The Crossing Performs SIN-EATER in October

Performances are on Saturday, October 14, 2023 at 8:00 p.m. and Sunday, October 15, 2023 at 3:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. 

By: Sep. 19, 2023
The Crossing Performs SIN-EATER in October

Three-time Grammy Award-winning choir The Crossing, led by conductor Donald Nally, builds on its reputation as a leader in creating and producing new music with the world premiere of David T. Little’s SIN-EATER, co-commissioned by The Crossing and Penn Live Arts, on Saturday, October 14, 2023 at 8:00 p.m. and Sunday, October 15, 2023 at 3:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. at the Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts, presented by Penn Live Arts. The premiere performances mark the first collaboration between The Crossing and Bergamot Quartet, known for their adventurous programming and presentation, as well as their collaborative spirit

Donald Nally conducts and directs the new work described by Little as a “work of ritual music theatre exploring the nature of power in western civilization through its connection to eating and food.” The tale of the sin-eater derives from Celtic folklore in which a loaf of bread, placed on the corpse of a person of means to absorb their sins, would be eaten by a poor person who had agreed (or been paid) to take on those sins, guaranteeing the deceased passage to Heaven. Through the lens of this practice, SIN-EATER investigates whom we ask to sin or suffer for us today. The work draws connections across time, including texts by Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin, Stephen Crane, Wilfred Owen, Harold McGee, Anne Elizabeth Moore, Jonathan Swift, Claude McKay, and others, using juxtaposition to reveal deeper meaning.

"SIN-EATER winds a path through the dark terrains of human experience,” Little said, “shining light on the power differentials we live with every day, so common we no longer see them; seeking a path through disinfecting sunlight toward a better way of being. Anthropological accounts of the historical practice of sin-eating frame modern reports of first responders, essential workers in medicine and food processing, morgue truck workers, women, soldiers, executioners, social media content moderators, and others; individuals whose jobs, or mere lives, expose them to dangerous or difficult conditions, requiring them to take on lasting trauma as they work to keep us safe, healthy, fed, or blissfully unaware of the dark forces always around us.”

This is The Crossing’s second collaboration with David T. Little (the 2016 world premiere performance of dress in magic amulets, dark, from My feet, as part of Seven Responses, being the first). Lighting Designer Eric Southern will also play a prominent role, framing the complex and compelling topic of Little’s SIN-EATER with light as a character in the drama. SIN-EATER will be recorded in-studio by The Crossing for future release.


BroadwayWorld Awards Voting

RELATED STORIES - Philadelphia

1
See Isaac Mizrahi, AMERICAS GOT TALENT Performers & More At Bucks County Playhouse in  Photo
See Isaac Mizrahi, AMERICA'S GOT TALENT Performers & More At Bucks County Playhouse in 2024

Bucks County Playhouse announces a slate of visiting performers for 2024, including Isaac Mizrahi, America's Got Talent performers, and more.

2
Review: BALLETX IN BRYN MAWR at Goodhart Hall Photo
Review: BALLETX IN BRYN MAWR at Goodhart Hall

BalletX Takes Contemporary Ballet To The Philadelphia Main Line

3
Review: A CHRISTMAS CAROL at Peoples Light Theatre Company Photo
Review: A CHRISTMAS CAROL at People's Light Theatre Company

A truly unique, original, and moving piece of theater brilliantly presented in time for the Holiday Season.

4
Interact Theatre Company Is Hosting The Second Ever THE 24 HOUR PLAYS In Philadelphia Photo
Interact Theatre Company Is Hosting The Second Ever THE 24 HOUR PLAYS In Philadelphia

On December 4th, the Dramatists Guild and InterAct Theatre Company are partnering with The 24 Hour Plays for this year's production of The 24 Hour Plays: Philadelphia, featuring artists from across our city's vibrant performing arts community.

More Hot Stories For You

Videos


Crumbs from the Table of Joy in Philadelphia Crumbs from the Table of Joy
Lantern Theater Company (11/09-12/17)Tracker
Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol in Philadelphia Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol
Lantern Theater Company (12/02-12/27)Tracker
Funny Girl in Philadelphia Funny Girl
Academy Of Music (7/16-7/28)
The Wickhams: Christmas at Pemberley in Philadelphia The Wickhams: Christmas at Pemberley
ActorsNET of Bucks County (12/01-12/17)
Star of the Day's 8th Annual Gala in Philadelphia Star of the Day's 8th Annual Gala
Star of the Day (1/06-1/06)
Beauty and the Beast in Philadelphia Beauty and the Beast
Walnut Street Theatre (11/27-12/31)
The Christmas Candy Caper in Philadelphia The Christmas Candy Caper
Bird-in-Hand Stage (11/01-12/28)
Cécile McLorin Salvant in Philadelphia Cécile McLorin Salvant
Zellerbach Theatre (2/03-2/03)
Family Magic Show in Philadelphia Family Magic Show
Smoke & Mirrors Magic Theater (11/25-12/30)
JACK Quartet: Beautiful Trouble in Philadelphia JACK Quartet: Beautiful Trouble
Harold Prince Theatre (2/02-2/02)
VIEW ALL SHOWS  ADD A SHOW  

Recommended For You