FREE SCREENING

Doors Open for admissions 30 min. prior to screening

The Vineyard Haven Public Library will kick off its six-week long film and lecture series “America’s Music: A History of Our Popular Music from Blues to Bluegrass to Broadway” with a free screening of the documentary “Say Amen, Somebody”

The series will feature showings of six award-winning documentary films about uniquely American musical art genres (Gospel, blues, jazz, bluegrass, broadway, hip hop), followed by short lectures and performances by local musicians and musicologists. Peter Boak, the director of the Martha’s Vineyard Community Chorus, is the Program Scholar for the series. After the inaugural presentation at the MV Film Center, the remainder of the screenings, lectures and performances will take place at the Katherine Cornell Theatre on Spring Street in Vineyard Haven.

Say Amen, Somebody is an exuberant documentary spotlighting the special world of gospel music. At least two dozen hand-clapping songs are featured within the film’s joyous 100 minutes. Special emphasis is given the lives and careers of two giants in the business: Singers “Mother” Willie Mae Ford Smith and “Professor” Thomas A. Dorsey. Other artists spotlighted at work and at leisure include Sallie Martin, the Barrett Sisters, and the O’Neill Brothers. Just try sitting still in your chair while experiencing Say Amen, Somebody.