Families can learn about “the father of American music”, Stephen Foster, and enjoy his Civil War-era songs during a special concert presented by the Randolph County Community Arts Center to complement its “Echoes of the Past” art exhibit and the Civil War’s 150th anniversary.
Mick Souter will perform “Ring, Ring the Banjo: An Evening of Stephen Foster” Sunday, Aug. 7 at 7 p.m. at the Arts Center in Elkins. All tickets are $5.
This delightful one-man musical and theatrical retrospective brings to life the warmth, gaiety and humor of America’s most celebrated songwriter. It features the wit and virtuosity of West Virginia’s “Bard of Education”, Souter, performing on guitar, piano, harmonica, “jawbones” and, of course, banjo. Souter will “fly along like a railroad car” with Foster’s lively compositions such as “Oh Susanna”, “The Camptown Races”, “The Glendy Burke” and “Ring The Banjo”, and “float like a vapor” through the sentimental favorites such as “The Old Folks At Home”, “My Old Kentucky Home”, and “Jeanie With The Light Brown Hair”.
Souter’s well-researched anecdotal monologues highlight significant biographical facts that reveal something of Stephen Foster: the man and the times, in which he lived, loved and wrote. The audience will be encouraged to participate throughout.
Stephen Foster was the most influential songwriter in America during the decade preceding the Civil War. His songs were carried west by the ‘49ers, performed in city after city by traveling minstrel troupes, and sung around countless pianos throughout America. Foster’s influence was so strong that he was the first musician to be admitted into the Hall of Fame of Great Americans, and he is the only composer to have two states adopt his songs as their official anthems, Kentucky with “My Old Kentucky Home” and Florida with “The Old Folks At Home”. His wonderful songs span generations and offer a musical glimpse into a bygone era.
Souter is West Virginia’s leading educational performing artists who has toured throughout the state for the past 25 years making thousands of appearances in theaters, state parks, schools, festivals and other venues. He has extensively researched both the music and history of Stephen Foster to provide a program that is culturally enriching as well as highly entertaining. He portrays Stephen’s closest brother, Morrison, as he provides poignant, often humorous, insights into the backgrounds of songs we have all known and loved. Souter’s sincere love for Foster’s music shines as he performs both famous and lesser-known compositions, all of which are wonderful examples of classic 19th century popular folk music.
This program is appropriate for all audiences of all ages, and is an excellent way for families to share a quality evening together much as they did in Foster’s day gathered around the piano in song.
Sponsors for Mick Souter's performance include WDNE Radio, The Inter-Mountain, Graceland Inn and Conference Center, Family Dental Practice, Allegheny Insurance, FirstEnergy, Parrack Insurance, and the West Virginia Division of Culture and History with approval from the West Virginia Commission on the Arts.
The Arts Center is currently displaying Echoes of the Past: The Civil War 150 Years Later, an exhibit commemorating the First Campaign of the Civil War. The exhibit, which features work by 10 acclaimed artists, will run daily through Aug. 17. Exhibit hours are Monday – Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission is free.
On display in the Maxwell Gallery at this time is "Grit and Determination", a solo exhibition of photographs focusing on Civil War sites and Civil War reenactment works by photographer Reid Mason of Belington.
Funding for the exhibit is provided by the Randolph County Community Arts Center as well as the Randolph County Commission, the City of Elkins, West Virginia Sesquicentennial of the American Civil War Commission, Marjorie Wolfe, June Myles, John and Joyce Allen, John C. Allen, Jr., Charles Lilly / Red Bone Mining Company, Don and Doreen Hall, Dr. and Mrs. Victor Thacker, and Mr. and Mrs. Robert D. Wamsley.
The Randolph County Community Arts Center, a non-profit organization promoting and supporting the arts in Randolph County and surrounding areas, is located at the corner of Randolph Avenue and Park Street in Elkins.
