This Monday past marked the 150th anniversary of the death of American song writer Stephen Foster . The writer of famous tunes such as “Camptown Races” and ” I dream of Jeannie” , he spent the last period of his life in New York ghettos , amongst the poorest of the poor black and Irish . He was fascinated by the musical/cultural melting pot that existed here , and also witnessed the horrific civil war draft riots , the most shameful moment in Irish American history .
This is a solo show by Larry Kirwan of Black ’47 fame , a part musical, part spoken word performance which is an insight into the songs , politics and racial dynamics of 1880′s New York.