FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Sarah Snyder
ssnyder3@umd.edu
301.405.8151
College Park, MD— Rhythm and blues and gospel legend Mavis Staples makes her debut at the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center with a performance in the Kay Theatre on November 8 at 8 pm. From her start with the Staple Singers to her dynamic solo career, Staples has continued to raise social consciousness through music for six decades. Yvonne Staples, Mavis Staples’ sister and original member of the Staple Sisters, will provide backing vocals.
This performance is part of the Clarice Smith Center’s involvement in The National Civil War Project. The Center is examining the Civil War through the lens of civil and human rights, with a special focus on the Civil Rights Movement.
About Mavis Staples
Mavis Staples is a musical powerhouse. For six decades she has been a solid rock in American music, launching her career with the family group The Staple Sisters. From the delta-inflected gospel sound she helped create in the 1950s (“Uncloudy Day”), to the engaged protest of the civil rights era (“Freedom Highway”), and then on pop radio in the 1970s with a series of soul anthems (“I’ll Take You There,” “Respect Yourself,” “Let’s Do It Again”), Staples’ smoldering voice is iconic.
Staples released her first solo album in 1969, and she has since collaborated with artists such as Ray Charles, Natalie Merchant, Bob Dylan, Prince and Wilco. She says of her solo songs, "They’re about the world today—poverty, jobs, welfare, all of that—and making it feel better through these songs." Her latest solo album, One True Vine, produced by Wilco leader Jeff Tweedy, is a gospel album for the 21st century, in which Staples lends her warm, rich voice to a search for grace.
Staples is a Rock and Roll Hall of Famer, a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award winner and a National Heritage Fellowship Award recipient. VH1 named her one of the 100 Greatest Women of Rock and
Roll, and Rolling Stone listed her as one of the 100 Greatest Singers of All Time. Her previous album, the Tweedy-produced You Are Not Alone, won the Grammy Award for Best Americana Album in 2011, adding a remarkable new chapter to an already historic career.
Tickets
More information can be found on our website. Tickets for this performance are $50/$10 (Regular/Students), and can be purchased online or by calling (301) 405-ARTS (2787).
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Located on the University of Maryland campus and a part of the College of Arts and Humanities, Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center is a premier presenting arts venue and collaborative laboratory shared by the School of Music (SOM), the School of Theatre, Dance, and Performance Studies (TDPS) and the Michelle Smith Performing Arts Library. The Center made its debut in 2001 and has grown into a national model for campus performing arts centers, presenting performances and programs by visiting artists as well as by students and faculty of SOM and TDPS in an environment of creative learning, exploration and growth. The Center remains active in the larger university community through its innovative partnerships and extraordinary experiences.
The Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center is supported by a grant from the Maryland State Arts Council, an agency dedicated to cultivating a vibrant cultural community where the arts thrive. An agency of the Department of Business & Economic Development, the MSAC provides financial support and technical assistance to nonprofit organizations, units of government, colleges and universities for arts activities. Funding for the Maryland State Arts Council is also provided by the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency.