PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release
Contact: Alice Uhl (917) 557-6004 and aliceu@earthlink.net
FringeNYC 2009 Audience Favorite Award Winner Returns
SINGIN WID A SWORD IN MA HAN An Underground Railroad Love Story
In SINGIN WID A SWORD IN MA HAN, a young woman tells the story of her family's escape to freedom via the Underground Railroad, interweaving the Spirituals as escape songs. On the eve of her return to the plantation to rescue her recaptured sister-in-law, Topper recounts her tale in a church aided by her five free friends who make up a Griot Chorus and accompany her with voice and hand percussion. Singin shows a surprising range of "conductors" on the Slave Grapevine that was the actual Underground Railroad.
The story opens in the 1850s, on a Maryland plantation, when Topper is sold away from her fiance Nate, forcing the whole family into a decision to escape. They head for Columbia PA -- where runaways are given free land -- while ruthlessly pursued by the notorious slave catchers, the Gap Gang, who were permitted by the Fugitive Slave Law to cross into free states to hunt them down. The escape of course doesn't go according to plan, and therein lies the story.
Vienna Carroll - Playwright, singer, actor, herbalist, and dandelion wine maker, Ms Carroll moved to Harlem from York, PA (where much of Singin takes place) after receiving her BA in African American Studies/Political Science from Yale University. A regular on NYC's jazz scene, she wrote Singin after she recently discovered York's history as a hotbed of abolitionism and Underground Railroad activity. She has presented Singin for the Goodrich Underground Railroad Museum in York and venues in NYC. Ms. Carroll produced a CD of spirituals, Singin Wid A Sword In Ma Han in which she is accompanied by percussionist Newman Taylor Baker. ViennaCarroll.com
Keith Johnston - Director. Mr. Johnson is artistic director of the American Theatre of Harlem and has been teaching the Actors Workshop at ATH since the Fall semester of 1994. Mr. Johnston has directed readings, full productions, showcases, dance recitals, and the "Seasons" annual one-act festival. He is the founder of "SHINE", the educational component for ATH, servicing the community through drama, addressing social issues such as HIV, violence prevention, conflict resolution, staff development, and parenting. He cofounded "Back-A-Yard Theatre" (story-telling group) in 1987. He is one of the leading teaching artists in NYC and has conducted workshops and productions for The Children's Arts Carnival, NYU, Creative Arts Team, the CUNY system and several universities and community centers in South Africa. He also developed theatrical co-existence sessions for Seeds of Peace. AmericanTheatreofHarlem.org
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Publicity Materials
High-resolution (300 dpi) photos; Most are about 11" wide, 7" high, 20MB. Click thumbnail to open high res file. Right click on that file and choose "save picture as" to download.
Poster from FringeNYC summer show
Download and print posters:
• 11" x 17", PDF, 7.3MB version
and
• Lower res/JPG 1.5MB version
Download more high resolution images at http://drop.io/uk3kehr
Credit all images to © 2009 Dixie Sheridan
