Event Details

Jazz musician Craig Harris composed “Souls Within the Veil” to commemorate the centennial of W.E.B. Du Bois’s "Souls of Black Folk."  Craig (www.craigsharris.com) and a star-studded ensemble will perform “Souls," with playwright Ed Bullins providing introductory remarks. Simon's Rock Professor Wesley Brown will serve as master of ceremonies. Presentation of Du Bois Center Pioneer Awards to philanthropist Rachel Fletcher and maestro Maurice Peress. Reception to follow at the Du Bois Center. This fund-raising event for the Du Bois Center is cosponsored by Bard College at Simon’s Rock.

Admission is $35 for the concert, reception, and the film to be shown the next day at the Du Bois Center on Sunday, February 6, 2011 at 11 a.m. Free to the Simon's Rock community.

"The Road to Freedom: The Vernon Johns Story" (1994) starred James Earl Jones as the civil rights leader Johns, Mary Alice as his wife Altona, and Nicole Leach as their daughter “Baby Dee.” The film was directed by Kenneth Fink, written by Leslie Lee and Kevin Arkadie, with theme music by Taj Mahal, and executive produced by Richard P. Rubinstein and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

Mr. Rubinstein and Ms. Leach (aka Nicolle Rochelle) will host the Christopher Award winning and critically acclaimed film at the Du Bois Center, with Ms. Rochelle and Mr. Rubinstein providing background on the making of the movie and civil rights movement during the late 1940s and early 1950s.