Chy’Na Nellon, a Ph.D. candidate in comparative literatures and cultural studies in the Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences’ Department of English, will present “The Juke Joint Experience: A Celebration of Black History in Arkansas Through Music and Storytelling” from March 12-14 at the Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History in downtown Fayetteville.

Nellon’s three-day event includes a workshop series and live performances and an immersive virtual reality (VR) experience at the Juke Joint.

“This event, which bridges live performance and immersive virtual worlds, will focus on the culture and traditions of Black Americans,” Nellon said. “Through reenactment and storytelling, these experiences will take viewers on a journey through time into authentic experiences of Black southern culture with particular attention to the contributions of Arkansas through the interpretive lens of Arkansas artists.”

The project utilizes a professional-grade 360-degree camera to create an immersive VR Juke Joint, featuring Arkansas performers Agnolia Gay and Tim Anthony, who are members of the Arkansas Arts Council's Artist on Tour roster. 

This experience is in collaboration with Orson Weems from the Music Education Initiative, the U of A’s World Languages and Digital Humanities Studio, film producer Mario Troncoso and Evan Alvarado from Cache Studio.

All workshops will be held on the U of A campus with live performances and VR experiences at the Pryor Center. A schedule of events is included below.

March 14 Events

Literature, Music and Social Movement in J.B. Hunt Center 207 from 12:30-2 p.m. 
Participants will create a haiku, a short poem and a choreopoem inspired by live music and singing from Lady Georgia and the Afrodesia Band. The writing exercises will be led by master teacher, writer, poet and educator Agnolia B. Gay.

Immersive Performance at the Pryor Center from 4-6 p.m. 
This event is open to the public and will include a 45-minute immersive performance and a guest artist’s talk back. 

The objective of this event for Nellon’s research is to identify the difference, if any, between ‘in person,’ live, engaging, interactive, performance and VR experiences. This interdisciplinary project includes university educators, specialists and departmental support, diverse community and culture representatives and the greater Fayetteville and Little Rock communities. Central to Nellon’s project is the question: Can VR experiences capture the presence and power of in-person performance? 

To address this question, Nellon will draw from a range of disciplines and her experience as a live performer and a 360-degree video director.

Nellon will also conduct interviews and collective feedback from participants from the live performance and the VR experience.