Latest installment of community play Higher Ground dazzles

The community play Higher Ground 5 Find a Way was produced and presented for a total of five performances recently in the Edsel Godbey Appalachian Center Theater at Southeast Kentucky Community and Technical College Cumberland. Higher Ground was produced by the Appalachian Program of Southeast with support from the National Endowment for the Arts, Appalachian Regional Commission, the Chorus Foundation, Robert E. Frazier Foundation and Alternate ROOTS. Over 50 local actors and musicians took part in the production that is based on a collection of stories gathered in Harlan County and features original music, local actors and art. Find a Way follows a community in Eastern Kentucky as they struggle to tell the truth to each other and deal with economic and personal grief as well as light-hearted recollections. In the play's final scene, Tess Bryson, 6, sings a song about hope and the promise of a brighter future for the area and her generation.

(Photos by Chris Jones)