CoPAC and the Shaking Ray Levi Society will present Cinema Soloriens featuring Marshall Allen of Sun Ra Arkestra on Saturday, Sept. 3, at 8 p.m. at Barking Legs Theater. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for students.
Review for Cinema Soloriens:
Cinema Soloriens is a dynamic multi-media performance consisting of James Harrar’s unforgettable filmmaking that draws from his Native American Tiwa background steeped in ritual, meditation and nature, with a live musical rendering of soundtracks for each film. Some of the performance elements in the show include the recitation of old Tiwa folktales in English and chanting in the Tiwa dialect, which might be the first time the language has ever been spoken in Tennessee.
The musical concepts are created, directed and performed by Harrar in a quartet, featuring the acclaimed Marshall Allen of the Sun Ra Arkestra. Since the ‘50s, the Sun Ra Arkestra has been known around the world for being one of the most creative and influential jazz big bands to ever exist, formed by the legendary and wildly eccentric Sun Ra. Reedist/saxophonist Marshall Allen (now 92 years old) has been a key member of the Arkestra since 1958 and its bandleader for over 20 years, and he is featured on over 200 Sun Ra releases. Allen has also appeared in concert and on recordings with diverse groups such as NRBQ, Phish, Sonic Youth and Medeski, Martin and Wood.
After the performance, Allen and Harrar will conduct a community talkback to discuss their work and inspire and engage the audience.
This project is funded by the Tennessee General Assembly and administered in cooperation with the State of Tennessee, Tennessee Arts Commission Arts Build Communities grant program, ArtsBuild and the National Endowment for the Arts.