Archive for the Blog Posts Category

The Fool as Healer

The Fool as Healer

Posted by Washington Revels
For September’s Directors’ Blog post, we thought we’d look back once more through our original Revelations newsletter, which ran in print from 1987-2006. We came across this timely article that was featured in the Fall 1992 installment — the first year that Washington Revels produced the “Celestial Fools” show you’ll see this December! Written by Elizabeth Lloyd Mayer of California Revels in 1991, it speaks to the role of the Fool in medieval society and the lessons that the Fool’s wisdom held for us in the twentieth — and still holds in the twenty-first — century. And while not every Christmas Revels show has featured a Fool in the year’s following Elizabeth’s article, we think the magic she describes will certainly be on display this year.

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Hand in Hand

Hand in Hand

A post by Patti Knapp, Business & Development Director
I love this quote because it expresses the best of what nonprofit development can be. Raising funds is never one-sided — that is, “they give, we do” — because success depends on everyone connected with an organization working together towards a common goal. And of all organizations, the Washington Revels community understands what it means to walk the same path, hand in hand.

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The Power of Our Reveling in a Changing World

The Power of Our Reveling in a Changing World

A post by Jo Rasi, Community Engagement Director
All of us who consider ourselves Revelers probably enjoy singing and sharing songs with others. We may all love the sense of community we’ve created. And we know what it is to be in the midst of a moment of collective joy. Recently, as Community Engagement Director, I’ve been thinking about those four elements of Reveling (singing, sharing songs, a sense of community, and collective joy).

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Wanted!—Heritage Voices

Wanted!—Heritage Voices

A post by Elizabeth Fulford, Washington Revels Music Director
During the sesquicentennial of the American Civil War, Washington Revels formed several groups to research and “bring to life” the varied traditions that made up nineteenth-century musical life in this country, from shape-note tunes, to political ditties, to traditional spirituals. So when Jackie Streker of the George Washington University Museum approached me about recording some music for its upcoming “Songs of the Civil War” exhibit, I jumped at the opportunity to gather the forces and learn some new tunes.

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Hi Ho, the Rattlin’ “Blog”

Hi Ho, the Rattlin’ “Blog”

Posted by Washington Revels
For 35 years, Washington Revels and its audiences have celebrated the arrival of spring with performances on the first weekend of May featuring Revels’ usual combination of music, song, dance, and drama. Like many of the traditions that Washington Revels celebrates year-round, May Day has its origins in ancient festivities marking the changing of the seasons. These traditions relate to humanity’s vulnerability in the face of nature and its use of community celebrations to express the joys and fears surrounding the cycle of

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The Sailors’ Spring

The Sailors’ Spring

A post by Mike Matheson, Director, Maritime Voices
This past Winter, we sailors and womenfolk of the Washington Revels Maritime Voices got our annual voyage underway by performing center stage at the Folklore Society of Greater Washington’s annual Mid-Winter Festival — and as all hearty sailors would do at the end of a successful voyage, we concluded February by conducting our usual raucous party. We’ve since been sailing through the Spring to some old familiar shores.

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News Release – May Revels at BlackRock SpringFest

News Release – May Revels at BlackRock SpringFest

Silver Spring, MD, April 11, 2019 – While taking a holiday this May Day might not be possible for most people in Montgomery County, on Sunday, May 5, Washington Revels and BlackRock Center for the Arts will invite UpCounty residents to celebrate the return of Spring during the first annual outdoor BlackRock SpringFest: a free afternoon of traditional music, dance and more featuring local musicians and entertainers, craft vendors, food trucks, and 100 performers from Washington Revels.

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News Release – May Revels in DC

News Release – May Revels in DC

Silver Spring, MD, April 11, 2019 – While taking a holiday this May Day might not be possible for most Washingtonians, on Saturday, May 4, Washington Revels invites DC-area residents to celebrate the return of Spring during its annual May Revels at Washington National Cathedral: a free, family-friendly, one-hour performance that revives Spring traditions from merry old England.

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The Elusive Revels Elevator Pitch

The Elusive Revels Elevator Pitch

A post by Ross Wixon, Marketing & Development Director
One of the challenges that I find most fun to tackle is explaining to new audiences what Revels is. It’s not easy! I can’t just say, “Washington Revels produces theater.” Or, “Washington Revels is a community chorus.” Certainly, there are elements of both disciplines present in what we do here, but our programs extend far beyond stage productions and concerts. We teach children in multidisciplinary classes. We offer workshops in traditional crafts that are both volunteer opportunities and social time. We preserve and practice traditional dances, and we present informal participatory programs like our monthly Community Sings and Dances, World Story Time, and Day of Service volunteer activities.

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A Journey Paved with Songs of Freedom

A Journey Paved with Songs of Freedom

A post by Andrea Jones Blackford, Director, Jubilee Voices & Co-Director, Heritage Voices March 1, 2019 As Washington Revels Jubilee Voices enters its ninth year as an ensemble, we’ve shared songs and stories all over the DC region, from the National Archives in Washington, DC to places

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