Southern Rep Theatre Reveals BOUDIN: The New Orleans Music Project

As part of its longstanding commitment to developing innovative, engaging work, Southern Rep Theatre is pleased to announce BOUDIN: The New Orleans Music Project - a 6-month multimedia collaboration that asks New Orleanians one question: "How has New Orleans music saved your soul?"

Supported in part by the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Foundation's Community Partnership Grant, the comprehensive project kicks off with an initiative to collect participants' responses via film, audio, photots, and narratives that will be shared digitally at www.boudinmusicproject.com. Specific stories will then be chosen and curated into a 90-minute musical production. The visual arts community will also be invited to respond to the prompt via an open submission process by creating unique "music altars," some of which will be featured as part of the production's scenic design.

"The project is meant to reflect a wide swath of experience, featuring true tales from New Orleans writers, musicians and regular residents," says Aimée Hayes, Southern Rep Producing Artistic Director and BOUDIN Co-Curator. "The production brings together powerful elements from live music, film, theatre, audio art, and the visual arts in a truly unique way to create a brand new, soul saving good time at the theatre."

In an effort to connect with large, diverse groups of New Orleanians both home and beyond, Southern Rep is presenting BOUDIN in partnership with WWOZ 90.7FM, New Orleans' listener-supported, volunteer-powered, jazz and heritage community radio station. Together, the organizations will work to uplift the New Orleans creative community by bringing together a wide-range of artists to exchange and produce new ideas.

"WWOZ broadcasts New Orleans music to the world each and every day of the year," says WWOZ Development Director Crystal Gross. "WWOZ listeners often share beautiful, funny, emotional, tragic and downright hilarious stories of how music - New Orleans music in particular - brings something special to their lives. This partnership between WWOZ and Southern Rep is an organic union of music, theatre, writing and storytelling. I can't wait to see, hear and share laughs and tears when the stories come rolling in."

Additionally, the project is being guided by an engaged and creative Advisory Board to help oversee the ambitious effort and maintain the organic vision. "This project embraces what I believe deep down," says Gwen Thompkins, host of WWNO's 'Music Inside Out.' "Never turn down an opportunity to talk about, think about, make art about music. It achieves what almost nothing can. Music makes you full without eating, drunk without drinking and soar without taking a single step. It makes you twinkle in the daytime and cradles you in the night. Being engaged with music means you are tending to your soul."

In addition to Thompkins, BOUDIN Advisory Board members include Claire Bangser of NOLAbeings, Crystal Gross of WWOZ, Elton Jones of SPUN-TV, David Kunian of WWOZ, Peggy Scott Laborde of WYES, Gene Meneray of Arts Council of New Orleans, Melanie Merz of WWOZ, Jim O'Quinn of American Theatre Magazine, Dr. Ray Sanders of The New Orleans Imperative, Cameron Shaw of Pelican Bomb, and Composer/Producer Jay Weigel.

New Orleans Awards - Live Stats

Best Musical - Top 3

1. ANNIE (Ascension Community Theatre)

20.6% of votes

2. THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME (Sullivan theatre)

18.8% of votes

3. THE WIZARD OF OZ (Slidell Little Theatre)

10.9% of votes

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