MUSIC | “Different Ships, Same Boat,” a Jazz/Slam Poet Musical Journey
“Different Ships, Same Boat is the epitome of a musical experience–one where the beauty of the music envelopes you, and welcomes you into the narrative. It’s a unique and beautiful approach to understanding perspectives
beyond your own, something we need so badly in the world right now.”
~Laura Conrad Mandel, Executive Director, Jewish Arts Collaborative (Boston, MA)
“Regie [Gibson] sings and chants for all of us. Nobody gets left out.” ~Kurt Vonnegut
“…a needed tonic in our polarized times.” ~Eve Bridburg, Executive Director, Grub Street (Boston MA)
An Arts for Social Cohesion Production presented by the Guy Mendilow Ensemble + Massachusetts Inaugural Poet Laureate, Regie Gibson, “Different Ships, Same Boat” is an interactive, multidisciplinary performance combining powerful spoken word, music and song to explore the multifaceted ways Americans take risks, live life, love and laugh.
Unfolding through a series of chapters—each featuring real-world stories—Massachusetts Poet Laureate and former Poetry Slam Champion Regie Gibson and composer/story catcher Guy Mendilow guide audiences with podcast-like narration, at turns humorous, poignant or poetic, over an evocative musical score. With stories from small towns, cities and ports of entry, the music spans American blues and songs from Sephardic Ottoman Jews who came to America from Greece and Hungary. “Different Ships, Same Boat” offers a stirring exploration of the joys, tensions and complexities of who we are and who we wish to be.
When Martin Luther King, Jr. stated, “We may have all come on different ships, but we are in the same boat now,” America was in turmoil, debating WHO is considered a REAL American. Recent events and the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution, provides an chance to pause and reflect on a critical question: What does it mean to love and celebrate not just America, but Americans?
“Different Ships, Same Boat” addresses this through moving personal stories—brought to life through powerful spoken word, musical score and song—stories that give flesh, blood and bone to vital living histories that make up this country and bring each other’s humanity into sharper relief—to better enable civic healing.
Cosponsored by Margo and Jacobz”l Engelstein; The Sephardic Studies Program and the Stroum Center for Jewish Studies at the University of Washington; and made possible in part with support from Creative West and the National Endowment for the Arts.
Part of SJCC Blueprint for Belonging.
Reserved seating | Doors open 30m for Happy Hour in the J Cafe before the show
Co-sponsored by Sephardic Studies – UW Stroum Center for Jewish Studies
View policies, terms + conditions on our SJCC Box Office + Venue Policies page.
About:
The Guy Mendilow Ensemble (GME) is a multifaceted collaboration of worldclass musicians, singers, orators and artists who weave deeply moving musical tales. Honored with multiple awards, including from the National Endowment for the Arts, GME utilizes a broad musical palette, gorgeous vocal harmonies and pan-cultural influences. Founder, Guy Mendilow was raised in a multicultural immigrant family steeped in conversation, literature, political science, music and storytelling. He began touring domestically and internationally with the American Boychoir at age ten, with 200+ annual concerts in venues from Carnegie Hall and Boston’s Symphony Hall to remote rural churches. Since 1996, Mendilow has designed and facilitated residencies in communities ranging from the Navajo Reservation to business schools and universities and in faith communities. He earned his Master of Music and International Dalcroze Certification from Longy School of Music and is a candidate for the highest Dalcroze degree achievable in the USA with the Dalcroze School of Music and Movement (Dallas, TX). A citizen of Israel, UK and USA, Mendilow has called Boston home since 2003. More info>>
Regie Gibson is the Massachusetts’ Inaugural Poet Laureate and assistant professor at the Berklee School of Music. A literary performer, playwright, actor and widely anthologized poet, he lectures throughout the US, Cuba, and Europe. Honors include US National Poetry Slam Champion, the international Europa in Versi Award, TEDx speaker and poet-in-residence at Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts. Gibson collaborates and performs with numerous music/vocal ensembles (e.g. Handel & Haydn) and symphonies (E.g. Lexington Symphony) and is featured in the film “Love Jones,” written about his life. He serves as project advisor to the National Endowment for the Arts and the Red Cross Red Crescent Climate Centre (Hague, Netherlands) on issues of humanitarianism, climate change, nonpartisanship and the legacy of slavery. This is his sixth collaboration with Mendilow since 2017. More info>>
