Page 10
February 27, 2019
Arts &
ENTERTAINMENT
Black History in Song and Film
‘From Maxville
to Vanport’
encore shows
The Portland Jazz Com-
posers Ensemble and vocalist
Marilyn Keller present en-
core performances of “From
Maxville to Vanport,” original
songs and short films inspired
by Oregon’s blue-collar black
history on Thursday, Feb. 28 at
7:30 p.m. at Oregon State Uni-
versity and on Sunday, March 3
at 8 p.m. at Portland’s Mission
Theater.
Drawing from jazz, R&B,
and blues, From Maxville to
Vanport celebrates the histo-
ry of two Oregon towns that
reveal distinctive viewpoints A diverse group of Portland writers and musicians are the creators behind “From Maxville
of the state’s under-represent- to Vanport” a new CD of songs and original music telling the stories of two Oregon towns
ed black history. The music, rooted in early African American history.” Pictured (from left) are Gwen Trice, Douglas
brilliantly composed by Ezra Detrick, S. Renee Mitchell, Marilyn Keller and Ezra Weiss.
Weiss with lyrics by poet S.
Renee Mitchell, honors their
resilience, humor, and contri-
butions to Oregon while also
looking honestly at the preju-
dice and hardships they faced.
The performances will also
feature a 10-minute documen-
tary film “The Making of From
Maxville to Vanport” by Sika
Stanton. The documentary will
play at 7 p.m. to be followed
by a conversation with project
collaborators ahead of Sun-
day’s musical performance.
From Maxville to Vanport
premiered last year in eastern
Oregon and at the Vanport Mo-
saic Festival in Portland. The
Portland Jazz Composers En-
semble released an album of
the recorded music in Novem-
ber.
For tickets to the encore per-
formances or more informa-
tion, visit pjce.org.