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1 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE JH: Mechanics of a Legend: Diverse Artists Find Tragedy and Triumph in the Legend of John Henry Photo by Renee Rosensteel Pittsburgh, PA – At a time when issues of racial justice constantly simmer and repeatedly boil over all across the country, one local theatre company looks to the nation’s past for insights into contemporary inequalities as it creates an original play aimed at illuminating the underlying basis for current conflicts. Hiawatha Project, a Pittsburgh based performance company, will present an original work entitled JH: Mechanics of a Legend B based on the legend of John Henry B at the August Wilson Center in February 2017. In the legacy left to us in song by early American minstrels and echoed today by Harry Belafonte, Johnny Cash, and Bruce Springsteen B the mighty railroad man races a steam drill to his death and leaves his fabled hammer to Polly Ann, his mysterious lover. According to Monteze Freeland, who plays the title character and also coBwrote parts of the show, “John Henry’s spirit lives in every black man. His story is my story. I feel my father Gary and my grandfather Walter every time I step into the rehearsal room.” For Freeland inhabiting that legacy hasn’t been easy, but he embraces the challenge so that “the world will never forget our sacrifice.” Most members of the JH core creative team, including Freeland, have been participating in Hiawatha’s development process since September 2014. Right now the group meets for monthly workshops in preparation for a standard rehearsal period in January. While the primary goal is to mount a production that will entertain and enlighten audiences, the company emphasizes the process as much as the product. Hiawatha Project values genuine collaboration and seeks to include an array of voices in its artistic decisionBmaking. Delana Flowers plays the role of John Henry’s wife Polly Ann, who herself must contend with forces of discrimination as she strives to survive and thrive in the postB“emancipation” world. Flowers says participating in the project “brought me to the realization that art should cause questions and conversations, introspection, and reBevaluation. It should be a mirror and a window, like this piece.”

FOR!IMMEDIATE!RELEASE! !JH:!Mechanics!of!a!Legend ... · ! 2! JH:!Mechanics!of!a!Legend!is!meant!to!be!a!moving!theatrical!experience!for!black!and!white! audiences!about!our!shared!and!often!difficult!history!as!Americans

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Page 1: FOR!IMMEDIATE!RELEASE! !JH:!Mechanics!of!a!Legend ... · ! 2! JH:!Mechanics!of!a!Legend!is!meant!to!be!a!moving!theatrical!experience!for!black!and!white! audiences!about!our!shared!and!often!difficult!history!as!Americans

! 1!

!!!!FOR!IMMEDIATE!RELEASE!!!JH:!Mechanics!of!a!Legend:!Diverse'Artists'Find'Tragedy'and'

Triumph'in'the'Legend'of'John'Henry'

!

!Photo!by!Renee!Rosensteel!

!!

Pittsburgh,!PA!–!At!a!time!when!issues!of!racial!justice!constantly!simmer!and!repeatedly!

boil!over!all!across!the!country,!one!local!theatre!company!looks!to!the!nation’s!past!for!

insights!into!contemporary!inequalities!as!it!creates!an!original!play!aimed!at!illuminating!

the!underlying!basis!for!current!conflicts.!!!

!

Hiawatha!Project,!a!Pittsburgh!based!performance!company,!will!present!an!original!work!

entitled!JH:!Mechanics!of!a!Legend!B!based!on!the!legend!of!John!Henry!B!at!the!August!Wilson!Center!in!February!2017.!!In!the!legacy!left!to!us!in!song!by!early!American!minstrels!

and!echoed!today!by!Harry!Belafonte,!Johnny!Cash,!and!Bruce!Springsteen!B!the!mighty!

railroad!man!races!a!steam!drill!to!his!death!and!leaves!his!fabled!hammer!to!Polly!Ann,!his!

mysterious!lover.!!

!

According!to!Monteze!Freeland,!who!plays!the!title!character!and!also!coBwrote!parts!of!the!

show,!“John!Henry’s!spirit!lives!in!every!black!man.!His!story!is!my!story.!I!feel!my!father!

Gary!and!my!grandfather!Walter!every!time!I!step!into!the!rehearsal!room.”!For!Freeland!

inhabiting!that!legacy!hasn’t!been!easy,!but!he!embraces!the!challenge!so!that!“the!world!

will!never!forget!our!sacrifice.”!!

!

Most!members!of!the!JH!core!creative!team,!including!Freeland,!have!been!participating!in!Hiawatha’s!development!process!since!September!2014.!!Right!now!the!group!meets!for!

monthly!workshops!in!preparation!for!a!standard!rehearsal!period!in!January.!While!the!

primary!goal!is!to!mount!a!production!that!will!entertain!and!enlighten!audiences,!the!

company!emphasizes!the!process!as!much!as!the!product.!Hiawatha!Project!values!genuine!

collaboration!and!seeks!to!include!an!array!of!voices!in!its!artistic!decisionBmaking.!!

!

Delana!Flowers!plays!the!role!of!John!Henry’s!wife!Polly!Ann,!who!herself!must!contend!

with!forces!of!discrimination!as!she!strives!to!survive!and!thrive!in!the!postB“emancipation”!

world.!!Flowers!says!participating!in!the!project!“brought!me!to!the!realization!that!art!

should!cause!questions!and!conversations,!introspection,!and!reBevaluation.!It!should!be!a!

mirror!and!a!window,!like!this!piece.”!!

!

Page 2: FOR!IMMEDIATE!RELEASE! !JH:!Mechanics!of!a!Legend ... · ! 2! JH:!Mechanics!of!a!Legend!is!meant!to!be!a!moving!theatrical!experience!for!black!and!white! audiences!about!our!shared!and!often!difficult!history!as!Americans

! 2!

JH:!Mechanics!of!a!Legend!is!meant!to!be!a!moving!theatrical!experience!for!black!and!white!audiences!about!our!shared!and!often!difficult!history!as!Americans.!!The!piece!aims!to!

honor!the!legend!of!John!Henry!as!the!only!AfricanBAmerican!folktale!hero,!as!well!as!

celebrate!the!rich!AfricanBAmerican!oral!history!traditions!that!inspired!the!legend.!The!

story!of!John!Henry!is!about!a!man!racing!a!machine,!heroically!beating!that!machine!for!a!

moment,!and!then!tragically!dying!from!the!effort.!!

!

That!machine!as!revealed!in!JH:!Mechanics!of!a!Legend!through!the!metaphor!of!the!stage!is!the!systematic!machinations!of!white!power!and!privilege.!The!work!poetically!reveals!

America’s!past!and!present!economic!connections!to!slavery!and!slave!labor.!!It!will!help!

audiences!better!realize!America’s!brutal!and!capitalistic!history!of!slavery!before!the!Civil!

War!and!recognize!the!disempowerment!and!subjugation!of!many!African!Americans!after!

the!war.!The!historical!John!Henry!was!enslaved!as!a!member!of!a!railroad!chain!gang!and!

died!as!a!result.!

!

Hiawatha!Artistic!Director,!coBwriter!and!director!of!the!work!Anya!Martin!says,!“I!first!

became!interested!in!the!legend!of!John!Henry!because!of!the!‘Man!Against!Machine’!aspects!

of!the!story.!!As!an!artist!I!was!asking,!‘What!machines!are!we!racing!against!today?’!I!

thought!I!would!be!creating!a!work!about!cell!phones!and!social!media!B!but!then!after!

reading!Scott!Nelson’s!book,!Steel!Drivin’!Man,!the!concept!for!this!piece!took!an!aboutBface.!!I!realized!it!wasn’t!technology!that!killed!John!Henry.!!It!wasn’t!the!steam!drill.!!It!was!unjust!

social!systems!B!social!machines!–!the!machines!of!racism,!capitalism,!and!industrialization.!!The!show!went!down!a!completely!different!road!after!that,!and!the!process!has!been!about!

honoring!that!artistic!journey.”!

!JH:!Mechanics!of!a!Legend!had!a!workBinBprogress!showing!in!April!2015!at!the!New!Hazlett!Theater!as!part!of!that!venue’s!competitive!CSA!(Community!Supported!Art)!Performance!

Series.!Audience!members!said!the!show!was!“a!scary!realization!of!the!chains!we!still!wear!

today”!and!brought!a!realization!of!“the!lack!of!complete!history!I!learned!in!school.”!!The!

show!was!praised!as!!“deeply!moving!and!intellectually!stimulating”!and!“So!powerful!and!

well!done.”!!(See!links!below!for!a!video!highlight!of!this!workshop!showing.)!

!

Like!the!current!phase!of!development,!the!earlier!one!coincided!with!widespread!racial!

unrest,!taking!place!in!the!midst!of!protests!over!the!lack!of!criminal!charges!in!the!deaths!

of!Michael!Brown!and!Eric!Garner!at!the!hands!of!police,!as!well!as!the!fatal!police!shooting!

of!young!Tamir!Rice!in!nearby!Cleveland.!In!the!context!of!such!events,!then!and!now,!

dramaturg!Kyle!Bostian!says!he’s!found!the!creative!process!cathartic,!noting!his!gratitude!

for!having!an!outlet!for!channeling!his!grief!and!outrage!into!productive,!meaningful!work.!!

!

The!parallels!implicit!in!the!piece!between!presentBday!and!lateBnineteenthBcentury!black!

life!encompass!far!more!than!police!violence.!If!Hiawatha!Project!succeeds!in!its!goals,!JH:!Mechanics!of!a!Legend!will!leave!audiences!reflecting!on!myriad!ways!in!which!AfricanBAmericans!continue!to!be!shackled!by!BB!and!continue!to!resist!BB!oppression.!In!the!

meantime,!the!artists!involved!in!the!project!will!continue!to!bring!their!diverse!

backgrounds!together!in!the!safe!space!they’ve!established!to!explore!sensitive!topics!and!

share!personal!experience!for!the!sake!of!making!art!with!social!impact.!

!

Hiawatha!Project!was!recently!awarded!a!prestigious!August!Wilson!Center!Programming!

grant!from!the!Pittsburgh!Foundation!to!present!JH:!Mechanics!of!a!Legend!at!the!August!Wilson!Center!in!February!2017.!!!The!company!has!also!received!generous!support!from!

Page 3: FOR!IMMEDIATE!RELEASE! !JH:!Mechanics!of!a!Legend ... · ! 2! JH:!Mechanics!of!a!Legend!is!meant!to!be!a!moving!theatrical!experience!for!black!and!white! audiences!about!our!shared!and!often!difficult!history!as!Americans

! 3!

the!Brooks!Foundation,!Opportunity!Fund,!and!the!Heinz!Endowments!Small!Arts!Grant!

program.!

!

!

Hiawatha'Project!is!an!original!performance!company!that!explores!specific!social!

questions!through!myth,!free!association,!and!movement.!!!

www.hiawathaproject.org!!

!

!

Watch!a!highlight!video!from!the!workshop!performance!of!JH:!Mechanics!of!a!Legend!https://hiawathaproject.org/2015/12/03/jhmechanicsBofBaBlegendBworkshopB

presentationBhighlightBvideo/!!

!

Press'Contact'for'JH:!Mechanics!of!a!Legend:''Tené'Croom'

President'

Tené'Croom'Communications'

412D478D1815'

[email protected]!!!