Hidden History of Civil War in Kentucky Subect of New Play

This sound like one not to be missed:

One of the more painful episodes of Kentucky's Civil War history is the subject of a new play.

Set in 1864, Blow Ye the Trumpet, Blow! tells the story of how 400 African-American women and children were ordered out of Camp Nelson, the Army camp in southern Jessamine County where their husbands and fathers were trained as Union soldiers.

The two-act play, to be performed June 5 and 6 at Camp Nelson Civil War Heritage Park, is the first dramatization of the expulsion. The story is told through the family of Pvt. Joseph Miller, a soldier who wrote a first-person account of how his family was driven out.

Lonnie Brown of Louisville, a teacher and ex-Marine, said it is a "humbling experience" to portray Miller, who is buried at Camp Nelson National Cemetery just south of the Civil War park.

Read the whole thing.

Blow Ye the Trumpet, Blow! will be performed at 7 p.m. June 5 and 6 at Camp Nelson Civil War Heritage Park.

The park is off U.S. 27 about 6 miles south of Nicholasville and just north of Camp Nelson National Cemetery.

Admission is $15 for show and dinner. The dinner will feature "a sampling" of food from the Civil War era, such as beef with carmelized onions, summer salad, vegetables of the season and bread pudding.

There will also be a cannon firing.

For tickets, go to www.bluegrassarts.org or call the Bluegrass Arts Association at (859) 881-8247.

Broadway Too Far? Try Kentucky's Summer Theaters

Theater is Life. Film is Art. Television is Furniture.
(Seen on a T-Shirt)

There's nothing like live theater. And nothing as thrilling as discovering a professional production of a classic or great new play right around the corner.

Kentucky Tourism has the details.

From Prestonsburg to Bardstown to Gilbertsville, Kentucky is home to an exciting variety of summer theaters. A few have been producing shows for more than a half-century and have achieved renown throughout the state and beyond its borders. Several newer additions to the Kentucky Summer Theater Trail are attracting attention and theater-lovers by presenting unique stages, settings and productions throughout the commonwealth.

From mid-June through August, these purveyors of dramatic entertainment provide a bit of Broadway in your backyard. Depending on your theatrical taste, you can take in a comedy, musical or drama. Theaters near or far can enliven a summer evening and provide memories for years to come. Among the venues are Jenny Wiley Theatre in Prestonsburg, Kincaid Regional Theatre in Falmouth, Louisville’s Broadway at Iroquois, Pioneer Playhouse in Danville, Stephen Foster Productions in Bardstown, Kentucky Repertory Theatre in Horse Cave, Pine Knob Theatre in Caneyville and Twilight Cabaret Theatre Productions in Gilbertsville.

Check the press release for details.

Cross-posted at BlueGrassRoots.