Our songs continue

Resilience remains in the hearts and minds of St. Louisans following the anniversary of the May 16 tornado. At Our Songs — a free community concert presented by Opera Theatre of Saint Louis — three local performing artists used poetry, movement and music to work through the emotions that linger after a natural disaster. Blake “Concert Black” Hernton, Tre’von Griffith and Alicia Revé Like shaped the evening around what the city has carried since the storm. They curated the program through the lens of the voices and experiences of the people who lived it.

Opening the concert at Third Baptist Church, Opera Theatre Board Chair Kim Eberlein noted the significance of the moment. “Tonight’s program is extra special because we have three exceptionally talented local artists who have curated a program that reflects their music, their stories and experiences living in St. Louis,” she said. “We are grateful to them for sharing their talents with the community in new ways tonight.”

Her remarks set the tone for an evening that blended artistry with remembrance.

Opera Theatre board trustee Crystal Allen Dallas expanded on that framing. “Tonight Black, Alicia and Tre have created a program that captures the depth and the breadth of what the St. Louis community has been through since the tornado struck last May,” she said. “They will take us through the chaos of the storm, the anguish we all felt, the gathering of people that came together to support each other. They invited artists from different genres to create something greater than the sum of its parts, reflecting the rich diversity, unity and power we have when we collaborate.”

The first movement, The Storm, opened with the Gentlemen of Vision award-winning step team performing Organized Chaos. Their claps and stomps mimicked thunder and lightning, growing larger with each sequence as they clapped under their legs, leapt into the air and rolled across the floor. The physicality of the piece echoed the unpredictability of the tornado itself — sudden, overwhelming and impossible to ignore.

That energy shifted into a quieter reflection as Audrianna Hughes performed Langston Hughes’ The Negro Speaks of Rivers as a mezzo-soprano, accompanied by Matthew Gemmill on piano. They were joined by Angel Love, Shyheim Selvan Hinnant and Chamber Project St. Louis for Enough Is Enough, a heavyhearted ballad composed by Concert Black. The transition from storm to stillness allowed the audience to sit with the emotional weight of what had been lost.

Curator Alicia Revé Like explained the intention behind the movement. “The variations of speed and tempo mimic how quick a storm can show itself and also how in the very next breath a storm will simply disappear,” she said. She added that the next movement would “make room for our anger and sorrow… our truest and deepest feelings surrounding the loss of what we once knew.”

The Lament followed, featuring Legacy, another Concert Black composition performed by Hinnant, Chamber Project St. Louis and Gemmill. The section also included Eulogy of the Skyline, a poem by Leethal The Poet that reflected on how the tornado altered the city’s landscape — and how inequity shapes the pace of recovery. A year later, some neighborhoods remain living reminders of those disparities, with empty lots and damaged homes standing as markers of uneven rebuilding.

The next section, The Gathering, shifted toward collective strength. “It is a reminder of how we have come together,” Like said. “The gathering shows us the strength we hold in our togetherness.” Hinnant led with Make Them Hear You from Ragtime, followed by Edmond Rodriguez performing Comfort Ye My People from Messiah. The section also featured Solar Eclipse, another cinematic piece by Concert Black that underscored the theme of finding light in community.

The final movement, The Rebuild, opened with Williams and Total Praise performing Christ Did It For Me, a joyful, faith-driven original. The world premiere of Joy — also composed by Concert Black — followed, offering a hopeful message about resilience with subtle pop undertones. The music carried a sense of forward motion, a reminder that rebuilding is both a physical and emotional process.

The concert closed with the full company and curator Tre’von Griffith on piano, leading the audience in the Assata Chant, built from the famous words of Assata Shakur:

It is our duty to fight for our freedom. It is our duty to win. We must love each other and support each other. We have nothing to lose but our chains.

The refrain grew louder with each repetition — a final reminder of collective strength.

 “The Rebuild is a collection of pieces to reset and reinvigorate our strength and that this city and its community belong to the people and is ours that we get to love,” Like said. “May you leave with a little more drive and a little more joy in your heart.”

Living It content is produced with funding by the ARPA for the Arts grants program in partnership with the Regional Arts Commission of St. Louis and the Community Development Administration.

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