Thursday, May 8, 2008

Yo Mamma

This Sunday is Mother's Day, and there's no better repayment for nine hours of labor than the knowledge that her progeny believes in the power of strong women. Fortunately for Philadelphians, two such strong women will be gracing us with their presence.

Tomorrow afternoon at 3:30, PBS's Washington Week (www.pbs.org/weta/washingtonweek) visits the University of Pennsylvania. Washington Week's host Gwen Ifill was a trailblazor in the journalism industry for not just women, but African Americans, as well. At this point she's a legend. The show will be filmed live and the panel, with representatives from POLITICO, TIME Magazine, and NBC News, will be discussing the presidential primary. Although even I, a self-diagnosed political junky, am growing weary of the election coverage, Ifill could make anything fresh.

Another strong woman making her presence known this week is Joan Myers Brown, Artistic Director of Philadanco (http://www.philadanco.org/), the Philadelphia-based dance company known for their athleticism and edginess. Brown has revolutionized the dance world from the many arts positions she has held. Tonight through Sunday Philadanco will be performing at the Kimmel Center (http://www.kimmelcenter.org/), and there will be two world premiers on the program.