World Premiere September 28 - October 14
In partnership with Artists Repertory Theatre and the Newmark Theatre Youth Resources, Inc. and Artists Repertory Theatre are proud to present the world premiere of an original new musical, The Ghosts of Celilo (suh-LIE-low). This ground-breaking production weaves a bittersweet love story within a mystery and features a haunting score of Native American music and traditional musical theatre songs. Presented at the Newmark Theatre in the Portland Center for the Performing Arts, The Ghosts of Celilo will run Thursdays through Sundays from September 28th through October 14th (a total of 11 shows). The Ghosts of Celilo is a musical play based on true events that happened near Celilo Falls in the 1950s. Celilo was one of the world’s premiere fisheries and a cultural and spiritual center for native people before it was inundated by the Dalles Dam in 1957. Ghosts features Native American music and traditional musical theatre genres telling the story of two Indian boys kidnapped and taken to a government boarding school. There, they are befriended by the white daughter of the school’s administrator. The three make a daring escape to catch their ceremonial first salmon before Celilo Falls is buried by the closing of the dam gates. This story is ‘remembered’ by four colorful ghosts who have been stuck at the bottom of the Columbia River for fifty years on the last remnants of fishing platforms that have been buried underwater where Celilo Falls once roared. This dramatic musical is acted and sung by Native American and non-Native actors. The score is a powerful combination of music that combines Native American song and scoring with music more familiar to musical theatre. The Ghosts of Celilo will make its debut at the Newmark Theatre in partnership with Artists Repertory Theatre. http://www.ghostsofcelilo.com/index.html
