Majestic Theater Will Host Free Concert For 40th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration

Gettysburg College's Majestic Theater will host the Gettysburg community's 40th anniversary Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration on Saturday, January 25 at 7:30 p.m. with a free concert, "We Shall Overcome." Produced and music directed by Damien Sneed, the concert is inspired by the words and actions of Dr. King, and showcases repertoire from across African American music traditions that electrified generations of civil rights activists and defenders.

The free community concert is sponsored by Gettysburg's Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration Committee, Gettysburg College's Offices of Diversity & Inclusion and College Life, and the Majestic Theater. Gettysburg College Choirs under the direction of Sunderman Conservatory of Music professor Dr. Robert Natter will join Sneed and his ensemble onstage throughout the program. The evening's program will begin with remarks from Gettysburg College President Robert Iuliano.

Damien Sneed's career has included collaborations with Wynton Marsalis, Jessye Norman and Lawrence Brownlee. He has toured extensively with Diana Ross, Aretha Franklin and the Clark Sisters. In "We Shall Overcome," Sneed ties together a lineage of music and culture that includes traditional and modern gospel music, jazz, Broadway and spirituals. The show will include compositions by Sneed as well as Duke Ellington, Nina Simone, Stevie Wonder, Wynton Marsalis, Marvin Gaye, Aretha Franklin and Dionne Warwick.

Gettysburg's Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration Committee will coordinate an offering during the evening's program to benefit the Adams County Career Aid Project. The project supports low-income youth and adults in Adams County to improve their lives by providing financial assistance for post-secondary education or training. Celebration committee members include Tonya Mincey, Nancy Whitman, Suzanne Williams, Janey Breighner, Wendy Brubaker, Marcia Gregorio, Nancy Lilley and Jane Nutter.

Tickets for "We Shall Overcome - A Celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr." are free and are available at the Majestic Theater Box Office, 25 Carlisle St., Gettysburg, or by calling (717) 337-8200. Reservations are strongly recommended. The Box Office is open Monday through Saturday, 12-7 p.m. and Sunday, 1-5 p.m. Free parking and roundtrip shuttle service for the performance is available from Gettysburg College's Constitution Parking Lot. Shuttle starts one hour before each performance and is ADA accessible. Metered parking is available at the Gettysburg Borough Parking Garage in Race Horse Alley as well as along Carlisle Street.

The Majestic Theater at the Jennifer and David LeVan Performing Arts Center is owned and operated by Gettysburg College to create cultural capital for its campus and community.