John Dowell, photographer
Lyric Fest’s COTTON is a spellbinding multimedia song-cycle. It brings together the extraordinary cotton photography of John Dowell with newly commissioned poems by 8 renowned African American poets, all set to music by composer Damien Geter. Scored for mezzo soprano, baritone, and piano, the work unfolds against the backdrop of enormous, constantly evolving images, projected throughout the performance. COTTON invites the audience deep into the world of cotton, and balances tragic history with resilience, hope, and high art.
COTTON premiered in 2023 with mezzo-soprano Denyce Graves, baritone Justin Austin, and pianist Laura Ward at The Philadelphia Episcopal Cathedral and at The Kennedy Center Terrace Theater in Washington D.C., and was presented at the 92nd Street Y, in NYC in April of 2024.
THE STORY:
Acclaimed Philadelphia artist John Dowell felt called by his grandmother in a dream to travel to the cotton fields in South Carolina, where his ancestors had likely been enslaved. Thus he began an exploration and journey deep into the world of cotton, where for over a decade, he produced a body of amazing and evocative work. Dowell’s work explores African American ancestral survival strategies and resilience in penetrating super-imposed images, and looks at wealth of this nation through the lens of the cotton industry.
Lyric Fest’s COTTON is inspired by this photography and story, and was commissioned for Lyric Fest’s 20th Anniversary Season.
POETS
LF commissioned eight nationally renowned voices of the 21st century, each of whom responded to Dowell’s photography with a new poem, set to music by composer Damien Geter: Charlotte Blake Alston, Nikki Giovanni, Afaa Michael Weaver, Trapeta Mayson, Marc Bamuthi Joseph, Lauren K. Alleyne, Alora Young, and Glenis Redmond. Each poet is presented in video, reading their own poem in the context of the performance.
POETRY/SONGS
I. The Cotton Weeps (Poem by Marc Bamuthi Joseph)
II. The Night Before the Run (Poem by Alora Young)
III. They Took My Sister (Poem by Lauren K. Alleyne)
IV. Homegoing for the People of the Sun (Poem by Trapeta B. Mayson)
V. Cotton in the Arms of the Mountains (Poem by Nikki Giovanni)
VI. When the Ancestors Speak (Poem by Glenis Redmond)
VII. When the Angels Come (Poem by Afaa Michael Weaver)
VII. The Struggle Goes On: A Mural Speaks (Poem by Charlotte Blake Alston)
VIDEO
Video design, concept, and creation is by Suzanne DuPlantis and lighting and technical design by Allen Doak, Midnight Productions.
TO PRESENT COTTON
All inquiries are directed to IMG Artists, Romana Jaroff, artist manager. Contact Here.