2 Trumpet in the Land or The White Savage Tickets in New Philadelphia, Ohio

Trumpet in the Land

This unforgettable production sweeps you back in history to a time when Ohio was the western frontier of America, to witness the founding of Ohio’s first settlement, Schoenbrunn, in 1772. Historical characters include David Zeisberger, a M o r a v i a n missionary who hoped to establish a peaceful Indian settlement along the fiery frontier; Simon Girty, a conniving border renegade who agitated for all-out war in the region; Captain Pipe, a young warrior chief whose hatred of all white men for the killing of his father added to the dangers facing the missionaries; and John Heckewelder, one of the first explorers of the “Ohio country”.

When the Revolutionary War broke out, Zeisberger and his followers found themselves caught between the British army at Fort Detroit and the American forces at Fort Pitt. By refusing to take sides in the struggle, Zeisberger and his people incurred the wrath of both warring parties, which eventually led to the brutal massacre of 96 Christian Indians at Gnadenhutten in 1782 by a band of American militiamen, an event former President and noted historian Teddy Roosevelt called “a stain on the frontier character that time cannot wash away.”

Written by Pulitzer prize-winning playwright Paul Green, “TRUMPET” uses a cast and crew numbering over 70 people to bring this epic production to life. Professional actors, singers and dancers, brilliant lighting, authentic looking costumes, horses, battle pyrotechnics and a state-of-the-art sound system combine for an outstanding evening of family entertainment.

The White Savage

Simon Girty has been labeled, justly or unjustly, as a “savage” due to his alliance with the Native Americans, and the British during the American Revolution.

His loyalty to the Indian and his savagery in battle were legendary, and soon the myth overwhelmed the man. His name brought fear to all along the frontier in the late eighteenth century.

He is a very complex, three-dimensional character, as fierce as any Indian warrior, yet still willing to put his life on the line to plead for strangers’ lives. He is a very misunderstood man thrust into an extraordinary and explosive situation, but with the death of Colonel Crawford in 1782, he became from that moment on, SIMON GIRTY, “THE WHITE SAVAGE”.