The play will take place from noon to 3 p.m. in the Campus Theatre on the southwest side of the campus at 18111 Nordhoff St., Northridge. Admission is free.

"Weights" uses music, poetry and dramatic dialogue to trace Manning's life from his impoverished childhood in South Central Los Angeles, his life in Hollywood, the influences that defined him as an artist and the night he lost his sight to a bullet. It was developed within the nationally-renowned Mark Taper Forum Other Voices Project.

Manning currently is the California Arts Council's artist-in-residence with the Taper, where he teaches playwriting and storytelling to persons with disabilities.

His playwriting credits include "Private Battle" for the Actors' Gang, "Central Ave. Chalk Circle" for the Cornerstone Theater Company, "Visitations" for the Zephyr Theater, "Bohemian Fair" for Cal Arts, "Shoot!" and "The Convert" for Theatre by the Blind, and "On the Blink" for the Actor's Conservatory Ensemble.

Manning's poetry has been published in literary magazines and anthologies such as "Grand Passion," "sTARING bACK," "Disability Rag," "Ergo" and "Kaleidoscope." His solo spoken work CD, "Clarity of Vision," was released by New Alliance Records in 1994.

He has received Drama-Logue Awards for playwriting, and grants and fellowships from the Los Angeles Cultural Affairs Department, California Community Foundation, the California Arts Council and the Plum Foundation.

In addition to his artistic work, Manning is a former World Champion of Blind Judo and the U.S. Olympic Committee's Blind Athlete of the Year for 1990.

An aspiring painter, Manning was shot by a deranged drunk in 1978. His assailant was never caught.

"Weights" is being sponsored by CSUN's Presidential Advisory Board on Equity and Diversity. For more information about the performance, call (818) 677-2077.

California State University, Northridge has more than 27,000 full-time and part-time students and offers 48 bachelor¹s and 39 master¹s degrees. Founded in 1958, it is the only four-year university in the San Fernando Valley.