reconnect with his Philadelphia band. Nothing else brings Josiah greater joy than singing with the magicians that he spent two years building an ever-mutating fortress of sound with. Josiah Wise has been performing within the Philadelphia music circuit since the summer of 2008 and has been blessed to gain a fun audience of people who enjoy the energy of his live shows.

“Doing what feels right”, has been the arrow that’s directed his music, and also allows him to remain present musically. As the wreath ozzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzvmusic that is genuine and fresh, as well as bless the ears of his listeners along the way.

SunShowers is a duo band that plays eclectic original music and many covers, from soul to country. The band consists of two players, Greg Moore and Vinchelle Woods.  The couple started writing and playing music two years ago out and about in the city of Philadelphia, in churches, on streets, cafes and many other places. Some of their inspirations are Sly and the Family Stone, Dr. Buzzard’s Original Savannah Band, St. Vincent, Paul McCartney and many others.