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Program

Portrait: Strange Fruit
Artist: Nicole Wandera
Music: “Strange Fruit”
Composer & Lyricist: Paul Leavitt
Choreographer: Catherine Oh

Portrait: Shard
Artist: Céline Gauchey
Music: “I am (only mine)”
Composer & Lyricist: Cole Reyes
Text: Cole Reyes
Choreographer: Matthew Cumbie

Portrait: See Me
Artist: Linda Lowery
Music: “Do You See Me?”
Composer & Lyricist: Royden Tse
Choreographer: Michael Bobbitt

–Five-Minute Pause–

Portrait: Sleep with One Eye Open and Do Not Speak of It
Artist: Terrance Gregoraschuk
Music: “Sleep With One Eye Open”
Composer & Lyricist: Raymond Mueller
Choreographer: Jessi Brown-White

Portrait: Steeled
Artist: Judith Peck
Music: “Steeled”
Composer & Lyricist: Matthew Felbein
Choreographer and Soloist: Krystal Butler

Portrait: Night Hunger
Artist: Joan Cox
Music: “For Us”
Composer: Richard Clawson
Lyricist: Caroline Peacock
Choreographer: James Ellzy

–Five-Minute Pause–

Portrait: Man with Tattoo, Havana
Artist: James Kimak
Music: “Paz”
Composer: Ismael Huerta
Text: Alfonsina Storni (1892-1938)
Choreographer: Solomon HaileSelassie

Portrait: Black Lives Matter: Keep Your Eye on the Prize
Artist: Gregory Wilkins
Music: “It Was Not Fate”
Composer: Joshua Fishbein
Text: William H. A. Moore
Choreographer: Craig Cipollini

Portrait: Virginia
Artist: Jacqueline Hoysted
Music: “When I Rise Up”
Composer: Ethan Soledad
Text: Georgia Douglas Johnson (1880-1966)
Choreographer: Andrea Miller
Soloist: Chloe Crenshaw

Please join us in the orchestra section of the Concert Hall immediately following the performance for a talk back with the artists.

SPEAKERS

Jarrod Bennett
Alex Gerhard
Dillon Lewis
Jack Reiffer
Marcos Sastre
Sean Robinson

DANCERS

Krystal Butler
Sean Cator
Craig Cipollini
Chloe Crenshaw
Iván Dávila
James Ellzy
Neal Going
Jeffrey Hollands
Cole Jaconski
Daniel Kingsley
Franky Lieder
Juliana Murcia
Catherine Oh
Darryl Pilate
Brook Urquhart
Yuri Velasquez
Matt Zagorski

MUSICIANS

Piano: Theodore Guerrant
Cello: John Kaboff
Bass: Shawn Alger
Percussion: Mark Carson

Patrons are requested to silence cell phones and other electronic devices during performances.

The taking of photographs and the use of recording equipment are not allowed in this venue.
Program order and artists are subject to change.

Terms and Conditions

Program Notes

The Portraits Project began in early 2020 when a longtime singing member approached us with a generous gift earmarked for a new commission incorporating visual art. After several meetings and discussions, the Portraits Project was born with the mission of telling one another’s stories.

In 2021 we issued a call for artwork, yielding nearly 500 images from over 300 artists from 25 countries and from many of the United States. Ultimately nine images were chosen for the first installation of the Project. The call for musical scores went out in 2022, which yielded dozens of works by composers from around the world. In early 2023 singing members of GMCW gathered to sing through the scores and provide feedback to guide the selection of the nine compositions ultimately chosen to accompany the nine artworks in the exhibition. Later in 2023 we reached out to nine choreographers with whom we had worked in the past or who came recommended to us; the choreographers each selected a painting to bring to three-dimensional life with choreography.

In the fall of 2023 the visual artists, composers, choreographers, and the artistic team met virtually to talk about their contributions to the Project, and the intent behind the creation of their work. The first dance rehearsal took place in November 2023, and the first choral rehearsal took place in January 2024. The premiere performance now takes place at the Kennedy Center on June 16, 2024.

Special Thanks

Bill Lipsett & Eric Bolda
Joan Cox
Solomon HaileSelassie
Jamie Hillis
Victor Kidwell
Judith Peck
Darryl Pilate
Elena Vol
Chuck Willett

GMCW Board of Directors

Nicole Streeter, Chair
James Ellzy, Vice Chair
Raymond Hoffman, Secretary
Jack Reiffer, Treasurer
Brent Almond, Frank Anania, Rick Bennett, Michael Bigley, Tomeika Bowden, Marcus Brown (ex officio), Romm Gatongay, Adrian Gillem, Robert Ginzel, Carroll Hanson, A. Howland Hartley, John-Paul Hayworth, Eve Hill, Steve Oatmeyer, Jeb Stenhouse

èßäAVCelebrates Pride Month
At the Kennedy Center, all are welcome and safe regardless of orientation, gender, identity, or expression. We believe in celebrating the authenticity of our guests, staff, and artists, and we commit to presenting all stories on our stages.