Contraband

June 27 – July 20| Thursday, Friday, and Saturday at 8pm and 9pm

Location: 13 Street Legends Walk Stage

FREE and open to the public

On May 23, 1861, Virginia voters ratified its secession ordinance, officially putting it at war with the United States.  That night, three enslaved men rowed across the Chesapeake Bay and asked for sanctuary within the walls of Fort Monroe.  The events that followed were the sparks that lit the flame of Emancipation of enslaved people across the divided country.  Contraband is a half-hour musical that tells the riveting story of those brave men and Benjamin Butler, the lawyer/General who improvised a legal strategy that pulled the thread that unraveled slavery.  As a sequel to 1619: When Destinies Collide, Contraband continues the remarkable story of the sacred ground of “Freedom’s Fortress”, that, as President Barack Obama put it, “marks the beginning and the end of slavery in our nation”.

For more information about the Virginia Legends Walk Foundation and to nominate an iconic Virginian to the Virginia Legends Walk, visit https://va-legends.net/