CFA Presents Program of Traditional Abenaki Stories

Features father and son culture bearers

Press release
Father and son Joseph and Jesse Bruchac present a bilingual program of traditional Abenaki stories entitled “Remember the Dawn,” as part of the Center for the Arts, Lake Sunapee Region’s 2021 Literary Art Series, “Native American Beauty is Diversity.” Photo: Erik Jenks

The Literary Arts Guild for the Center for the Arts announces its next event in their 2021 Literary Art Series, “Native American Beauty is Diversity.” They will be presenting Remembering the Dawn, a bilingual program of traditional Abenaki stories by father and son culture bearers Joseph and Jesse Bruchac.

For over 40 years Joseph Bruchac has been creating literature and music that reflect his indigenous heritage and traditions, as a proud Nulhegan Abenaki citizen and respected elder among his people.  He is the author of more than 120 books for children and adults.  His best-selling Keepers of the Earth: Native American Stories and Environmental Activities for Children series, with its remarkable integration of science and folklore, continues to receive critical acclaim and to be used in classrooms throughout the country.

His son, Jesse, follows in the custom as a traditional storyteller, musician, and Abenaki language instructor.  He works as co-director of his family-run education center Ndakinna, where he teaches Native American Life Ways, Martial Arts, and the Abenaki language.  

He has lectured at Harvard University, Dartmouth College, and Princeton University and is currently co-teaching (alongside Conor McDonough Quinn) a Wabanaki Language course at the University of Southern Maine. Jesse has also acted as consultant, translator, composer, and language coach for programs on AMC, National Geographic, and PBS.

The event is co-sponsored by The Center for the Arts, Literary Arts Guild; The Mount Kearsarge Indian Museum; and the Newbury Public Library. The event is on Wednesday, August 4, from 7 to 8:30 PM and will be presented virtually on Zoom. The Zoom link can be found on the CFA website at CenterForTheArtsNH.org/literary-arts-series. There will be a question and answer period after the presentation.

For more information contact Info@nullCenterForTheArts.org