A Gesture and a Word & a Live Performance by Marshall Crenshaw
EAST COAST PREMIERE! Join us for a special tribute event for the singer/songwriter Rob Morsberger, a musician’s musician and Croton resident who collaborated with countless artists including Patti Smith and Marshall Crenshaw, and called on his classical training to compose musical scores for “Masterpiece Theatre” and the PBS television series NOVA. He always searched art, literature, and history as a source of inspiration for his songs, but when he drew on the dying words of author Henry James, “So here it is at last. The distinguished thing,” Morsberger had no idea that he would soon be diagnosed with terminal brain cancer. Filmmaker Dave Davidson was already collaborating with Morsberger on several projects, so they agreed to “just keep filming” after his diagnosis.
Davidson’s riveting, nuanced portrait features appearances by friends and collaborators including Brad Roberts, lead singer of Crash Test Dummies, Suzzy Roche of the Roche Sisters, Stewart Lerman, musical director for Boardwalk Empire, Jon Herington, guitarist for Steely Dan, singer/songwriters Marshall Crenshaw and Willie Nile, studio and concert footage, as well as Morsberger’s own observations as he prepares himself for what he calls “the great whatever.” Davidson’s film is not a meditation on dying as much as a celebration of the creative spirit and one individual’s dedication to making every moment as joyful and productive as possible even as his physical powers diminish.
