In its complete form, A Story Within A Story is a work for video, sound design, dancer (or dancers) and live musicians that reflects upon the persistent struggle for civil rights in the United States. Weems’ powerful video takes us through the passing of history from one generation of women to the next, narrated by Weems, followed by a collage of found footage of civil rights gatherings and protests from 1963-1974. Carrie’s self-shot film of her solo impromptu performance at the Holocaust Memorial in Berlin ends the video portion of the work as a live dancer (or a group of live dancers) continue her performance.

A Story Within A Story was commissioned by the Society for New Music for their 2011 – 2012 season with generous support from the National Endowment for the Arts and the New York State Council on the Arts. It was premiered by the Society for New Music on October 23, 2011 in Hendricks Chapel, Syracuse, NY.

This score represents the 2013 revised version presented at the opening of the CRAVE Festival of the Arts by the Society for New Music and dancer Aisha Mitchell on September 20, 2013 at the Everson Museum of Art in Syracuse, NY.