“Stepping Into the Unknown,” a new exhibition featuring props from director James Mangold’s eight-time Academy Award–nominated Bob Dylan biopic “A Complete Unknown,” opens Friday, Feb. 28 at the Bob Dylan Center and Woody Guthrie Center in Tulsa. Presented in partnership with Searchlight Pictures, “Stepping Into the Unknown” is the first exhibition to be staged concurrently at the two centers, both of which are operated by American Song Archives.
As in Mangold’s critically acclaimed box-office hit, which depicts Dylan setting out to visit Guthrie upon his arrival in New York in the early 1960s, the exhibition illuminates the deep bond between the two hugely influential singer-songwriters and cultural heroes.
“As moviegoers learn from ‘A Complete Unknown,’ the relationship between Bob Dylan and Woody Guthrie is essential to an understanding of twentieth-century American music,” says Steve Higgins, managing director of American Song Archives. “This exhibition amplifies that story by connecting it to the real-life artifacts in our collections.”
Timothée Chalamet stars and sings as Dylan and Scoot McNairy provides indelible support as Guthrie in Mangold’s film, which opens in New York City in 1961. Against the backdrop of a vibrant music scene and tumultuous sociocultural upheaval, an enigmatic 19-year-old from Minnesota arrives with his guitar and revolutionary talent, destined to change the course of American music. On his meteoric rise, Dylan forges intimate relationships with icons of the Greenwich Village scene and shocks folk-music purists with his groundbreaking and controversial “going electric” performance at the 1965 Newport Folk Festival. “A Complete Unknown” also stars Edward Norton as Pete Seeger, Elle Fanning as Sylvie Russo (a character based on real-life figure Suze Rotolo), Monica Barbaro as Joan Baez and Boyd Holbrook as Johnny Cash.
The Bob Dylan and Woody Guthrie centers provided source material for the film’s creative team. The prop master spent time in Tulsa researching items that were replicated in the film.
“The exhibition is a full-circle moment in a sense,” Higgins says. “We are bringing to Tulsa items from the film that were inspired by our collections in the first place.”
Props on display include:
- Dylan’s letter to Guthrie
- Guthrie’s harmonica and guitar case
- Johnny Cash’s letters to Dylan
- Fabricated album covers
- “Blowin’ in the Wind” lyrics on a cocktail napkin
Exhibit Programming
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Member Exhibit Opening – Stepping Into the Unknown – Thursday, Feb. 27 at 5 p.m. CT
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Sound and Style: Creating “A Complete Unknown” – Thursday, Feb. 27 at 7 p.m. CT
