The Drum Major Instinct

Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Bryan Doerries shake hands before rehearsing.

Actor Jeffrey Wright and Mayor Zohran Mamdani backstage.

Bryan Doerries, Mayor Zohran Mamdani, and New York County District Attorney Alvin Bragg rehearsing.

Attorney General of New York Letitia James rehearsing.

Attorney General of New York Letitia James, Mayor Zohran Mamdani, New York County District Attorney Alvin Bragg backstage

The audience at BAM.

Attorney General of New York Letitia James performs.

ASL interpreters

Soloist Duane Martin Foster.

Mayor Zohran Mamdani performs.

Soloist John Leggett sings.

Soloists De-Rance Blaylock sing.

Chad Coleman delivers Dr. King's Sermon "The Drum Major Instinct"

De-Andrea Blaylock Solar co-facilitates the audience discussion with Bryan Doerries.

Soloist De-Rance Blaylock delivers a soul stirring performance as a lead soloist in The Drum Major instinct

The Phil Woodmore Singers and the New Sunny Mount MBC Mass Choir lead by Dr. Philip A. Woodmore.

Thank you to Dr. Philip A. Woodmore for his charismatic leadership and his brilliant conducting! Phil composed and arranged the music for this special project and brings together a composite choir of people from many walks of life.

New Sunny Mount Missionary Baptist Church graciously hosted a special performance of The Drum Major Instinct as part of the Cultural Week of Action on Race and Democracy presented by Race Forward, and Americans for the Arts.

Race Forward, and Americans for the Arts for invited Theater of War productions to take part in the Cultural Week of Action on Race and Democracy. We presented The Drum Major Instinct, featuring performances by Chad Coleman (The Wire, The Walking Dead), The Phil Woodmore Singers and the New Sunny Mount MBC Mass Choir, and soloists De-Rance Blaylock, Duane Foster, and John Leggett. Thank you to the audience members who joined us in person and the hundreds more from the United States, Canada, Ireland, Germany, France who joined us on Zoom. The audience in-person and on zoom participated in an expansive conversation that was catalyzed by Dr. King’s sermon and Phil Woodmore’s music. The room was full of compassion, openness, and kindness!

Theater of War Productions is honored to share this virtual offering, performed by the Antigone in Ferguson Choir, directed by composer Dr. Philip Woodmore, and led by John Leggette. The singers and musicians featured in this video include educators, students, activists, social workers, members of the faith community, and police officers from St. Louis, Missouri; Richmond, Virginia; and New York City who have made the commitment to sing together in order to start powerful, uncomfortable, transformative discussions about systemic oppression.

The song, “Be Steadfast,” written by Dr. Philip Woodmore for the project The Drum Major Instinct, is a powerful call to action at the end of the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s sermon that serves as a collective response to King’s interrogation of racism, capitalism, militarism, white supremacy, and injustice. Dr. Edwina Moss, personal secretary and friend to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., responded to our project at a performance in Baltimore, Maryland in 2018, saying, "Be uncomfortable. It's all right to be uncomfortable. But if we're on this planet, and if we don't open the conversation, we will perish on this planet.”

We offer “Be Steadfast” for interpretation and discussion, with the hope that it will comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable

Listen to the full piece.

The Huffington Post reports on the Premiere of The Drum Major Instinct. Read the article.

Council-member Jumaane Williams performs in the premiere of The Drum Major Instinct at BRIC. Read the article.