‘Vivian’s Music, 1969,’ from off-Broadway to Garde
“Vivian’s Music, 1969” enjoyed an off-Broadway run and performances at the estimable Edinburgh Fringe Festival in Scotland, where it earned “Best of 2018” awards for writing and low budget/ fringe production and a second place for best overall production.
The show — described as a play fantasia on race, music and family — comes to the Garde Arts Center in New London for performances Friday, Saturday and Sunday in celebration of Black History Month and as the beginning of Emerson Theater Collaborative’s 11th season.
Monica Bauer wrote the work, inspired by something that actually happened in 1969 in a segregated Midwest city: A white cop shot and killed a 14-year-old black girl. The incident sparked a race riot, one of the worst in the U.S.
But almost nothing was known about the girl — just her age and her name, which was Vivian.
In her play, Bauer constructs a life that Vivian might have lived, with a family, a passion for music and a possible familial relationship with a jazz legend.
The Garde production will star members of the original off-Broadway cast Russell Jordan and Kailah S. King. Glory Kadigan directs, and Theresa Broach is the producer.
The Emerson Theater Collaborative strives to serve youth, under-represented communities and artists with an emphasis on diversity, by producing innovative and thought-provoking theater in southeastern Connecticut.
Showtimes are 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday Tickets are $30, $25 for students and seniors. Call (860) 444-7373 or visit https://gardearts.org.