Class Acts

Grey's Anatomy star James Pickens Jr. and Deliver Us From Eva actress Kym Whitley return to their Cleveland roots today to help install the third class of inductees of the Karamu House Hall of Fame.The homecoming starts this morning with the pair fielding questions about their Tinseltown careers at a free workshop, "Inside the Performer's Dressing Room," at the theater. Then they'll rush off to the ceremonies in the Flats, where the Class of 2008 includes Karamu alumni Al Fann, Jean "Granny" Hawkins, R. Joyce Whitley, and directors Benno Frank and Helmuth Wolfes. U.S. Congresswoman Stephanie Tubbs Jones will be honored as a longtime benefactor, and playwright Langston Hughes will be posthumously recognized. The "On the Rise" award will also be given to actress Katrice Monee Headd to honor the theater's next generation of performers. The roundtable is from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. today at Karamu House, 2355 East 89th Street, and the induction ceremony starts at 6 tonight at 20/20, at the corner of Washington and Center streets on the West Bank of the Flats. Tickets are $150. Call 216-795-7077 or visit www.karamu.com.
Sat., June 28, 2008