THE ENTERPRISE – A free concert celebrating resilience, community and social justice is scheduled at Bridgewater State University.
The performance caps off the Social Justice Choir of Southeastern Massachusetts’s “Fall Festival,” a weekend of music and service open to singers and audiences across the region.
Singer rehearsals are planned for 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Nov. 8 and 1 to 3 p.m. Nov. 9, according to a community announcement. The choir welcomes both experienced and novice singers to join ensembles from Bridgewater State University, the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth and the surrounding community.
Concert to feature diverse repertoire
The festivities culminate with a concert, set for 4 p.m. Nov. 9 at Bridgewater State University’s Horace Mann Auditorium, that will feature a diverse repertoire, according to the announcement. Selections include Elaine Hagenberg’s “Refuge,” the traditional protest song “We Shall Not be Moved,” “Nia” from Nguzo Saba’s Suite op. 41, no. 5, and Andrew Lloyd Webber and Gary Barlow’s “Sing.” The latter will feature youth singers in a tribute to resilience and unity. The program will also include a rendition of the Doobie Brothers’ 1970s hit “Listen to the Music.”
The Social Justice Choir, founded in 2022, is an intergenerational ensemble led by Dr. Ronald Sherwin, chair of UMass Dartmouth’s music, theater and dance programs, and Dr. Sarah McQuarrie, chair of Bridgewater State University’s Department of Music. The choir is dedicated to exploring music as a vehicle for positive change, regularly programming works by underrepresented composers and pairing each season with a service project.
Community support drives launched
The Fall Festival will also launch two community support drives. Shelf-stable food items will be collected for the BSU and UMD food banks. The “Warmth in Cold Places” project, in partnership with Bridgewater’s First Congregational Church UCC, will collect coats and cold-weather clothing for those in need. Attendees and participants interested in supporting these drives can bring donations to the festival performance or to Hunt Hall room 115, 26 School St., Bridgewater.
“Each season, we ask ourselves what role we play as singers and as citizens in this troubled world,” McQuarrie said. “Singing may not change everything, but it lifts us up and helps us take action. Singing is the antidote to apathy, and refuge in a chaotic world.”
Choir open to all
The Social Justice Choir is open to community members of all ages and ability levels. Rehearsals are held on the Bridgewater State University campus at Rondileau Student Union room 017e on Thursday evenings from 5:30 to 7 p.m. throughout the semester, and on the UMass Dartmouth campus at 11 a.m. in Room 104 at the Center for Visual and Performing Arts.
To register to participate in the Fall Festival, visit tinyurl.com/bdzz77hj. Audience members may arrive prior to the performance time on Nov. 9 at 4 p.m. The Horace Mann auditorium is fully accessible. Free parking is available in the Boyden Hall parking lot, and paid parking is available in the Spring Street Parking Lot and the Commuter Parking Garage. Visitors can use the Passport Parking app to pay for hourly or daily parking. Paid ADA-compliant parking spaces are available for visitors with the proper placard.
Admission to the performance is free of charge, but donations to support the choir’s mission are gratefully accepted. For more information, contact McQuarrie by email at smcquarrie@bridgew.edu, or follow the Social Justice Choir of Southeastern Massachusetts on Facebook.
By David DeMille, The Enterprise
