"The Slave Letters," is the culmination of a lifetime of work. 

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From 1994 to 2006, composer, Michal Dawson Connor undertook an ambitious research project curating letters written by slaves and former slaves from the Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture. In 2007, Connor's collection was published by Janssen under the title, "The Slave Letters."

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In 2017, Connor created an immersive theatrical experience drawing from the letters in his book as well as a lifetime of his own arrangements of Negro spirituals. "The Slave Letters"  is an hour-long journey spanning the depths of human despair, the transcendence of hope, and the unquenchable thirst for freedom.