HMAAC Guest Curator Re-Storying The Stories of Historic Communities as Live Events
The Houston Museum of African American Culture (HMAAC) proudly names Alexus Grace (Rhone) as a Summer/Fall 2025 guest curator. The founder of Truth Meet Story, Rhone will facilitate storytelling workshops and produce two live storytelling events - “Re-Storying The Story of Sunnyside,” on Wednesday, July 2, at the Sunnyside Multi-Service Center; and “Re-Storying The Story of Fifth Ward,” on Thursday, September 18, at The DeLUXE Theater. Both events, an artistic collaboration between performance art and pride in place, are free and open to the public.
This community installation is designed to reflect back to attendees power and progress through storytelling. It will, like all great art, invite the community into an experience - safe, accessible, and designed to both entertain and inform.
A native Houstonian, Rhone understands the power behind determining which stories get told and who tells them. Her curiosity around narrative selection began when she was a reluctant reader in middle school, claiming most of the stories on the bookshelves were “windows, not mirrors.” She could see everyone else’s life and world, but could not see hers.
When a friend recommended Rainbow Jordan, by Alice Childress, a portal opened for Rhone. “I saw myself, and it felt great. Then I wondered why I didn’t see as much of ‘me’ as I saw of ‘them’?”
Rhone would grow up to write books with characters and storylines set in South Park Village, the community where she spent the first part of her childhood. She said her memory is her most treasured gift as a storyteller. “I remember the people, the music, the games, the dances, the joy, and the drama. I remember it all.”
She also remembers how it felt when her story was not told correctly.
After studying journalism/public relations at the University of Texas at Austin, Rhone worked briefly in the insurance and financial services industry. Then, she pursued art and theology studies at Fuller Theological Seminary in Los Angeles, where she honed her research skills, focusing on reframing and re-storying the narratives from historic Black communities.
“I love to pore through research reports. I’m re-reading the Moynihan Report (1965) right now, as this year is the 60th anniversary of its release. But what fascinates and annoys me is how much power it had in telling a story about a community from which the writers enjoyed social distance.” She adds emphatically, “That’s what these re-storying events are designed to address. The community storytellers will tell it right so the audience can carry it right.”
Although the teller roster includes a few notable names like Constable Smokie Phillips from Precinct 7, and Kristi Rangel, lead curator for the Bear Witness Series, the shining star for each event is the neighborhood—Sunnyside (July 2) and Fifth Ward (September 18).
According to HMAAC Chief Operating Officer, Davinia Reed, “At HMAAC, we preserve Houston’s rich African American history: within and beyond our walls. Our mission is empowerment through organic engagement in the arts, bridging generations, and keeping the collective memory of resistance and renewal in Houston’s African American communities.” Both re-storying events are free and open to the public. Join us as Rhone curates an experience that fuels pride in Sunnyside, connects the dots of history to contemporary experiences in the Fifth Ward, and seeds future preservation for both communities.
For more information or for free tickets, please visit https://Re-Storying-The-Story-of-SunnysideHTX.eventbrite.com.
“Re-Storying The Story of Sunnyside”
7 PM, Wednesday, July 2
Sunnyside Multi-Service Center, 4410 Reed Rd, Houston, TX
Tickets: FREE - https://Re-Storying-The-Story-of-SunnysideHTX.eventbrite.com
“Re-Storying The Story of Fifth Ward”
7 PM, Thursday, September 18
The DeLUXE Theater, 3303 Lyons Ave, Houston, TX
Tickets: FREE (ticket link opening June 2025)
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