TURNERS FALLS — As the village’s “Crossroads” series winds down, nationally touring songwriter Erica Wheeler looks to celebrate the region’s “layers, grit and beauty” through her keynote concert at the Shea Theater Arts Center on Sunday.

The free concert, which will run from 3 to 5 p.m., will “incorporate song, story and audience engagement to help diverse groups find the stories that connect them to their sense of place,” according to an event posting. Wheeler will be joined by Andre Strongbearheart Gaines Jr. and his nephews, Daishuan Reddeer Garate and Miguel Wandering Turtle Garate, all members of the Nipmuc tribe who will perform original social songs and spoken word poetry.

The concert is one of the final programs of a multi-event series organized in accompaniment of the “Crossroads: Change in Rural America” traveling Smithsonian exhibit that has been on display at the Great Falls Discovery Center since early February. The exhibit, produced by the Smithsonian’s Museum on Main Street program, offers a look at how rural American towns have changed since 1900.

“The Crossroads exhibit, it’s saying what we are right here is part of a broader connection,” Wheeler said, having observed the exhibit’s emphasis on the transregional significance of rural communities.

Wheeler, who moved to western Massachusetts to attend Hampshire College in 1979, said her concert is intended to guide attendees to a strengthened sense of belonging “using the power of story and song in hopes that they connect with their stories.”

“Sometimes, I feel like we don’t belong when we’re not from a place, but there are tools we can use to figure out where we belong,” she said, drawing on her own experience finding her sense of belonging as a transplant. “I think of it as using your senses, feeling your place … being curious and learning about your place, and storymaking.”

While she has no tribal affiliation herself, inviting tribal perspectives when engaging with the land is paramount for Wheeler. She said similar shows in the area have begun with a performance of “Quiet Hills,” a song in tribute “to all the layers of people who have lived in a place.”

“I think ‘acknowledgment’ means a whole arc of the people who call the place home,” she said. “Unfortunately, many town histories … wouldn’t start with the Indigenous population, and it’s essential to do that.”

Gaines and his nephews “will explore the common themes that connect 10,000-year-old traditional Indigenous social songs with modern day spoken word poetry,” the event posting reads.

“They will share stories about their ongoing relationships to the land, the persistence and resilience of the Northeastern tribes, differing world views, and ways they are able to maintain balance between the traditional lifestyle and values they inherited through their ancestors and functioning respectfully in today’s complicated world,” the posting continues.

“Crossroads: Change in Rural America” will be on display at the Great Falls Discovery Center until March 18.

Wheeler will also hold a “Crossroads”-themed writing workshop on March 19 at “a beautiful hilltop farm in Colrain” that will be disclosed following registration. Here, she will offer “a powerful sequence of guided writing prompts to create a sense of place.” Registration is required and can be completed by filling out the form at forms.gle/th3rW2JHT8zbFyALA. The workshop will be capped at 12 participants.

Reach Julian Mendoza at 413-930-4231 or jmendoza@recorder.com.

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