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Portland, Observer
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Martin Luther King, Jr. Spedai Edition
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January IO, m o
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Writer/Director/Composer Gordon Parks
Creates Unique Ballet Tribute To
Martin Luther King In “Martin”
H e H ad T he C ourage
To B reak W ith T radition
Photographer, writer, film director
Gordon Parks has composed an original
five-movement classical ballet as a per
sonal tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
The ballet, "M artin ,” airs on in conjunc
tion with K ing's birthday, Monday, Janu
ary 15, from 10-11 p.m. on most PBS
stations (check local listings).
To evoke the spirit and vision of King,
"M artin” recreates significant moments
in the American leader’s life, including his
bus boycott, the march in Selma, his time in
a Birmingham jail, and his 1968 assassina
tion in Montgomery. The ballet concludes
with King’s funeral, during which his spirit
rises from his funeral bier as a symbol of the
undying power of his dream.
In addition to composing the music and
the libretto. Parks also directed the one-
hour production. The multi-talented Parks
has already achieved fame as a photogra
pher for LIFE magazine, a writer ("T he
Learning Tree," "Moments Without Proper
Names"), a director ("Shaft," "Leadbelly,”
and "Solom on Northup’s Odyssey” ), as
well as a composer. His production of “ The
Learning Tree” was recently selected by
the Library of Congress as one of the first
25 films to be included in the new national
film registry. Parks appears on camera to
introduce his work in a documentary seg
ment, which also includes Park’s photo-
Dr. M artin Luther King, Jr,
January 1 5 ,1 9 2 9 - April 5 ,1 9 6 8
W alter C. R eynolds M.D
& S taff
2800 N. Vancouver
Suite 231
287-4532
graphs from the tumultuous period in which
King worked.
Dancer John Jones creates the role of
King. Sheila Rohan dances as Rosa Parks,
and James Edward Murphy dances the role
of the assassin.
"M artin ” is distributed in »Stereo*
and is made possible by Southwestern Bell
DR. KING SAID IT BEST:
"1 HAVE THE AUDACITY TO BELIEVE
THAT PEOPLE EVERYWHERE CAN HAVE
THREE MEALS A DAY FOR THEIR
BODIES, EDUCATION AND CULTURE
FOR THEIR MINDS, AND DIGNITY,
EQUALITY AND FREEDOM FOR THEIR
SPIRITS."
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.-Acceptance speech, Nobel Peace Prize, Dec. 10, 1964
CONGRESSMAN RON WYDEN
(Paid tor and Authorized by the Wyden »or Cong re .a Committee, 4/89, Tom Ferretera. Treasurer)
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Foundation with additional funding from
the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
The program is a production of Winger
Enterprises, Inc. and is presented by KCET
Los Angeles. Choreographer: Rael Limb.
Producer Grace Blake. D irector Gordon
Parks. KCET executive producer Sam Paul.
KCET executive-in-charge: Ricki Franklin.