The third and final history-minded performance of this series celebrating the history of Buffalo and Black Rock NY (home of the world famous Sportsmens Tavern).
I’m hosting and emceeing each of these events, which I personally curated with an eye towards sharing compelling stories about our past and present in an atmosphere that everyone enjoys.
SUNDAY, APRIL 14 at 2PM
Gretchen Sepik performs her one-woman show “Erie Canal Sal”
Experiential theater artist Gretchen Sepik performs her first-person presentation of “Surly Sal McMurray,” a fictitious character based, in part, on Old Black Nell, a cook on the Erie Canal in the year 1840. Sepik peels potatoes and slices carrots into her stew pot as she transports the audience to the deck of a 19th century canal boat, spinning yarns, detailing adventures, and (occasionally) admonishing audience members along the way; Sal is “surly,” after all.
A moderated discussion/Q&A on the canal’s importance to the local community, then and now, will be held following the performance.
The Black Rock Sundays @ Sportsmens series is hosted by the Black Rock Historical Society, Black Rock Riverside Alliance, Sportsmens Tavern, and Dave Ruch, with generous funding from Humanities New York, our statewide humanities organization.
Free and open to the public, the events kick off at 2pm and feature an hour-long performance followed by up to 30-minutes of guided discussion and Q&A.
Full schedule:
Sunday Feb 24, 2pm Ian Bell – Music of the Great Lakes
Sunday Mar 24, 2pm Reggie Harris – Songs and Stories of the Underground Railroad
Sunday Apr 14, 2pm Gretchen Sepik performing her one-woman experiential theater show “Erie Canal Sal”