Women of the World

Performing with a variety of percussive instruments and expert vocalizations, Women of the World transform the most mundane of matters into music of the spheres. Some pieces are deep and reflective, evoking the forces of nature; others compel listeners to jump to their feet in spontaneous movement.

Songs cover a wide range of topics from personal love to human conditions that demand our attention invoking our inherent need for freedom and justice. The music is timeless taking the audience on a journey through many countries and bringing them back home again. These performers come together for this special week in PTown after traveling and performing extensively in their own ensembles throughout the year.

Women of the World are:

Fre Atlast, is a drummer, songwriter, and educator. She leads drum classes for all ages and specializes in teaching young children and elders. A performer for over 25 years, she can be heard performing with Victoria Christgau and the Peace is Possible Chorus, IABAS Brasilian Band, “Sirius Coyote”, “Women of the World” and her Woodstock community drum ensemble ” Birds of a Feather”. Co-founder of the Elders Drum Project Inc., she is currently the program director of this multi-faceted community based drum and arts organization. Fre is founder and one of the co-producers of the Catskill Mountain Women’s World Drum and Percussion Happen’n.

Lakecia Benjamin: (appearance pending) saxophonist, has performed with the greats Clark Terry, Reggie Workman, John Hicks and Bertha Hope. She has developed an extensive knowledge of every aspect of jazz performance. Born and raised in NYC, Lakecia started playing saxophone in middle school. Although there were no musicians in her family, her strong interest led her to study at LaGuardia H.S. in Lincoln Center. She studied at Rutgers University with a full music scholarship. She then returned to NYC to attend the New School, where she graduated in 2006. She has been performing with legends like Gary Bartz, Junior Mance, and Charles Tolliver, Joe Chambers, and the Duke Ellington Orchestra. Lakecia has just returned from California where she had been selected to perform with Herbie Hancock and Alice Coltrane.

Victoria Christgau, singer, peace/arts educator, founder and director of The Peace is Possible Chorus from Litchfield CT, Teaching Artist with the CT Commission on Culture and Tourism. Founder/producer of the 17th annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Birthday Commemoration of Litchfield County CT. Director of Sister Sound Vocal and Percussion Ensemble and Founder and Co-Director of The Peace is Possible Chorus. Victoria has performed at festivals, concert halls, The United Nations and hundreds of conference centers and gatherings for over 25 years.

Kathleen Sartor, Founding member of Sirius Coyote Music, Kathleen has studied history and Latin American studies at the University of Minnesota. She first learned music on the accordeon and now plays bombo, rainsticks, kalimba, drums and assorted musical surprises. She has spent the past 15 years traveling and studying the myths, music and theatre arts of the Americas. She is also a gifted actress and storyteller with a deep understanding of Latin American oral traditions picked up during an early trip to Colombia and long residences in Mexico where she shares a home with her husband in the eco-village co-founded to form part of Global Eco-village Network (GEN) with other international artists. Caru Thompson, has been studying, performing, teaching, creating, composing, writing, and storytelling for 20 years. She facilitates shekere and bell intensives in the U.S. and abroad. She is a member of ASE (Ah Shay), the Ancestral Messengers, and performs with others, including Ubaka Hill and the Shapeshifters. Currently Caru has been performing with Women of The Calabash through out this and other countries.

Box Office Hours: 1 hour before showtimes