PLAY FOR JOHN HENRY DAYS AS PART OF THE LEEDS DOWNTOWN FOLK FESTIVAL

Ann Boone, Leeds High School English teacher and drama coach, will be directing “Listen to that Cold Steel Ring”, a play written by Marie W. Cromer. The play depicts the life of legendary Railroad Steel Driver John Henry and the contest he waged with a steam drill at the eastern portal of Oak Mountain Tunnel near Leeds on Sept. 20, 1887.

There will be two performances on Saturday, September 20, at 10 am and at 3 pm. The play featuring John Henry is in conjunction with the 2008 Leeds Downtown Folk Festival set for September 20-21 in downtown Leeds.

The play will also feature choir members from local African-American churches. Reserved seating for the presentation will be arranged for a group of retired railroad workers as special guests who worked for the different railroad companies now known as the Norfolk-Southern line.

Cast:
Narrator – John Saddler
John Henry – Kenneth Washington
RR Engineer – Capt. Frederick Y. Dabney – Nick Partain
RR Contractor Gordon Shea – Justin Hogan
John Henry’s parents – Gregory Moore and Marie McDaniel
Surveyor – Sean Hogan
Salesman from Ingersoll Co. – David Crabb
Substitute Shaker – Brandon Foster
Stranger in Monroe – Owen Drake
Soloists – Pauline Hall and Ron Dometrovich
Sign Bearers: Jarvis McDaniel, Jorden Brown, Brittany George

Sound Technician – Harold Faulkner
Exhibits – Carolyn Hall

The play is being presented by the Leeds Historical Society.