“I think it’s going to be very exciting to hear the history of The Ville.” “I’ve seen the script I think it’s very well done,” says Buggs. Community organization 4theVille and Sumner High School were close partners with St. The cast features Michelle Dillard, Brandon Ellis, Arthurine Harris, Alex Jay, Tylan Mitchell, and Shakespeare Festival veterans Victor Mendez and Carl Overly, Jr. The production, taking place outside the Annie Malone Children’s Home, includes additional original music by Tre’von Griffith (Tre-G). Because of the history of The Legend Singers, it has been a staple in St.
![from the ville from the ville](https://images.genius.com/ca215ddf77e8ab3b7a8d716624becc81.300x300x1.jpg)
“Part of our mission is to preserve the music of African American composers, musicians, and arrangers, so we do quite a few community projects, school events, and annual spiritual festivals. “We’re now in the 81 st season,” says Legend Singers director Dwayne Buggs. Kenneth Brown Billups founded the Legend Singers in 1940 at The Ville’s Sumner High School-the first Black high school west of the Mississippi and the institution that produced legendary graduates including Chuck Berry, Tina Turner, Arthur Ashe, and Dick Gregory. Read More: Fall Arts Guide 2021: "A Site to See" In the second segment, soloist Adrienne Dillon sings “Summertime” from Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess, and soloist Donald Hutcherson and the ensemble perform “It Ain’t Necessarily So.” The musical portion of the production features a, well, legendary piece of living Ville history. The Legend Singers, the country’s longest continually performing African American choral group, performs two traditional spirituals in the first segment of the play: “Witness,” arranged by Jack Halloran, and “Every Time I Feel the Spirit,” arranged by the group’s founder, Kenneth Brown Billups.
![from the ville from the ville](https://www.villetvnetwork.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/VilleTVLogoTwo.png)
Created after years of research with residents of The Ville, the play uses the device of Hamlet’s ghost story to tell the story of The Ville: its vibrant past as incubator for legendary Black talent, the life stories of present-day residents and business owners, and hopes and dreams for the future of the neighborhood. The Ville: Avengeance! is written by Mariah Richardson and directed by Thomasina Clarke.