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PERFORMING ARTS LIVE
Created by Martha Redbone and Aaron Whitby
Music and Lyrics by Martha Redbone and Aaron Whitby
Revered blues and soul singer Martha Redbone performs a concert version of Bone Hill, a new musical theatre work in progress inspired by the artist’s family lineage in the Appalachian Mountains. Featuring a cast of eight actors/musicians, the story follows Redbone’s return to her homeland on Black Mountain—and the coal mines of Harlan County, Kentucky—where her family has dwelled for centuries.
Spanning the lives of four generations of women in a Cherokee family, Redbone travels back in time to her own childhood, and into the memories and tales of her ancestors, to tell the story of one family’s connection to the land—the simplicity and sacredness of that connection and the ruptures that threatened to extinguish it. Written and performed by the multi-award-winning Redbone, the performance powerfully blends the folk and country sounds of the Appalachian Mountains with the gospel music traditions of Redbone’s African American father and the Cherokee/Choctaw spirit of the artist’s mother. Along the way, this dramatic musical reveals a thought-provoking uniquely American story, and one that has yet to be told by history.
Bone Hill: The Concert is commissioned by Joe’s Pub and The Public Theater as part of the New York Voices artistsé initiative; co-commissioned by the Lincoln Center David Rubenstein Atrium. Bone Hill is the recipient of the NEFA National Theater Project, an NPN Creation and Touring grant and Redbone is a 2015 Native Arts and Cultures Foundation Fellow. Redbone and Bone Hill: The Concert are represented by SRO Artists, Inc.
This performance is part of the 2019 Women’s History Month presented by Shenandoah University’s Gender and Women’s Studies program. Support for the project is provided by the New England Foundation for the Arts’ National Theater Project, with lead funding from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and support from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation.
WATCH
LISTEN
Concessions will be available for cash purchase beginning one hour prior to this performance.
CHEROKEE & CHOCTAW MUSIC WORKSHOP
Friday, March 22 from 10AM to 10:50AM • Goodson Chapel – Recital Hall
Join Martha Redbone for an interactive workshop exploring the traditions of Cherokee and Choctaw music. This workshop is free and open to the public.
SONGWRITING WORKSHOP
Friday, March 22 from 11AM to 12:30PM • Ruebush Hall, Room 113
Join Martha Redbone and her creative partner, instrumentalist/composer Aaron Whitby for a workshop exploring songwriting tools and techniques, and how the artists have collaborated to create a diverse range of works. This workshop is free and open to Shenandoah University students.
ACCESSIBILITY
All facilities are wheelchair accessible. Infrared hearing system headsets are available in Ohrstrom-Bryant Theatre only. Accommodations for disabilities may be arranged by contacting the Box Office at least three days prior to the performance.
