The Blind Lemon Blues Education Project
by Documentary Arts in association with Amas Musical Theatre
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About
Education Guide: for teachers, 18 pages; Audio CD: 7 tracks, 12 minutes 23 seconds; Video: Blind Lemon Blues: A Learning Legacy performed in New York City at PS-302, 35 mins, QuickTime h.264 file.
Starring: Akin Babatunde, Benita Arterberry, and Sam Swank (Guitarist)
Documentary Arts in association with Amas Musical Theatre in New York City developed the Blind Lemon Blues Education Project in 2004, supported in part the National Endowment for the Arts and the City of Dallas Office of Cultural Affairs.
In May, Akin Babatunde, Makale Faber (School Programs Manager for City Lore in New York) and Katie Down (Amas Education Director) held a professional development workshop for participating teachers. The teachers received a copy of the Blind Lemon Blues CD (download the CD and listen to it on your computer, or burn your own copy) and education guide (download a print-ready PDF of the education guide), co-authored by Alan Govenar, Paddy Bowman (Director of the National Task Force for Folk Arts in Education), Katie Down, and Akin Babatunde, and were invited to a performance of Blind Lemon Blues at Central Park SummerStage on July 16, 2004.
In November, Amas teaching artists Eric Wallach and Brian Satz began residencies at Wadleigh Secondary School in Manhattan, the Bronx High School in Brooklyn, and the Beacon School in Manhattan, introducing the Education Guide and CD to teachers and students. Students learned about the history of the blues, focusing upon Blind Lemon Jefferson and Huddie 'Leadbelly'' and their contribution to the development of blues and American popular music.
On November 19 at Wadleigh Secondary School in Harlem, Documentary Arts and Amas presented a special 35 minute version of the Blind Lemon Blues musical, conceived and written Govenar and Babatunde, and featuring Babatunde, vocalist Benita Arterberry, and guitarist Sam Swank. The program, Blind Lemon Blues: A Learning Legacy (download or watch the video online) opened with spoken word pieces by students from Wadleigh's Poetry Club and a short performance by the tap dance club.
The Blind Lemon Blues Education Project will continue in Dallas, beginning in the Fall 2005, with performances at the Hall of State in Fair Park, presented in association with the Dallas Historical Society and supported in part by the City of Dallas Office of Cultural Affairs.
