UC Recap – April 15 – April 20
April 15 – April 20
My good friend Carolina “Miss Rizos” Contreras is a paradigm shifter. Five years ago she left the States to start a curly hair salon in Quisqueya. More than just hair, Carolina’s mission was to radically realign the way Dominicans looked at their African ancestry. The Miss Rizos salon has been an unequivocal success. Now she is bringing her Black Girl Magic to Uptown NYC. Spread that Uptown Love and support her Indiegogo campaign to open a Miss Rizos salon Uptown.
Gastor Almonte is an award-winning stand up comedian, storyteller, writer and host. Mr. Almonte’s debut comedy album, Immigrant Made, is a must listen. Mr. Almonte weaves uproariously hilarious tales of growing up Dominican in East New York, Brooklyn with present day anecdotes of being a parent in the same neighborhood he grew up in.
Grant Wilfley Casting is seeking NYC locals who are interested in working as extras on the upcoming Fox Pictures feature film WEST SIDE STORY directed by Steven Spielberg. Filming will begin in NYC this summer. Hit up our site for the deets.
The Dominican Dream is a portrait of the Dominican community of NYC in the ’80s and ’90s, seen through a loving family whose youngest son, Felipe López, became the top-ranked high school basketball player in the nation and was hailed as the Dominican Michael Jordan. The film will make its premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival later this month. The Dominican Dream will make its television debut on ESPN on Tuesday, April 30 at 9 p.m. ET.
The first annual Dominican Writers Conference is going down on May 4, 2019 at the NAC Building of City College (160 Convent Avenue). We’re talking writing workshops, panel discussions, manuscript reviews, author readings, networking and so much more. Did we mention that the conference is in honor of the incomparable Josefina Báez? The all day conference boasts a talented roster of folks such as Angie Cruz, Yaissa Jiménez, Francis Mateo, among many others. I will also be a panelist on one of the panels.
Fernando Mateo sees the changes happening Uptown and is determined to do his best to address them. The serial entrepreneur recently stopped by the Power 105.1 radio station for an intense and insightful interview with Honey German.
The critically acclaimed BLVD Bistro has moved to a new location at 2149 Frederick Douglass Blvd. Please read our review of the popular eatery by our very own A.J. Sidransky at bit.ly/UC-BLVDBistro.
Keep checking us out at www.uptowncollective.com.
Led Black
Editor-in-Chief
The Uptown Collective
The UC’s mission is to become “the” definitive, transformative and community-based force impacting the arts, culture, business and New York City’s overall perception of Upper Manhattan. Its objective is to reset, reboot and positively redefine Uptown’s artistic, political, cultural and business spheres via the online space as well the collective’s initiatives and functions.
