Last night, in the second tier at Verizon Hall in the Kimmel Center, a three-year old boy sat beside me. He was flawlessly dressed—his burnt orange jacket matching the laces on his shoes, his collar up around his ears, his pants dark, his shirt bright white—and his eyes were two fully rounded moons.
He sat on his grandmother's lap beside his mother, his uncles, his aunts, another child, perhaps his brother, while beyond, on the stage in that gorgeous, vibrant space, the Soweto Gospel Choir sang, and not only sang, but danced. Songs in Sotho, songs in Zulu, and the most revering, reverberating rendition of "Amazing Grace" that I will ever hear.
Through it all, the boy sat there on his grandmother's lap—undistracted, utterly seduced—his hands coming together for the beat, and sometimes he would syncopate that beat, and sometimes he would yield to the left, to the right, bend like a reed, for the choir's songs required dance of all of us. The colors of its costumes—mango, plum, lemon, salted lime—would not let our eyes go.
And then one among them on that stage said (a lilt in her voice, a song even as she spoke) that the Soweto Gospel Choir was singing for peace and global union. She said that, and the place went absolutely wild—first the clapping, then the roaring, then some standing tall, to say yes, yes, global union—and the child beside me went wild, too. As if he knew.
For he has his whole life ahead of him, and peace is still a possibility.
new posts in all blogs
By: Beth Kephart ,
on 12/11/2008
Blog: Beth Kephart Books (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Amazing Grace, global union, Soweto Gospel Choir, peace, Add a tag
Viewing: Blog Posts Tagged with: global union, Most Recent at Top [Help]
Results 1 - 1 of 1
By: Beth Kephart ,
on 12/11/2008
Blog: Beth Kephart Books (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Amazing Grace, global union, Soweto Gospel Choir, peace, Add a tag
8 Comments on Amazing Grace, last added: 12/22/2008
Display Comments
Add a Comment
This must have been such a joy to watch. The choir, the boy, the audience. It is comforting to read this. Thank you.
Vivian, oh it was. it was joy...
I'm thinking of you.
I bet it was amazing.
But to inject my humor because it seems to be what I like to do...he sounds much like my kids - except for the flawlessly dressed part. And the sitting undistracted part. And the syncopating part.
Actually the only part that sounds like my 4-year-old is the going wild part.
I bet you had a GREAT time!
PJ... Okay. Um. Hmmm. Does it count that this three year old's going wild was of the most resonant and sophisticated wild-making sort?
I would have loved to hear that choir. Thanks for sharing the concert with us.
Oh, Sherry. It was a dream. Thank you for your vicarious visit...
Dear Beth:
Thank you for your beautiful words about the concert. As Vice President of programming for the Kimmel Center my goal is to create the atmosphere every night where audiences and artists alike can share an enriching experience together that moves, excites, questions long held perceptions and thought, sends them into new territories or even terrifies them.
It won't happen every evening but the beauty is that you never know when it will.
Thanks for sharing your experience and that of the young boy. It has made my holiday season more special!
My goodness, Mr. Mehta. I am so touched that you found me here, found these words. It was an unforgettable evening, in an extraordinary place.
I've sent an email to you just now that I hope you will receive.
All best to you,
Beth