Miami Jazz Society Free Film Series, 05/15 at 6:00p
Miami Tower (19th FL Auditorium)
100 SE 2nd St
Miami FL 33131
miamijazzsociety.com
Carmen Jones –
At an all-black army camp, civilian parachute maker and “hot bundle” Carmen Jones is desired by many of the men. Naturally, she wants Joe, who’s engaged to sweet Cindy Lou and about to go into pilot training for the Korean War. Going after him, she succeeds only in getting him into the stockade. While she awaits his release, trouble approaches for both of them. Songs from the Bizet opera with modernized lyrics. (Drama/Musical/Romance)
6:15 – 8:30
Dorothy Dandridge in concert series/bonus biography –
Born November 9, 1922, in Cleveland, Ohio, Dorothy Dandridge sang at Harlem’s Cotton Club and Apollo Theatre and became the first African American woman to be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress. Many years passed before the entertainment industry acknowledged Dandridge’s legacy. Her next role, as the eponymous lead in Carmen Jones (1954),a film adaptation of Bizet’s opera Carmen that also costarred Belafonte, catapulted her to the heights of stardom. With her sultry looks and flirtatious style, Dandridge became the first African-American to earn an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress. Though many believed she deserved to win, Dandridge eventually lost the award to Grace Kelly (The Country Girl). Still, after the phenomenal success of Carmen Jones, Dandridge seemed well on her way to becoming the first non-white actress to achieve the kind of superstardom that had accrued to contemporaries like Marilyn Monroe and Ava Gardner. In 1955, she was featured on the cover of Life magazine, and was treated like visiting royalty at that year’s Cannes Film Festival.
8:30 – 10:30
Free Admission – Open to the Public. Cash bar and snacks avaialable.
