A double feature crankie theater show and slide talk is offered at 7pm tonight, Thursday, September 28, 2023, as a benefit for the cooperative Front Gallery at 6 Barre St in Montpelier. A $10 donation is suggested.

In a Crankie show, a long hand painted scroll is cranked through a pre-industrial theater box to a musical accompaniment.
First up. Utah Phillips' musical account of the Orphan Train, 75 year long social experiment to relocate innumerable children from the eastern cities to the farms of the west . Utah Phillips' widow said this Crankie is exactly how he would have liked his songs to be used.

The second show is a ballad with mysterious early origins, The Wife of Usher's Well, aka Lady Gay.
Each crankie is introduced with a brief slide show history. Musical accompaniment is by Mark Greenberg. The crankie scroll, ballads, and slide show are presented by Delia Robinson.

Jan 16, 2025, 7 to 8 PM

Jan 18, 2025, 10:30 AM to 12:30 PM

Jan 19, 2025, 2 to 4 PM