"The Appalachian people have always been musical. It's been their way of coping with life for generations. They documented their stories through songs when they couldn't read or write. They used these songs to mend, chastise, threaten, question, comment, warn, and communicate.  
     This musical takes place in both the early 1900s and present-day in the coal mining country of West Virginia. For generations, the women folk who've made homes with and for these coal miners have been strong and resilient in the face of many political and social issues they've faced.  
    I decided to write Banshee to convey how my family helped fight wars, dig coal, and raise families to develop and protect this country. I also wanted to talk about what some of their descendants face today. I created some original rock/pop and bluegrass musical pieces, along with some traditional folk tunes I grew up with. I created a Greek Chorus of Banshee Ghosts called the Monongalians to walk us through the story. The Monongalians are ghosts of Appalachian women whose people came here from Scotland, Ireland, Wales, and England. In their afterlife, they always remain with their family lines.  And in this story, they follow a particular  mountain family and their women's journey in life and in death."  

~Macah Coates