‘Gospel Voices of OC’ puts Black lives, music, dance and artistry on stage for Juneteenth

For Costa Mesa’s Debora Wondercheck, Juneteenth is a time for reflecting on the struggles endured by ancestors born into slavery, the advancements that led to their emancipation and the perseverance forged during their slow march to freedom.

Although federal recognition of the historic June 19, 1965 — the date enslaved Black people in Galveston, Texas first learned from Union soldiers they had already been freed — was established last year, Juneteenth, for many, is marked among families and inscribed on hearts across the nation.

“It’s a time for being reminded what our ancestors went through to get out of slavery,” Wondercheck said Wednesday. “It’s a time for reflecting on the accomplishments, the breakthroughs and the resilience that came out of being free without having any resources whatsoever.”

Debora Wondercheck, the president and chief executive of Arts and Learning Conservatory, poses during a dress rehearsal for the stage concert Gospel Voices of OC, at the Musco Center for the Arts at Chapman University.

(James Carbone)

A cellist and music professor, Wondercheck founded the Arts and Learning Conservatory in 2004 to provide better access to the arts for youth, regardless of their background, ethnicity or financial status.

What began as a string ensemble camp for about 20 kids blossomed into a program that now has 35 teaching artists offering acting, dancing, singing and music lessons to hundreds of kids throughout the community and in dozens of schools.

Now, Wondercheck is using her deep connections in the Orange County arts scene and with area churches and institutions to create a Juneteenth celebration with an extraordinary mission — to tell the story of the Black experience in song, music, dance and spoken word.

The result is “Gospel Voices of OC,” a staged concert that takes place Sunday afternoon at Chapman University’s Musco Center for the Arts and features more than 100 youth and adult performers contributing to a narrative that spans centuries and touches on the achievements and contributions of Black leaders, activists and artists throughout history.

“We’re taking everyone on a journey and a gospel experience,” Wondercheck said. “In the midst of all the heartaches and everything African Americans have gone through, it was the church and the faith that held us together and gave us a voice.”

Imani Harris, the choreographer for Gospel Voices of OC, left, rehearses a scene with dancers at the Musco Center for the Arts at Chapman University.

(James Carbone)

Sonya Griffin, a vocalist who serves as choir director at Friendship Baptist Church in Yorba Linda and is participating in Sunday’s performance, described gospel as a linchpin of Black culture.

“Gospel music comes from the hearts of the people who were enslaved and sang to God,” she explained. “They sang about being free, and we are now finally able to sing about our freedom. We are free to sing with other races and free to sing the songs we grew up on.”

Violinist and Santa Monica College music professor Lesa Terry has been working with Wondercheck as the artistic director for the concert to develop a concept that encapsulates the meaning of Juneteenth.

“Juneteenth, to me, is about undeniability,” she said Wednesday. “We are here, we always have been here, and now we can be recognized in a way performing arts centers will support and continue to grow.”

Terry is working to ensure the program’s diverse cast, styles and performances maintain a strong through line as audience members are transported from Africa, through the Atlantic Ocean’s middle passage and onto America’s shores. As the story continues, influences and scenes of the Harlem Renaissance, jazz and the Civil Rights era are incorporated, continuing up to today.

“All those styles come from the same root, which is African culture,” Terry said. “We talk about the historical components, but even beyond that is the way it makes you feel. That feeling is the feeling of strength and solidarity — if we get to that, then we know we’ve done our job.”

Wondercheck, who works closely with kids, teens at the Arts and Learning Conservancy, recruited a host of youth performers to participate in Sunday’s program.

Karen Allen-Reid, a Costa Mesa resident and choir director for Christ Our Redeemer AME Church in Irvine, will lead a youth choir. They will sing “Wade in the Water,” a spiritual whose lyrics were intended to convey to slaves escaping on the Underground Railroad that hiding in water would throw off the scent of dogs trained to track them.

Allen-Reid explained that, in the concert, adults will sing the song in a more traditional format, before youth pick up the lyrics with a gospel style that reflects how traditions and their meanings evolve across generations. Such is true with Juneteenth itself.

“There’s a new awareness of it now, and people want to celebrate,” she said. “This is good for Orange County.”

While the cast will be many and the story epic, the aim of “Gospel Voices of OC” is simple to Wondercheck.

“It’s not just about Black people,” she said. “It’s about all of us coming together to celebrate the breakthroughs and resilience and moving forward.”

“Gospel Voices of OC” takes place Sunday at 4 p.m. at Chapman University’s Musco Center for the Arts, 1 University Drive, in Orange. For tickets, visit muscocenter.org or call (844) 626-8726.

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