Outdoor Screening: Manual Cinema's No Blue Memories

Manual Cinema’s No Blue Memories: The Life of Gwendolyn Brooks brings to life the story of one of Chicago’s most beloved figures. She was an icon, a poet laureate, and a Pulitzer Prize winner—but she was also a treasured educator and mentor to the countless writers and children who knew her as their very own “Miss Brooks.” Weaving together poetry, storytelling, sound design, original music, and striking visuals, No Blue Memories is an exploration of Brooks’s beloved city and a story of how she navigated identity, craft, and politics over the course of one of the most remarkable careers in American literary history. The performance combines intricate paper puppetry, live actors working in shadow, and an original score for an unforgettable multimedia experience.

Featuring a screenplay by Eve L. Ewing and Nate Marshall of Crescendo Literary and with music by Jamila Woods and Ayanna Woods, No Blue Memories was commissioned by the Poetry Foundation for the Brooks Centenary and premiered in Chicago in November, 2017.