Past Event

Mar 23—26, 2017

Octavia E. Butler'sParable of the Sower
A Concert Performance

Toshi Reagon &
Bernice Johnson Reagon / NYC

“An unrepentantly political work of theater. Poignant and cautionary, this blues, gospel and funk-inflected work argues that if we want to avoid this future we’ll need diversity, strength and a song or two.”

— The New York Times

A musical event of rare power and beauty that fuses science fiction with 200 years of Black music.

In this genre-defying work of concert performance featuring a powerhouse ensemble of 20 singers and musicians, Octavia E. Butler’s Parable of the Sower brings together 30 powerful songs drawn from 200 years of Black music to give musical life to Butler’s acclaimed science fiction novel of the same name. Written by Toshi Reagon, who Vibe Magazine called “one helluva rock’n’roller-coaster ride,” in collaboration with her mother, Bernice Johnson Reagon, the iconic singer, scholar and activist, Parable of the Sower becomes a mesmerizing theatrical work of rare power and beauty that reveals deep insights on gender, race and the future of human civilization.

Parable of the Sower tells the story of young Lauren Olamina, who lives in a not-so-distant America, where climate change has driven society to violence and the brink of extinction. When she loses both family and home, Lauren ventures out unprotected. What begins as a desperate flight for survival leads to something much more – a startling vision of human destiny which births “Earthseed,” a new faith based on the idea that “God is Change”.

Info

Venue

Emerson Paramount Center
Robert J. Orchard Stage
559 Washington St, Boston, MA 02111



Dates

Mar 23, 2017 - Mar 26, 2017


Details

90 minutes, no intermission

Tickets from $25

Ages 13+