FERRUM, VA, May 26, 2023 – The Jack Tale Players of Ferrum College performed at the Southwest Virginia Cultural Center in Abingdon, Virginia on May 18 as part of The Crooked Road’s Cultural Series. The event was partially funded by the National Endowment for the Arts.
The Jack Tale Players are a collaboration between the Ferrum College theatre arts program and Professor Emeritus Rex Stephenson. He founded the Jack Tale Players in 1975 to highlight traditional music and stories of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Performances delight all ages with Appalachian folktales performed in an energetic story theatre style and songs accompanied by traditional instruments. Upcoming performances this summer include shows in Chilhowie and Galax, Virginia, as well as Franklin and Bedford Counties.
This year marks a revitalization of the Jack Tale Players with Ferrum College students as members, and this performance with student participation was much celebrated by everyone involved. After Stephenson’s retirement in 2012, he continued to tell the Appalachian tales he had adapted, often with alumni and colleagues assisting him in small groups he called the Jack Tale Storytellers.
This year Stephenson returned to part-time teaching and directing at the College. In April the lower level of Schoolfield Hall was dedicated as The Rex Stephenson Theatre after extensive renovation and the creation of murals and displays chronicling the programs Stephenson created, including the Blue Ridge Dinner Theatre as well as the Jack Tale Players.
Other collaborations between the Ferrum College Appalachian Music program and The Crooked Road: Virginia’s Heritage Music Trail include the community music jams every Monday evening of the year at the Blue Ridge Institute and Museum on campus. All are welcome every Monday between 7:00 and 8:30 p.m.
From left to right, the group in the performance photo includes Ferrum College student Gage Shelton, professor emerita Jody Brown, community member Rachel Blankenship-Tucker, Ferrum College faculty Emily Blankenship-Tucker, Ferrum College student TJ Baker, Ferrum College faculty member Rebecca Crocker, and the youngest Jack Tale Player ever, Silas Blankenship-Tucker.
The photo at the top of the page shows the Jack Tale Players setting up for their show, with director Rex Stephenson standing on the floor facing the stage.
