Witches: Revered and Reviled
Bullying and stigmatizing those perceived as being different is a theme that has regrettably been almost constant across human history. Early modern society’s fascination with an ordered society frequently led to the persecution of individuals who were accused of straying outside the established conventional boundaries of “acceptable” behavior. While both men and women were accused of social deviance, the vast majority of those who were criminalized for thwarting societal expectations were women. Deemed witches and scolds, these disorderly women were corporally punished and executed at alarming rates across the early modern period. Despite this overwhelming and gruesome compulsion to seek out those who were supposedly out of order, there were numerous recorded occasions where women ascribed with supernatural abilities were highly respected. Frequently, individuals who suffered from mental and spiritual maladies were encouraged to seek out a witch for healing before seeing a medical doctor, and sorceresses were believed to have fantastical capabilities that could be used for good. This paradox of reverence and repulsion for unconventional women was mirrored in musical portrayals on the stage as well — women who stepped outside of the ordered realm of society were depicted as being forces of either extreme good or evil. “Witches: Revered and Reviled” explores repertoire that tells the stories of Circe, the Witch of Endor, and the Furies in a broad range of national styles and traditions of the seventeenth century. Additionally, we will feature the premier of a newly-commissioned work by Alexis Bacon.
Saturday, March 14, 2020
Workshop at Renee Jones Empowerment Center
Tuesday, March 17, 2020 (scheduling pending)
Workshop and Performance at Bard High School Early College
Wednesday, March 17, 2021
Arrive 7pm, Music@7:30pm – location confirmation pending
Blank Canvas CLE
2174 Lee Road
Cleveland Heights, OH 44118
Suggested Donation $10-$20
Accessible concert space *Restroom not accessible
Thursday, March 18, 2021 ~ 7pm
Episcopal Church of the Redeemer – location confirmed
647 Reid Ave
Lorain, OH 44052
Suggested Donation $10-$20
Accessible Concert Space
Friday, March 19, 2021 ~ 7pm
St. John's Episcopal Church – location confirmed
323 Wick Ave
Youngstown, OH 44503
Donations Gratefully Accepted
Accessible Concert Space
Saturday, July 11, 2020 - postponed.
Workshop at Renee Jones Empowerment Center
Saturday, March 20, 2021 ~ 8pm
Buckland Museum of Magick and Witchcraft – location confirmed
2155 Broadview Rd, Cleveland, OH 44109
Suggested Donation $10-$20
Accessible Concert Space *Restroom not accessible
Sunday, March 21, 2021 ~1pm
Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Cleveland – location confirmation pending
21600 Shaker Blvd.
Shaker Heights, OH 44122
Suggested Donation $10-$20
Accessible Concert Space
Contact directors@burning-river-baroque.org to book this concert!
These concerts are made possible in part by the generous support of the following organizations:
CAC, EMA, OAC and the Cleveland Foundation
A Mad, Burning Desire
Our concert from a musical/historical perspective
The first English actresses to legally take the stage capitalized on early modern society’s fascination with mental illness and catapulted themselves to fame by portraying characters who descended violently into lovesick madness on the Restoration stage. At the visual epicenter of London’s cultural fascination with madness was Bethlehem Royal Hospital (Bedlam), which was transformed from a dilapidated hospital into a sprawling mental institution in 1676. Visitors frequently paid to enter Bedlam to be entertained by those society deemed insane, a spectacle which converged with a proliferation of spectacular mad scenes brought to life by the first English actresses. “A Mad, Burning Desire” features mad songs by Henry Purcell, John Eccles, Godfrey Finger and John Blow that captivated London’s theatre-going audiences in the 1690s.
Our concert from a mental health perspective
Take a leap back in time with Burning River Baroque as we examine the cultural phenomena of early modern England that led to the development of the early field of mental health. Across the course of the seventeenth century, English philosophers and medical experts alike began to think of psychological maladies as medical conditions requiring treatment by doctors rather than as spiritual deficiencies to be handled by religious authorities. At the visual epicenter of Restoration-era London’s cultural fascination with mental illness was Bethlehem Royal Hospital (Bedlam), which was transformed from a dilapidated hospital into a sprawling mental institution with space for over 200 patients in 1676. Brainstorm with us as we fast-forward to the present. How does our contemporary popular culture, including news media and advertisements, contribute to subversive belief systems directly connected to our current mental health crises? How can we work together to end the stigma against mental health, which would help more people get access to what they need? What phrase might we utter today that will help someone in our midst who is struggling? How can we coach ourselves so that we might become more stable support systems for others?
Malina Rauschenfels, soprano
Paula Maust, harpsichord
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Wednesday, August 21, 2019 ~ 7pm
Yellow Springs Arts Council
111 Corry St.
Yellow Springs, OH 45387
Suggested Donation $10-20
Accessible concert space
Thursday, August 22, 2019
Cleveland Hts House Concert
Arrive 7:30pm Music@8pm
Suggested Donation $20
RSVP@burning-river-baroque.org
for address and to reserve a spot
Friday, August 23, 2019
Workshop and Performance at Bard High School Early College
Friday, August 23, 2019 ~ 7pm
Art House, Inc.
3119 Denison Ave.
Cleveland, OH 44109
Suggested Donation $10-20
Accessible concert space and restrooms
Saturday, August 24, 2019
Arrive 7:30pm Music@8pm
Fairlawn house concert
Suggested donation $10-20
RSVPFairlawn@burning-river-baroque.org
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Friday, September 13, 2019 ~ 6pm
Barefoot Chamber Concerts
St. Mark's Episcopal Church Parish Hall
2300 Bancroft Way
Berkeley, CA 94704
Tickets $15 but no one turned away for lack of funds
18 and under admtted free and welcome
Tickets at the door or reserve online (recommended) at
http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/4310591
Accessible concert space and restrooms
Saturday, September 14, 2019 ~ 7:30pm
Incarnation Episcopal Church,
1750 29th Avenue, San Francisco
Tickets: $20 General, $15 Seniors/Students
https://sunsetarts.wordpress.com/burning-river-baroque/
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/a-mad-burning-desire-burning-river-baroque-tickets-68902676761
Accessible concert space and restrooms
Sunday, September 15, 2019 ~ 4pm
First Lutheran Church
600 Homer Ave.
Palo Alto, CA 94301
$20 adults/$15 seniors at the door - 20% goes to support the music program of First Lutheran Church
Accessible concert space and restrooms
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Friday, October 18, 2019 ~ 7pm
St. John's Episcopal Church
323 Wick Ave
Youngstown, OH 44503
Donations gratefully accepted
Accessible concert space and restrooms
Saturday, October 19, 2019
Workshop at Renee Jones Empowerment Center
Saturday, October 19, 2019 ~ 7pm
Arrive 7pm, Music@7:30pm
Blank Canvas CLE
2174 Lee Road
Cleveland Heights, OH 44118
Suggested Donation $10-$20
Accessible concert space
Sunday, October 20, 2019 ~ 1:30pm
Arrive 1:30pm Music@2pm
Pittsburgh house concert/potluck
216 s. Aiken Ave.
Pittsburgh, PA 15206
Please bring food or wine/drink
Suggested Donation $15-20