Photo by Gregory Reed
Audio By Carbonatix
Keeping the memory of community arts icon Chief Sandrell Rivers, whose lifelong efforts to expand arts and culture in Liberty City were legendary and still resonate today, is the mission of Sandrell Rivers Day happening at Sandrell Rivers Theater on Saturday, August 12.
Chief Rivers, conferred as a chief by a Nigerian dignitary in 2004, left her mark on the arts community, bringing legendary black artists like Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee to the Joseph Caleb Center. She was also an arts administrator for the Miami-Dade County Parks Department, where she left an indelible mark as well.
Aware of the Chief’s importance to the Liberty City arts community, the event honoring her was conceptualized by technical director Kenyatta DeShazior when he arrived six years ago at the Sandrell Rivers Theater.
“As a child, I performed at the Joseph Caleb Center and the African Heritage Cultural Arts Center, and upon graduating from Howard University, I returned to Miami and managed the Joseph Caleb Center,” De Shazior says. “I brought my talents back home.”
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Sandrell Rivers Day will showcase performances by various local artists from all facets of the arts community. It will also present the Humanitarian Award to Dr. Dorothy Bendross-Mindingall.
Larry Fields, executive artistic director of Fantasy Theatre Factory, the theater’s resident managing company, says, “This year, the committee was almost unanimous about the honoree, something that honestly I’ve never experienced since we began this event.” But that he also said was not deliberate and something they all wondered why it didn’t happen sooner.
Bendross-Mindingall is a lifelong educator as a principal, administrator, and current District 2 Miami-Dade County School Board member who founded the Positive African American Role Models mentorship program. She was a Liberty City resident and a regular at Sandrell Rivers Theater performances.
“I grew up in the Liberty Square Housing Project not far from the theater, so for it to bear her name is absolutely deserving, and those of us that grew up in that area were very happy when that happened,” Bendross-Mindingall says. “I knew Sandrell very well, so for me to receive this recognition. I am indeed pleased and honored.”
Ja’Nia Harden and the Harden Project perform their blend of soulful jazz for the audience at Sandrell Rivers Day.
Photo by Gregory Reed
Bendross-Mindingall and Chief Rivers’ families were very closely connected, and the two had a tight-knit friendship. “I remember us going to the Caleb Center, where Sandrell also did a great job,” Bendross-Mindingall adds.
The event is a full-circle moment, Fields says. “Chief Rivers represents something so fundamental to the mission of our company Fantasy Theater Factory. We are also all about expanding access to the arts and culture to everyone and work to build upon that each year.”
Bringing the community together is something the team is proud of, and on August 12, it continues that tradition. DeShazior, the program’s curator, adds, “I was inspired to create a program that truly showcases the talent that’s been produced right here in Liberty City.”
Shawney Whitaker, daughter of Sandrell Rivers, will sing “Proud Mary” and “Can’t Stand the Rain” in honor of her mother. Namphuyo Aisha McCray, daughter of singer-songwriter Betty Wright, will sing dedications to her mother and Chastity Hart, a singer and actress with M Ensemble Company.
“Those are just some of the scheduled performers, and the Sunshine Jazz Organization will be providing musical entertainment in the lobby before the program,” DeShazior says.
Fields and DeShazior want to continue the tradition of showing the Miami community the talent and creativity right on NW Seventh Avenue – right in their backyard.
– Josie Gulliksen, ArtburstMiami.com
Sandrell Rivers Day. 6 to 9 p.m. Saturday, August 12, at Sandrell Rivers Theater, 6103 NW Seventh Ave., Miami; 305-284-8872; sandrellriverstheater.com. Tickets cost $10 to $15.
