Creator of The Slave Letters
BIOGRAPHY
Composer, Actor, Singer
Michal Dawson Connor is an accomplished performer and composer of choral, chamber, and solo vocal works, with a particular emphasis on slave songs created before the Civil War. He was born in Jamestown, New York and is a proud alumnus of Carnegie-Mellon University and L’Ecole Hindemith in Vevey, Switzerland, where he studied voice with Blake Stern and Helen Boatwright. Championing American composers has always been a high priority for him, and Mr. Connor has concertized extensively throughout North America and Europe, featuring the rich vocal repertoire of Charles Ives, Samuel Barber, Aaron Copland, and many others.
Mr. Connor’s Broadway credits include featured performances in the Tony-Award winning productions of RAGTIME and SHOWBOAT” as well as starring roles in productions of THE MOST HAPPY FELLA, BIG RIVER, and PORGY AND BESS. In addition to soloing on multiple occasions for President Ronald Reagan, he’s immensely proud of performing for Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Reverend Billy Graham, Elizabeth Dole, and Admiral Michael Mullen. Mr. Connor is a published author of THE SLAVE LETTERS currently available on Amazon.com.
On network television, he was a guest star on FRIENDS, as well as several appearances on the Emmy-Award winning show: EXTREME MAKEOVER: HOME EDITION and THE SURPRISE GARDENER” Michal's latest concert tour was in
Japan and Seoul Korea, where he was a featured soloist with the historic Roger Wagner Chorale, under the direction of Jeannine Wagner.