Root Song

Premiering at Bartram’s Garden, Root Song blends live vocal chamber music by Roomful of Teeth with storytelling by Tchin, creating an immersive experience that channels the wisdom of our forests. Inspired by ground-breaking research on mycorrhizal networks connecting trees and rooted in Indigenous Knowledge, Root Song prompts reflection on the mysteries of our interconnected natural world. Directed by Jazimina Creamer-MacNeil, the work is composed by Christopher Theofanidis with a libretto by Melissa Studdard. It is accompanied by workshops, nature walks, and a panel discussion featuring Robin Wall Kimmerer (Braiding Sweetgrass) and Suzanne Simard (Finding the Mother Tree) that explore our reciprocal relationship with all life.

Presented by the Philadelphia Chamber Music Society, Root Song is part of the opening weekend of ArtPhilly’s What Now: 2026. Setting this project in the context of the nation’s first landmarked landscape and oldest surviving botanic garden in North America invites audiences to forge their own personal relationships with Philadelphia’s native trees and the history they are connected with.

Friday, May 29 | 7:30 PM – Root Song World Premiere I and nature walk with Suzanne Simard (Bartram’s Garden)

Saturday, May 30 | 7:30 PM – Panel Discussion with Robin Wall Kimmerer and Suzanne Simard (Perelman Theater)

Sunday, May 31 | 3:00 PM – Root Song World Premiere II and nature walk with Robin Wall Kimmerer (Bartram’s Garden)

Presented with lead sponsorship from The Albert M. Greenfield Foundation and with additional support from ArtPhilly, Andrea Baldeck, Katherine Niven, Gordon & Patricia Fowler, Andrew Quint, and Joan Kligerman & David Kligerman.