ON BURIED GROUND Begins In September At Christ Church Neighborhood House

Christ Church Preservation Trust  has been conducting research to discover the lives and everyday acts of resilience and survival by Black people, both free and enslaved in Colonial Philadelphia Records show funeral services were held for enslaved Africans and African-Americans at Christ Church.

Historians have speculated they may be buried on Church grounds This research has been the launch pad for On Buried Ground, an upcoming performance running during the 2024 Philadelphia Fringe Festival as part of the Cannonball hub of the festival.  

This unique event invites audiences to connect with the spirits of the past and honor the ancestors whose stories have long been buried, promising to enlighten, inspire, and captivate audiences of all ages. Featuring the talents of dance artist Shayla-Vie Jenkins, playwright Rayne, and director Nia Benjamin, this immersive experience combines theatrical storytelling with research gathered from recently digitized archival records. 

On Buried Ground runs September 4-14 at Christ Church Neighborhood House, 40 N. American Street. Tickets and more information can be found fringearts.com. Tickets are Pay-What-You-Decide starting at $5. https://phillyfringe.org/events/on-buried-ground/ More information on the project can be found at www.neighborhood-house.com/projects/on-buried-ground/. 

“History is an imperfect record. Crucial things are left out. It often flattens things into facts and figures, diagrams and pictures. This project adds flesh and life and story to the history of Black people living in colonial Philadelphia, to complicate and re-examine our understanding of the ‘Free North,'” said the piece's director Nia Benjamin. “A complex and resilient community of Black people was born alongside this nation, whose labors, dreams, and hopes for their life in this have been mostly obscured. These people-- Alice, Violet, William, Charles and Sharpers-- are a case study of the forgotten of Philadelphia's history. “

Audiences will step back in time and uncover powerful stories of resilience and survival in colonial Philadelphia with On Buried Ground, a captivating performance and exhibition that brings to life the hidden histories of enslaved and freed people of African descent. This immersive experience invites audiences to reconsider the hidden narratives behind two of Philadelphia's most historic sites: Christ Church and the Christ Church Burial Ground. The performance first takes audiences inside the church's original pews to learn the story of Alice of Dunk's Ferry and the Black congregants of Christ Church through dance, music and story. After a brief intermission, audiences regather at the Burial Ground to journey with performers through the network of gravestones to learn about the lives of three enslaved children speculated to be interred within the grounds, and one child who is believe to be buried in Washington Square Park, known at that time as Congo Square. Options for rest and seating will be available throughout, with accessible routes provided. The performance is designed for all audiences.

On Buried Ground is performed by: Song Aziza Tucker, Cory Seals, Arianna Polite, Anna Scattoni, Rhonda Moore, and dancers from the Gwendolyn Bye Dance Center. Nia Benjamin is the Director. Shayla Vie-Jenkins is the Choreographer. Rayne is the Playwright. Sam Crawford is the Sound Designer. Tuce Yasak is the Lighting Designer.  Tania Saiz Perez is the Stage Manager. Hannah Opendaker is the Project Director.

In addition to the live performances, experience Groundings: An Exhibition, where you can journey through curated visual art, historical records, and interpretations to explore the known and unknown histories of Black congregants at Christ Church. Curated by Malkia Okech and Tafari Robertson, this is more than a performance; it's a chance to connect with the spirits of the past and to honor the ancestors whose stories have long been buried.

“I'm curious about the everyday person, those on the margins of history. I want to know and feel a kind of intimacy with their lives,” said Shayla-Vie Jenkins. “There is so much we will never know, but this project attempts to imagine. In that radical imagining there is a form/practice of empathy, to reach back and try to walk in their shoes. This project seeks to open our hearts and minds to the Black souls who lived during the colonial period in Philadelphia–those who survived and resisted in their own quiet ways. It focuses on those forgotten by history, buried in mass graves without markers, and whose stories go untold.”

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