Newport Film Outdoors presents a documentary on The Indigo Girls with a special screening on the Marble House Lawn this Thursday, June 29. The venue opens at 6 p.m. There will be live music at 7:30 p.m. The film starts at 8:30 p.m.

Suggested donation is $10 per person

Food trucks will be on site: Wally's Weiners, Boru, Sprout and Lentil, Java Jai Coffee, Clara's Cart. Limited parking is available in a lot across the street from Marble House. Pets are not permitted at this venue. BYO picnic, chairs and blankets.

About the film

Forty years of making music as the iconic folk-rock band Indigo Girls, Amy Ray and Emily Saliers have made their mark as musicians, songwriters, and dedicated activists.

The duo began their musical connection as high school students in Decatur, Georgia, eventually honing their skills in dive bars and clubs across the South. Their unexpected rise to fame with the 1989 hit “Closer to Fine” propelled Indigo Girls to a Grammy award and rapid popularity. Fans quickly fell in love with their harmonies, moving lyrics, and ability to defy genre with a vast range of musical breadth – from folk-like soulful ballads to punk-inspired rock anthems.

Living out publicly as lesbians long before there was understanding or tolerance for queerness in the music industry, they have represented radical self-acceptance to many – leading now multiple generations of fans to say, “the Indigo Girls saved my life.” Still, Amy and Emily battled misogyny, homophobia, and a harsh cultural climate chastising them for not fitting into a female pop star mold. As a result, they each grappled with the impact of internalizing those messages.

Emily and Amy redefined success for their musical careers with an uncompromising dedication to staying true to themselves. After meeting Indigenous activist Winona LaDuke, supporting grassroots activism and speaking out against social and environmental injustice became essential to their lives.

In “It’s Only Life After All,” Sundance award-winning director Alexandria Bombach brings us into a contemporary conversation with Amy and Emily, alongside 40 years of home movies, raw film archives, and intimate present-day verité. With joy, humor, and heart-warming moments, the film subverts the typical music biopic format for the authentic and intimate storytelling for which Bombach’s work is known.