“Bard SummerScape celebrates the uplifting spirit of Black music with Black Roots Summer, presented in association with Electric Root and organized and led by Michael Mwenso and Jono Gasparro. Over two weekends (July 23–24 and July 29–31) on an outdoor stage at Bard’s Montgomery Place campus, the Sierra Leone-born, London-raised, NYC-based Mwenso and a predominantly BIPOC lineup of more than 20 artists, singers, musicians, and dancers will premiere three original concerts providing healing, enlightenment, and inspiration after a year of lockdown and uprisings for racial justice.” - bard.edu
Concert 1 - Love Will Be The Only Weapon
Concert 2 - Genius Mother Mary, inspired by the life of American jazz artist Mary Lou Williams
Concert 3 - The Sound of Black Music - A recontextualizing of the Rodgers & Hammerstein Musical