The Parchman Hour
Dare County Arts Council in conjunction with the cARTwheels program presented Mike Wiley’s “The Parchman Hour” to students from each high school in Dare County at the First Flight High School Auditorium April 4, 2012.
Mike Wiley Productions’ newest work commemorates the 50th anniversary of the Freedom Riders. In 1961, the original 13 riders boarded a bus in Washington, DC bound for New Orleans via Mississippi and Alabama. They barely made it out of Alabama alive.
Presented in the style of the variety shows of yesteryear, this moving production explores three of the tensest months of 1961. The Parchman Hour brings to the stage powerful oral histories and conversations from the Freedom Rides’ most iconic protagonists and antagonists.
The cARTwheels program is an initiative of the North Carolina Arts Council and the Department of Cultural Resources designed to ensure that every student experiences opera, theater, and dance before they leave school. The program received additional support from a generous grant from the Outer Banks Community Foundation. Dare County Arts Council Executive Director, Laura Martier states that for many students this could be the first time that they are exposed to a production of such high caliber and hopes that this will spark a continued interest and love for the performing arts.
photo: Jordan Hennessy
contact: Laura Martier