The St. Louis Black Repertory Company will open its 29th season with Crossin’ Over, an all-new musical production chronicling the history of Africans in America, at Edison Theatre Sept. 14-25.
Unfolding through five musical suites, Crossin’ Over carries the audience from village hut to slave ship, auction block, plantation fields and the modern Civil Rights Movement. Traditional Western Africa drumming merges with psalms, hymns and Gospel standards such as Swing Low Sweet Chariot, Precious Lord and We Shall Overcome.
Ron Himes, the Henry E. Hampton Jr. artist-in-residence in the Performing Arts Department in Arts & Sciences and founder and producing director of the Black Rep, directs the show, which he developed with Black Rep musical director Charles Creath.
“Crossin’ Over takes a look at songs of faith, spirituals and gospel music from its roots in Africa, through the middle passage, slavery, northern migration, the civil rights movement and into contemporary gospel music today,” said Himes. “At the same time we trace the crossing over in cultures as well as styles of music and their relationship to the African American experience.”
The cast features St. Louis gospel recording artists Denise Thimes and Karen Hylton as well as Black Rep mainstays J. Samuel Davis, Chuck Flowers, Deondra Means and Kelvin Roston Jr., and newcomers Herman Gordon, Leah Stewart and percussionist Kunama Mtendaji.
Performances, which are hosted by the University, begin at 7 p.m. Wednesdays and Thursdays; 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays; and 3 p.m. Sundays.
Tickets range from $10-30 and are available by calling the Black Rep box office, (314) 534-3810. Special pricing is available as part of the Black Rep’s “Under 30 Thursdays,” which feature half-price tickets for patrons age 30 and under with valid identification.
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WHO: St. Louis Black Repertory Company WHAT: Crossin’ Over WHEN: Sept. 14 to 25 WHERE: Edison Theatre, Washington University, Mallinckrodt Student Center, 6445 Forsyth Blvd. COST: $10 to $30. Available through the Black Rep box office, (314) 534-3810 SPONSOR: Washington University in St. Louiss |
The Black Rep is the largest African-American performing arts organization in Missouri and among the largest in the country. It is committed to providing platforms for theater, dance and other creative expressions from the African-American perspective that heighten the social and cultural awareness of its audiences. Through its educational and mainstage productions, the company reaches an audience exceeding 150,000 annually.
The Black Rep receives sustaining support from the National Endowment for the Arts, Missouri Arts Council, Regional Arts Commission and the Arts & Education Council of Greater St. Louis.
For more information about the Black Rep, visit stlouisblackrep.com.