Published: March 03, 2008 05:27 pm      

Enjoy a night of music, dance, and entertainment at NFCC

Artist Series presents tribute to folk music legend Woody Guthrie March 6

Submitted by NFCC Office of College

Advancement

North Florida Community College (NFCC) is preparing for an exciting night of dance, music and fun as it welcomes Vanaver Caravan’s performance of Pastures of Plenty: A Tribute to Woody Guthrie in Dance and Music to the Van H. Priest Auditorium stage on Thursday, March 6 at 7 p.m. This lively and entertaining show will be the grand finale of the Artist Series’ 2007-2008 season; don’t miss it. Tickets are on sale now in the NFCC College Advancement/Artist Series office and can be purchased by telephone at 850-973-1653.

Pastures of Plenty is inspired by the “father of the American folksong revival,” Woody Guthrie (1912-1967). The show takes a journey through Guthrie’s music and life – “from California to the New York island,” from the Dust bowl to the California orchards, from the miners’ shanteys to the outlaws’ trail.

Dance Magazine calls the performance “an explosion of joy, rhythms and energy” and The New York Times says it’s a “rousing hoe-down night.”

Hear the instruments and musical styles of Woody’s America: “Old Timey” and bluegrass banjo; Carter Family style autoharp and harmonies; Southern, Western, and New England style fiddling; along with Leadbelly’s 12 string guitar style. Feel the rhythms of Southern Appalachian clog dancing; Western style squares and Virginia reels; New England contra dances; Harlem’s savoy style lindy hop; urban “stomp dancing;” along with New York’s modern, interpretive styles.

“A polished and vivacious group of dancers and musicians held the audience captivated...ingeniously conceived!” said The Miami Herlad.

The show explores Guthrie’s quintessential style of music which lyrically captures the sights, sounds and feelings of people who lived through significant historic 20th-Century movements and events like the Great Depression, the Great Dust Storm, World War II and the social and the political upheavals resulting from Unionism, the Communist Party and the Cold War. Many of his songs, such as “This Land is Your Land” and “Hard Travellin,” are tightly woven into the fabric of American culture.

The performance is being funded in part by a grant from the Southern Arts Federation in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts and the Florida Division of Cultural Affair.

The Vanaver Caravan, established in 1972 by musician/composer Bill Vanaver and dancer/choreographer Livia Drapkin Vanaver, performs all over the globe. Their down-home, high-spirited performances have been presented throughout the U.S., Europe and North Africa, including appearances at major festivals including the Smithsonian American Folklife Festival.

Tickets for Pastures of Plenty are $11 general or $6 for NFCC students and children age 12 and under. Seating is limited and it is best to purchase tickets in advance. For more information, contact the NFCC College Advancement/Artist Series office at 850-973-1653 or email ArtistSeries@nfcc.edu. More information is also available at www.nfcc.edu, keyword Artist Series. Pastures of Plenty is the last show of the 2007-2008 Artist Series season; the 2008-2009 Artist Series begins September 2008.