 as the incomparable Lena Horne! 
 Kenya King's one woman musical tribute to Lena Horne, "Lena Horn to Hollywood " features the life of this consummate entertainer while sharing some of her most famous hits. Featured tunes include as "Stormy Weather", "Night and Day," "It's Alright with Me," "As Long as I Live, " "Someone to Watch Over Me," "It's Love," "Love Me or Leave Me, "etc. Educational and entertaining, the program uses equal parts of narrative and songs with Kenya relating the factsof Lena Horne's remarkable life while she changes costumes on stage. Ms. King offers an audience Q&A at the end of her presentation.
Lena Calhoun Horne was born on June 30, 1917, in Brooklyn, New York. Her parents divorced when she was very young and her mother left her briefly in the care of her grandparents while she pursued a career as an actress. Lena dropped out of school at the age of 14 and got her first job as a singer and dancer at Cotton Club when she was 16. The Cotton Club was a famous Harlem night spot where Black performers played for White audiences. At the Club, she performed with such greats as Cab Calloway, Duke Ellington--both of whom had a significant influenced on her career. Before she ever made a movie, Lena's beauty and talent had her playing to packed houses on Broadway. At 21, she appeared in the Hollywood film, "The Duke is Tops," at 24, she played a nightclub singer in "Panama Hattie" but the film was shot so that her role could be cut out when they were shown in the South--Jim Crow had a tight grip on America and movie executives feared that they would lose revenue if a Black performer appeared in any role but that of a servant, miscreant or other minor occupation--Lena refused those types of roles. Ironically, since Lena often photographed so light in movies, fearful of offending White audienes, MGM commissioned makeup legend Max Factor to create a makeup line for her called "Dark Egyptian" meant to make her look more "Negro" on the big screen. In 1943, Lena appeared as Selina Rogers in an all-black musical, "Stormy Weather"--the title of which became not only a big hit, but eventually, her theme song. That same year she played Georgia Brown opposite the famous Ethel Waters in "Cabin in the Sky." Though branded a communist sympathizer because of her support of and association with Paul Robeson, Afterwards, Lena's musical career took off, recording numerous movies and albums through the decades--appearing as Glinda the Good Witch in "The Wiz" in 1978 and television appearences as late as the mid nineties. Lena was nominated for a 1958 Tony Award as Best Actress (Musical) for "Jamaica," and received a Special Tony Award in 1982 for "Lena Horne: The Lady and Her Music. She was inducted into the Big Band and Jazz Hall of Fame in 1991 and is a member of the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority. Lena, now 89, lives in Manhattan. Who is Kenya King? In the 90s Kenya co-wrote a hit
parody song in honor of the Atlanta Braves, which has been broadcast
nationally on the major market television and radio staitons.,
As a result, Kenya was featured in numerous newspapers and magazines. Kenya, an accomplished professonal model, actor, singer and dancer has played leading roles in numerous plays and musicals. Her talents helped her win a Miss America® Preliminary Pageant and she performed and participated in the 50 th Anniversary of the Miss Georgia competition and placed in the top 10 in the Miss Georgia USA® pageant and the Miss Black America Pageant® where she was also named "Most Photogenic." During Kenya's reign with the Miss America Organization, she initiated a program called C.H.I.L.D. (Changing How Individuals Learn Develop), a program designed to use the creative arts to combat youth violence. As a result of her community involvement and initiative as a role model, she was invited by the SCLC (Southern Christian Leadership Conference) to sing at the King Center in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in the presence of the King family and other dignitaries. In January of 2006, Kenya performed as the lead actress in the dramatic musical, "When Sunday Comes." Kenya holds a bachelor's degree
in journalism from Georgia State University, an associate's degree
in music from the Art Institute of Atlanta, and is currently
pursing her master's degree. 
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Who
is Lena Horne?