I’ll Fly Away to Freedom
October 13-14
The Legacy Arts Project
at the Kelly Strayhorn

If nothing else it is the beat of the drums that will take us back; it is the beat of the drums that will stir our sleeping souls.  It is the beat of the drums that will deliver us back, safe on the shores of the Mother Land, Africa.  It is the beat of the drums that will make us remember, we were once a great people.

The drums informed the audience it was time to be transported back to the middle passage, to remember who we were before we were slaves in America, and so the stage transformance of I'll Fly Away to Freedom began, with the beat of the drums, directing our hearts home.  This stage “transformance” is the brainchild of Linda Imani Barrett, Director and Founder of The Legacy Arts Project, recounting the accurate story of African Slaves who were captured and brought to the auction blocks in the Gullah/Geechee Islands which lay off the southeastern coast of North America, the islands spread from South Carolina, Georgia, and to the northern part of Florida.  

This visual story covered the birth of the Gullah/Geechee Nation was narrated to the audience in native language by Head-of-State, official liaison and Chieftess Queen Quet, of the Gullah/Geechee nation. (link to interview).

The audience was treated to fantastic stage scenery, colorful costumes, energetic dance and drumming. The participants in the performance included the young students of the Wah Toto Sankofa African Drum, Dance and Choir and the Legacy Arts Community Gospel Choir and the celebrated and talented likes of Nana Malaya Rucker and Temujin Ekunfeo who were among those presented with the Keepers of the Flame Award.  It was great to see so many former Pittsburghers return to support the First Voice Festival.  This festival is a very important step in the celebration of the future opening of the August Wilson Center for African American Culture.

 

 

Rise
Hazlett Theatre

What happens when a group of women with a lot on their minds get together?  You have a mixture of spoken word, music, drama, and video exposing their experiences that have emerged from the hidden depths of their souls rising up to be shared.  The performers shared experiences drawn from past and present relationships with family, friends, strangers and lovers.  The audience was witness to quick wit, frantic, and soul wrenching stories.  With the one common thread, to also strive to rise over whatever life has put you through.

 

 

Step Afrika!
Hazlett Theatre

The theatre was shaking during the powerful foot stomping presentation of the Step Afrika troupe, which was founded in 1996.  This energetic troupe introduced to the evening audience the history of the Black Greek stepping, taking it beyond the college campus and the movies.  They stepped back to the fertile dusty earth of our African brothers and sisters, where stepping has been used throughout the century as a means of communication some in the diamond mines, in tribal celebrations, then being carried over to the college campus, it's a way of communicating pride, determination and unity.  The group performed a variety of stepping styles covering tap, clogging, hip hop, free style and the gumboot and Zulu dance from South Africa.  Step Afrika has in place collaborative residency programs in various public schools across the nation, teaching the youngest to the high school student the discipline of working towards unity.  The group leads the students by example explaining and putting in place the three important characteristics in performing stepping, 1) Teamwork; 2) Discipline and 3) Determination.  They gave a few lucky people in the audience a chance to do a quick study and perform a short step routine.

 

Soul Garden: A Hip Hop Retrospective
Hazlett Theatre

The closing event of the First Voice Festival went out with a bang of the drums!  As local and national hip hop and soul artists shared the stage for the Festival’s last night.  Local actor and spoken word artist, Nathan James, was the evening’s host sharing his original words of strength and hope. The same words which were reflected by all the evening’s artists, as they each brought to the stage their strength and energy and in-your-face vibes.  Each group contributed their own lyrical and musical style, expressing views and life experiences through voice and beats. The audience ears were filled with a cool mixture of funk, soul, rock & roll neo-soul, R&B, and jazz fusion, which had many in the audience either rocking in their seats, dancing on their feet, with background sound of sanctified hands clapping resounding throughout the theatre. It could not get any better than this.  All this soul in one place would make anyone jump up and dance.  

The evening topped off with a special guest appearance by Big Daddy Kane.  He was introduced by a friend, Paradise Gray, who had reached out to Kane back when he first started out at the age of 15 in New York’s Latin Quarters.  The crowd showed him much love, he could not get away from the audiences’ requests of their favorite raps, such as Smooth Operator, I Work, and Ain’t No Half Steppin. The Soul Garden musical event was an excellent way to end the Festival, everyone on their feet and having a good time.  

Janera Solomon, Curator of the First Voice Festival, closed the event thanking everyone for their support and participation. Stating this is a great way to introduce festival attendees to the many talented artists in the City and a promotion to build interest in the August Wilson Center for African American Culture.