For My Sisters

At first glance, a musical film, a cinematic journey through the jazz age, with a charming, eloquent, inquisitive guide, Carole Alston. “A voice as dark and sweet as molasses”, the Financial Times refers to Carole Alston, originally from Washington D.C. and living in Vienna for almost 30 years. The singer sets out on a research trip for a stage show concerning her jazz icons Big Sisters: Alberta Hunter, Sarah Vaughan and Nina Simone. Little by little, the musical becomes a film expedition, which ventures into unexpected dimensions. During the search for the origins of jazz, a complex socio-political discussion emerges on the issues of slavery, sexism and racism. The compact scenes in New Orleans, Mississippi Delta and New York are linked to the music on the stage of the Porgy & Bess in Vienna, and the research is interwoven with the stage show.