The Great Northern @ Public Functionary

MARY PRESCOTT: MOTHER TONGUE

Presented by The Great Northern
Supported by Minnesota Humanities
Date & Time: Thu, Jan 30, 2025, 6:00 pm
TICKETS: $10

IJoin us for an evening of film, food, and conversation with Minnesota composer Mary Prescott at the premiere of Mother Tongue. This film screening and artist talk explores the deep connections between food, community, and family.

In September 2024, Prescott and The Great Northern hosted a potluck dinner with five artists, writers, and community leaders—José Luis, Ifrah Mansour, Kate Beane, Kao Kalia Yang, and Eyenga Bokamba. Each guest brought a family dish, sharing the stories and cultural significance behind their recipes. This intimate gathering was captured in a short documentary film that we are thrilled to share with you for the first time.

The work and conversations documented in Mother Tongue will form the foundation for Ancestral Table, a large-scale performance artwork by Mary Prescott that will celebrate her maternal Thai heritage. This exciting project is set to be a highlight of our 2026 festival programming.

As part of the experience, you’ll also have the opportunity to sample food from some of the featured participants. Don’t miss this celebration of our diverse culinary traditions.

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FLORESTA: SOUNDBATH

By Angélica Negrón, Darian Donovan Thomas, and Raquel Acevedo Klein
Co-presented with The Great Northern
Dates & Times:
Fri, Jan 31, 2025, 6:00 pm
Sat, Feb 1, 2025, 3:00 pm & 5:00 pm
TICKETS: $25

Inspired by trees’ underground communication network, composers/performers Angélica Negrón, Darian Donovan Thomas, and Raquel Acevedo Klein collaborate in an evening of live unfolding soundscapes using voices, violin, plants, flowers, bells, synths, accordion, water, found objects, and mechanical percussion. Moving fluidly between dreamy immersive soundscapes and more dynamic, rhythmically driven compositions, the trio will explore a wide range of musical ideas. Floresta also stars nature itself as a featured performer as MIDI Sprout technology translates biodata from plants into music.

The program will include excerpts from the three composers/performers: Negrón’s symphony Sinfonía Isleña and site specific choral piece Chorus of the Forest; Acevedo Klein’s entrancing Wisteria and rhythmically playful Amaryllis; and Darian Donovan Thomas’ elastic and heartfelt Safe Space from his forthcoming album, and Olana, his immersive installation soundscape—plus a rework of Negrón’s Planeaciones (part of For the Birds: The Birdsong Project, Vol. 1) and a special cover of Björk’s All is Full of Love.

Floresta was originally commissioned and presented by the Brooklyn Botanical Garden in 2023 and will be reconceived for Minnesota winter as part of The Great Northern 2025.

Get tickets here