Playing to a packed house, STL GLD kicked off American Repertory Theater’s 2018/19 Live @ OBERON series on August 3. The Boston-based hip hop duo (Emcee Moe Pope and Producer The Arcitype) were recently named “Boston’s Best Band of 2018” by Improper Bostonian, and returned to OBERON after a performance in December 2017. They performed pieces from their most recent album, Torch Song, debuting new arrangements featuring a chamber orchestra. They also treated the audience to selections from an upcoming third album.
STL GLD performed their infectious contemporary numbers against a backdrop of cinemagraphic images—including battle scenes from the 1989 film Glory portraying the 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry during the American Civil War, which foregrounded themes of racial injustice in their lyrics. The band was joined by performer Dzidzor who offered another layer to the evening—theatrical “affirmations” that broke up the set with moments of call and response promoting positive messages of self-love. Opening for STL GLD was nationally-acclaimed poet and rapper, Oompa. A Cambridge resident, Lakiyra (Oompa) Williams captivated audience members with her laid-back flow and hard-hitting lyrics that grapple with issues of queerness, race, and the intersections of her many identities.
For Live @ OBERON events, A.R.T.’s club theater becomes a playground for musicians to explore expanding the limits of their acts by presenting more theatricalized versions of their sets. “Boston has such a great live music scene—so many bands come into OBERON and tell us ‘there are so many things here that we don’t always get at a traditional live music venue,’” said Artistic Producer Mark Lunsford at the A.R.T.’s 2018/19 Season preview event. The Live @ OBERON fall lineup includes Camino 84, Samora Pinderhughes, and Billy Dean Thomas.
Camino 84, a local multi-genre artist who blends disco, boogie, funk, and jazz, comes to OBERON on September 7 with an immersive music experience that will put the performance at the mercy of the audience. In Camino 84: Mob Rule, the audience will be able to choose songs, hire (or fire) band members, give feedback, and control the fates of special guests in real-time using their mobile devices.
Next, Samora Pinderhughes will be at OBERON October 6 and 7, having previously performed at venues including Carnegie Hall, MoMA, and the White House. Pinderhughes will be performing his acclaimed piece, The Transformations Suite. Known for his large, multi-disciplinary projects, Pinderhughes’ piece artistically embodies the history of resistance within the communities of the African Diaspora through music, theater, and poetry. Featuring a seven-piece jazz band, the suite aims to empower people to make their voices heard and to demonstrate how social change can be created through art.
Originally from New York City and now residing in Boston, Billy Dean Thomas was selected as The Theatre Offensive’s 2017 Resident Artist. Speaking to Boston Voyager in May 2018, Thomas shared the way that their mission as an artist draws on their identity as a Queer Trans Person of Color: “I strive to be so great at my craft that my gender identity or expression shifts the focus from people’s implicit bias to inspiration and celebration.” Also known as “The Queer B.I.G.,” Thomas was recently awarded a grant to create a full orchestral version of their latest hip-hop album, Rocky Barboa, which will premiere at OBERON on November 2.
It wouldn’t be Christmas in Cambridge without The Sweetback Sisters and their unique brand of honky-tonk Americana. The Sisters are rounding out the Live @ OBERON fall lineup, returning for a third year with their incredibly popular show, The Sweetback Sisters’ Country Christmas Singalong Spectacular. Emily Miller, Zara Bode, and their band will bring along holiday-themed trivia, prizes, and their pitch-perfect harmonies.
The Sweetback Sisters bring the holidays to life with their vaudevillian theatrics reminiscent of TV variety shows from the ’50s and ’60s, a holiday sing-along, and Christmas trivia for the whole family.
