Fashioning for Freedom,  Layers of Liberty

The second installation of History Alive, Inc.'s fashion show of ideas from history, "Fashioning for Freedom,  Layers of Liberty" presents a celebratory runway of Black creativity and activism from New England's past three centuries. 

Discover and be inspired by the lives of 

• Phillis Wheatley 

• Jenny Slew 

• Frederick Douglass 

• Edmonia Lewis 

• The Remond family of Salem (Thank you to Hamilton Hall for sponsorship of the Remonds!)

• Charlotte Forten 

• and more!

Admission is free but timed reservations are required. Performance will be held on Friday, February 21 at 7:00 pm at Salem’s historic Old Town Hall.

It’s Autumn, 1774. Massachusetts is confined, punished & neglected by the Royal Government. Tyranny sparks hopes of Revolution! When Patriots meet secretly in Salem, enslaved Africans want to take the talk of Liberty at face value. Can they? Join the forbidden assembly!

Attending "In Open Rebellion" is your chance to imagine yourself amidst Salem's Patriots, Loyalists and enslaved Africans as the seaside town prepares for a secret Provincial Congress. Learn what Africans may have been thinking about the impending revolution, hear songs from the time period and be surrounded by the Revolutionary energy of Salem's liberty-aspiring inhabitants.

In Open Rebellion was commissioned in 2024 by the Essex National Heritage Commission to be written by Kristina Wacome Stevick. Attend the world premiere, February 23, 2025. Be surrounded by Adeniyi Samuel as "Caesar", and Colin LaMusta, Caleb Palmer, Carl Schultz, Hannah Spangler, Brigid Warner-Streff, and Jon Warner-Streff as the Patriot and Loyalist citizens of Salem, as the candlelit Old Town Hall transforms into the historic meeting house--just a stone's throw from the site of the October 1774 secret meetings! Directed by Samantha Searles. Produced by History Alive, Inc.

Run time is 35 minutes. Admission is free but timed reservations are required.

Performances will be held on Sunday, February 23 at 3:00 pm and 4:15 pm at Salem’s historic Old Town Hall.

Sponsored by the Massachusetts Office of Travel and Tourism via a grant to The City of Salem. 

If you want to understand the Salem Witch Trials, you have to experience Cry Innocent.

The year is 1692. Bridget Bishop has been accused of witchcraft and YOU are on the Puritan jury. Hear the historical testimonies, cross-examine the witnesses and decide the verdict. Is Bridget Bishop capable of witchcraft? Play your part in history…

Thanks to the pivoting required in the Covid-19 Pandemic, there are now two ways to experience Cry Innocent: The People Versus Bridget Bishop!

We offer a live-actor/film hybrid edition of Cry Innocent for your classroom, corporate or other group, year round. You can be on the 1692 jury, even if you can’t come to Salem. This hybrid uses reenactment footage filmed at Salem 1630: Pioneer Village and actors hosting you in real time on your device. You, the traveler, are welcomed into the Ingersoll family’s ordinary (a tavern) where Bridget Bishop is undergoing an examination on witchcraft charges. The Ingersolls know all the village gossip and are eager to hear what you witness. They look forward to greeting you!

To book a remote, group show write to us at query@historyalivesalem.com. Occasionally a smaller group has an opportunity to partner with another group. We post those opportunities on Facebook, so please feel free to follow us!

AND

Live, of course! (Thank Goodness, Covid lock down is behind us.) We can come to your school, place of worship, conference, etc. and we heartily welcome you to visit us in Salem, at our familiar venue, Salem’s Historic Old Town Hall, 32 Derby Square. Tickets for the 2024 general public run will be available on this website starting August 1st, 2024. Year-round group reservations for shows in Salem or at your venue can be made via query@historyalivesalem.com. We plan to open our 2024 public season of Cry Innocent at the Old Town Hall in late September. We offer the chance to sit in as a test audience in the summer months. If you plan to visit in the summer and would like to be part of this exclusive opportunity, email query@historyalivesalem.com.

An alcohol-free, 17th century tavern-like experience for kids and their grown ups, full of music, stories, games and historical treats. Feel free to dress up for the time travel!

It’s 1790. Teams of up to ten people are organized into “merchant ships” which race each other around the world (downtown Salem) to trade New England goods for the riches of the Far East. Ships must return in time to bring the exotic items to market. Avoid sandbars, pirates, sickness, starvation and dehydration. Keep your crew out of trouble and treat your trading partners well, or you’ll jeopardizing future trade. Who will return with the most treasure and make the highest profit? Will any surprises along the way reverse their fortune?

The journey advances by a mixture of puzzle solving, sharp eyes, avoiding traitors, and gleaning clues from costumed characters strategically placed throughout Salem’s walkable downtown.  Email groups@historyalivesalem.com to learn more.