The Children’s March
3224 Bee Ridge Road
Sarasota, FL 34239
Florida Premiere
A moving and dramatic oratorio by Philadelphia composer Andrew Bleckner takes us on a journey to a historical event during the Civil Rights Era of the 1960s. Incorporating traditional African-American styles and spirituals, the work shows the incivility of segregation through the innocence and optimistic spirit of children.
Artists
Charlotte Blake Alston, librettist
Andrew Bleckner, composer
Charlayne Hunter-Gault, narrator
Maiya Stevenson, soprano
Krista Laskowski, mezzo-soprano
Amy Jo Connours, alto
Warren Mitchell, tenor
Baron Garriott, tenor
Jesse Martin, baritone
John Whittlesey, baritone
Sarasota Young Voices – Geneviève Beauchamp, artistic director
Lumina Youth Choirs – Deah McReynolds, artistic director
Choral Artists of Sarasota
Joseph Holt, artistic director and conductor
Singers
Program
Section 1: Opening
Once To Every Man and Nation • Run Mary Run • The Fourteenth Amendment (Section 1)
Section 2: Timeline of Struggle
Fugitive Slave Act & Dred Scott • Emancipation Proclamation • The Fourteenth Amendment and Plessy vs. Ferguson Brown vs. Board of Education & Rosa Parks • Little Rock • On and On
Section 3: Birmingham
The Segregation Ordinance • Mama Tell Me Why • The God of Man • Martin Luther King, Jr. and Bevel Dialogue • Woke Up This Mornin’ • Church Meeting
Section 4: The Children March
Word Spread • Bevel: Non-violence • I’m Going • Getting Ready • I’m On My Way • Bull Connor: “You Can Crush Them” • Fifty More • Children’s Declaration • Freedom/Ain’t Gonna Let Nobody • Firehoses • News Footage and Images •The Children Prevail • God Bless You
Section 5: Epilogue
Will You Stand & There is a Balm in Gilead
