Little Satchmo

Film showing followed by a talkback AND Celebrity Jazz Band featuring Betti O!

Jazz Fest Day 2

To the world, Louis Armstrong is iconic - a symbol of musical genius, unparalleled success and unassailable character. To Sharon, he was simply Dad.

There was never a time in Sharon’s childhood that Louis Armstrong wasn’t a part of it, but a mention of this relationship never ventured further than the confines of immediate family. Amid the public fanfare surrounding Ambassador Satch, no one, save for close family and friends, knew Sharon existed. Despite the enduring celebration and study of Armstrong’s life and career, evidence and indications of Sharon’s relationship with her father were ignored and excluded from his historical record. Even in the trumpeter’s death she remained Armstrong’s secret, the product of a two-decade-long affair between the long-married musician, and the Harlem-born vaudeville dancer Lucille “Sweets” Preston. For more than half a century,Sharon continued to keep the family secret, living her life hiding in the shadows of her father’s fame.

While this is a documentary that undeniably involves Louis Armstrong, it is told from his daughter’s perspective, as a child growing into a woman, a voice which had not been granted the freedom to be heard for years, systematically left off record for the protection of her father, and one that resonates far and wide with its themes of searching for belonging, pride, and shame. A voice amid the millions of children who have grown up in fatherless households, hungry for certain understanding of their own blood, their heritage, and legacy to carry forward.

Post-Show Talkback

Following the screening of the film, there will be a talkback with Sharon Preston Folta and Shawn Rhodes.

Jazz Fest Pass!

Save money when you buy a Jazz pass to join us for all 4 nights of this year’s Wichita Jazz Festival!