HTBAF: Americana

APRIL 24th, 8pm
on Zoom

Stories hold space for our experiences to be shared, digested and held in the histories of our bodies. Cowboy hats and Cuban heels, BBQ, braids, big cars, Hillbillies, highrise skylines, million-dollar election campaigns, the all mighty cheeseburger … all of these hold stories for us, all fit into ideas of “Americana.” This month, How To Build A Fire wants to hear what Americana means to you.

What is your relationship with this country? This national identity? This mythology? Has your experience of the United States of Contradictions left you included, excluded, or taking a line dance through the jumble of identities we hold to call ourselves American?

What is the power of cultural symbols, icons, and behaviors? Watching a video of a god-fearing Appalachian family band playing their banjos, mandolin, and dulcimer (as you do on day whatever of isolation), I stumbled into the comments to find a man from Bangladesh telling his story of finding Appalachian gospel music, meeting a woman from Tennessee who shared his love, and his migration to the United States so he could don his own cowboy hat in his own Tennessee Mountain Home. The strong grip between kitsch and identity of Americana draws people from the world in — to Dollywood, to New York — and takes us on a ride down the highways and byways on the quilt of this wide nation and culture.

In keeping with the spirit of our regular monthly storytelling romp, this will also be a space for casual chats, dancing, and imbibing (perhaps instead of popping a donation in our old rusty box for your glass of top shelf pino gris or modelo, hit the Donate button on the Open Source website!). We will have four beautiful storytellers ready to share their stories, but if something in this sparks a memory or short tale you would like to share, please let us know! We are always looking to elevate the voices of our community.

So take our very well washed, digital hand, and step into a big car with a good mix tape. How To Build A Fire is going on a road trip through AMERICANA! Friday the 24th at 8pm on Zoom.

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How to Build a Fire was created by poet Terence Degnan. Each month, four diverse individuals share personal narratives centered around a theme. Their stories weave together an illustration of the human experience. This year’s hosts are Christina Marks and Stacie Evans.

Once it’s safe to be out and about again, How to Build a Fire will take place at Open Source Gallery — a welcoming, nurturing, intimate, safe environment, a participant-driven art initiative that provides space, community and conceptual context for creative play and critical commentary.
You can support Open Source Gallery here: https://open-source-gallery.org/donations/

Thanks!