Tickets
General Ticket: $60
Member Ticket: $55
This program has been generously supported in part by Steve Pesner, in honor of Michèle Pesner,
and the Friends of the Fund for Music at The Church.
Join us for a stellar performance from poetic powerhouse Pamela Sneed! Following a sold out run at Joe’s Pub last year, Sneed’s A Tribute to Big Mama Thornton comes to The Church for a rollicking evening of music, storytelling, and a celebration of the unsung Black woman founder of rock and roll, who brought us classics like “Blue Suede Shoes,” and “You Ain’t Nothing but a Hound Dog.”
Written and conceived by Sneed,A Tribute to Big Mama Thorntonis a cabaret performance that sees a live band weaving together monologue as Sneed sings, speaks, and celebrates the life and music of Willie Mae Thornton’s. With an eye toward restorative justice, this performance gives credit back to Thornton’s musical legacy and is a valuable educational asset. Sneed is joined by band members Viva DeConcini (musical director) Mara Rosenbloom, and David A. Barnes.
Grab a drink from our concession table and enjoy the show!
This Performance has been programmed in tandem with our Summer Exhibition THIS LAND: Considering the American Landscape, which can be viewed June 21 – September 6 during our exhibition hours 11 AM – 5 PM, Thursday-Monday.
PAMELA SNEED
Photo by Nick Hallett
-
PAMELA SNEED is a New York-based poet, performer, cultural critic, educator, and visual artist. She has performed and exhibited widely throughout the United States and Europe. She is the recipient of a Creative Capital in Literature, as well as several other awards. She is the author of Imagine Being More Afraid of Freedom Than Slavery, KONG and Other Works, Sweet Dreams, and Funeral Diva. Funeral Diva won the 2021 Lambda Lesbian Poetry Award and was featured in The New York Times, Publishers Weekly, Lit Hub, Art Net and more. In 2021, Sneed was a panelist for The David Zwirner Gallery’s More Life exhibit, and has spoken at Bard Center for Humanities, The Ford Foundation, The Gordon Parks Foundation, Columbia University, The New School, New York Public Library, The Brooklyn Museum, MOMA, DIA, and NYU’s Center for Humanities. She has published in The Paris Review, Frieze Magazine, Art Forum, The Academy of American Poets, The Brooklyn Rail, THEM, BOMB, and most recently Poetry Magazine. She has appeared in Nikki Giovanni’s The 100 Best African American Poets. Her visual work has appeared at Ford Foundation, Kates-Ferris, and Laurel Gitlen Gallery in New York City.
VIVA DECONCINI
-
VIVA DECONCINI plays guitar like a flaming sword and a scratching chicken, she sings like a river of honey and writes eclectic original songs. Over the pandemic she wrote, directed, and produced a lesbian Muppet movie which is set to come out in 2027. Follow her socials as @vivadeconcini.
MARA ROSENBLOOM
Photo by Sherry Rubel
-
MARA ROSENBLOOM is pianist, composer, and bandleader. She has been called “a wholehearted poet of the piano,” – she is a builder and a synthesist; a fiercely lyrical composer and improvise ( All About Jazz).
DAVID A. BARNES
Photo by Michael Weintrob
-
DAVID A. BARNES has been playing the harmonica for over 50 years and may perhaps be familiar to local audiences as a member of New Moon Acoustic Blues which has made multiple appearances at Sag Harbor’s American Music Festival. David has a lifelong connection to Sag as he arrived in 1958 at twelve days old and has been returning ever since. David is the son of the late Sag Harbor icon, Gladys V. Barnes and is the younger brother of a current Sag Harbor icon, DonnaMarie Barnes of Sylvester Manor. He is a proud member of the SANS community and is overjoyed to make his The Church debut with Pamela Sneed’s big Mama Thornton Show.