History Alive! Presents Performance at Pioneer Village On The Life of Salem Colonists In 1640

FOR IMMEDIATE INFORMATION
June 22, 2007

MEDIA CONTACT:
Kristin Schwabauer
Office of College Communications
978.867.4235

WENHAM, MA-Beginning on Saturday, July 7, 2007, History Alive!--the professional acting branch of Gordon College--will perform Folkways: A Day in the Life of the Early Colonists at Pioneer Village in Salem, MA. Folkways is a hands-on interactive performance that depicts 17th-century life through period singing, storytelling, and other themed activities on education and worship, love and courtship, and crime and punishment.

Kristina Wacome Stevick, artistic director of History Alive!, believes that this new audience-interactive performance will be well-liked by audiences of all ages. "Feeling confident that role play and problem solving makes for an exciting and effective way to teach history, our Folkways program was written to engage a variety of learning styles. We think Pioneer Village--a three acre, three dimensional set--is the perfect environment for such a program. You can lose yourself there, forgetting that you live in the 21st century. All your senses help you traverse time."

History Alive's! preview audiences have responded positively to the Folkways performance. "The entire program was absolutely captivating," said Carrie Midura of Billerica, Massachusetts. "In many cases I was left wondering if something I had just seen or heard was scripted or just improvised. The actors played the roles perfectly, but more than that, they truly captured the spirit of Salem village life in 1640." Sam Dennis of Saint Paul, Minnesota agreed: "This was possibly the best way to spend my afternoon--it was fun and educational!"

History Alive!--comprised of Gordon College theatre students, alumni, professional actors and students from schools in the surrounding area--perform in shows such as Cry Innocent, The Scarlet Letter, Arbella 375th: City on a Hill and Inspired: An Evening with Nathaniel Hawthorne. For Gordon theatre students, the professional acting branch provides an opportunity for them to gain valuable acting experience in world-recognized productions, while learning and acting beside professionals in the field.

WHAT: Folkways: A Day in the Life of the Early Colonists, a performance by History Alive!, the professional acting branch of Gordon College.

WHERE: Pioneer Village in Forest River Park, Salem, Massachusetts

WHEN: Saturday, July 7, 2007
              Saturday, August 4, 2007
              Saturday, September 1, 2007
              Performances will begin at 11:15 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.

Admission is $5 for adults, $4 for seniors and $3 for students. Preschool aged children are admitted free of charge. For more information, visit www.gordon.edu/historyalive/productions or call the production office at 978.867.4767.

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Gordon College is a Christian college of the liberal arts and sciences on Boston's North Shore. The college offers majors in 36 fields and has graduate programs in education and music education. Leading the way in Christian college merit, Gordon is nationally ranked for its excellence in academics and its role in character building. These achievements recognize Gordon as one of the nation's top Christian colleges.

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