Program Success June 2015 | Page 22

Ritz theatre and Museum Adonnica Toler Jacksonville , Florida June 2015

RITZ

THEATRE

&

MUSEUM

The Ritz Theatre and Museum is Jacksonville ’ s premier institutional treasure of art and culture . The Ritz presents documents and preserves the historical and cultural legacy of the African Americans in Jacksonville and Northeast Florida within the context of the national and global Black experience .

Established in 1999 by the City of Jacksonville , the Ritz Theatre and Museum is the cultural anchor of LaVilla – the area of downtown Jacksonville once known as the “ Harlem of the South ” during the Jim Crow Era . The institution serves two functions :
THE THEATRE - A stellar performing arts venue beautifully designed to recapture the cultural vitality of the original Ritz Theater , a 1929 movie house that once stood on the same site , presents musical concerts , dance and theater performances . If you are in town the first Friday and Saturday of the month , you must get a ticket to Amateur Night at the Ritz and Ritz Jazz Jamm - the hottest shows in town .
THE MUSEUM – a state-of-the-art exhibit which houses a permanent collection of artifacts , objects , photographs , documents and assorted ephemera from past and present artist that replicates scenes of everyday life in the once thriving , though segregated , LaVilla African American community . A must-see exciting feature of the museum is the Lift Ev ’ ry Voice exhibit , an animatronics salute of native sons James Weldon Johnson and John Rosamond Johnson . Lift Ev ’ ry Voice brings history to life through robotics , projected images , music , dialogue and theatrical lighting . The museum gallery also presents temporary exhibitions on African and African Diaspora themes .
PROGRAM SUCCESS | WWW . PROGRAMSUCCESS . NET 22 |