Mario Frangoulis Concert

 

On June 6th Give US Your Poor partnered with world renowned Greek Tenor Mario Frangoulis at his concert at the Berklee Performance Center in Boston.  Frangoulis has been a friend and supporter of Give US Your Poor for many years.  He has performed in benefit concerts for Give US Your Poor in the past, as well as appearing on our album.

At the show we set up shop in the lobby of the venue.  We were there to spread awareness about our new initiative (American Music Project: Voices for Veterans) which aims to engage musicians and their fans in the attempt to end veteran homelessness by 2015.  We were able to talk with over a hundred of Mario's fans about the issue of veteran homelessness. 

Mario put on a wonderful show, seamlessly weaving together classical and modern pop music.  The concert also featured beautiful performances by the Women of the World and the Berklee Balkan Choir.  Throughout the show, Mario wore his heart on his sleeve, speaking about the recent tragedy in Boston and poverty among the children of the world. Mario also spoke about his work with Give US Your Poor and his friendship with the organizations director John McGah.

After the show we were able to go backstage and talk briefly with Mario. Mario is as friendly and charming in person as he is on-stage.  He kindly welcomed us and thanked us for what were doing to end homelessness.  He also posed for a photo with some of the Give US Your Poor staff.  Mario has been a great friend to our organization for several years now and we hope to continue that relationship for years to come.

Give US Your Poor CD Hits Stage as Theatrical Performance by Donna Cotterell

I want to express my heartfelt appreciation to Give US Your Poor and Appleseed Recordings for doing such a tremendous job putting the Give US Your Poor CD together.

I must admit, when I originally received the CD, I thought I was only going to like one or two songs. I had received a signed copy in the mail from my friend, Mighty Sam McClain. I love Sam’s music, therefore, I thought I was only going to like the songs that Sam appears on. Lo and behold, I fell in love with the entire CD. The opening song, “Land of 10,000 Homeless,” (Andrew Turpening) speaks to many of us, who but for the grace of God could be out on the street, especially in this economy. The vocals on “No Good Reason” (Natalie Merchant & Friends) are so craftily blended and the ending crescendo of voices sends chills up my spine. I love the spoken word pieces by Danny Glover and Tim Robbins; Glover transcends gender and race in his rendition of “My Name is Not Those People.” One of my favorites on the CD is “Stranger Blues” by Sweet Honey in the Rock. It is such a haunting melody and bears witness to many who may go home from time to time, but are not fully accepted for whatever reason. Another favorite is Mario Frangoulis singing “Feels Like Home.” He has a voice like an angel and I feel blessed to have seen him perform that and “Amazing Grace” along with Mighty Sam live at the Strand Theater back in 2007 at the Give US Your Poor Concert for Boston’s Homeless. What a treat! The icing on the cake is the closing song, “Here and Now,” by Mark Erelli. It challenges each and everyone of us to think about what we can do to bring about change and also think about what is holding us back.

It is a powerful CD and I am please to announce that I am bringing a theatrical performance based on the CD to the stage. Our pilot performance will be June 4, 2011 2-4 PM at Messiah Baptist Church at 80 Legion Parkway in Brockton, MA. The event will be a free performance with a panel discussion afterwards. I hope you can make it. There will be more information to follow.

Warm regards,

Donna Cotterell

Donna Cotterell is an educator at Smith Leadership Academy Charter Public School in the Fields Corner section of Dorchester, MA. She leads a theatrical company, Indaba Theatre of New England, that uses theater as therapy to help individuals overcome obstacles in their lives.