As artist in residence with the Modlin Center for the Arts and Bonner Center for Civic Engagement, Marc Bamuthi Joseph has spent three years on University of Richmond’s campus and in the community engaging Richmond memory keepers, historians, storytellers, and artists in conversation about our past. Through this process of deep inquiry, he has created a libretto that explores six themes – Memory, Folklore, History, Truth, Facts, and Erasure – as a pathway to collective healing and imagination.

Remembering Empathy is a powerful new orchestral work that joins Joseph’s urgent spoken-word reflections with composer Tamar-kali’s soulful symphonic score performed by the Richmond Symphony under the direction of Valentina Peleggi. This world premiere of Remembering Empathy is co-commissioned by the Modlin Center and the Richmond Symphony.

“He’s been hailed by critics as one of the most compelling and important spoken-word performance artists.” — Miami New Times, on Marc Bamuthi Joseph