WERE YOU THERE
An AMOC* Production
Conceived by DAVÓNE TINES and ZACK WINOKUR
Featuring DAVÓNE TINES, bass-baritone
Directed by ZACK WINOKUR
with original music composed by
MATTHEW AUCOIN
CAROLINE SHAW
TYSHAWN SOREY
and traditional songs arranged by MICHAEL SCHACHTER
America’s memory is short, fractured and skewed; this week’s tragedy is last week’s forgotten hashtag. Were You There, a musical and theatrical meditation featuring bass-baritone vocalist Davóne Tines, takes up the task of strengthening our collective memory by gathering and channeling some of America’s most prescient voices, from the words and melodies of African-American spirituals to the poetry of Walt Whitman. It is an invitation to give voice to, and shed light on, the memory of the lives lost at the hands of racial injustice, in the hope that by illuminating past and recent tragedies, we understand better why they happened, and ensure that we do not repeat them.
Premiered December 18, 2017 at the American Repertory Theater, Cambridge, MA
Production photos by Michael J Lutch
“…staggering…astonishing…bringing overwhelming humanity to exactly the place where it is needed”
“WERE YOU THERE is not a concert. It’s a lament, a memorial and a catharsis. It’s a calm, measured shaking of the audience’s shoulders.”
“One of the most moving experiences of the year”
