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National Underground Railroad Freedom Center and ballet tech ohio performing arts association Bring History to Life in Dance

CINCINNATI (September 1, 2004) – The National Underground Railroad Freedom Center and ballet tech ohio performing arts association are partnering to use dance to depict the lives of slaves who escaped through the Underground Railroad. They will join forces with a Cincinnati Arts Association Arts in Education production of The Conductors, an uplifting tale about one family’s quest for freedom through the Underground Railroad. The program will be shown as part of the Aronoff Center’s Arts in Education Series on Friday, September 17, 2004, in two performances for tri-State school children.

The Conductors chronicles one family’s struggle of working on a plantation, the separation and selling of family members, their journey toward freedom on the Underground Railroad, and their reunion at a safe house somewhere near Cincinnati. The hour-long production includes study guides, which were produced by the Freedom Center and ballet tech ohio. The program also includes an interactive section to get students more involved in the experience. The interaction is meant to put students in an environment where they can get a sense of the work, anxiety, and anticipation of the escaped slaves and finally the celebration of freedom.

On Thursday, September 16, 2004, the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center will host a performance of The Conductors Multicultural Dance Fest as a donor appreciation event at the Aronoff Center for the Arts. The Freedom Center and ballet tech ohio performing arts association presented excerpts of The Conductors at the grand opening of the Freedom Center on Monday, August 23, 2004.

About The National Underground Railroad Freedom Center

Opened in August 2004, the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center teaches the lessons of history to engage and inspire today’s freedom conductors. The $110 million learning center houses two theatres, a hall for multicultural dialogue, four highly interactive history galleries, and an education and research center. It also serves as the international headquarters for a network of Freedom Station affiliates conducting research and programming on freedom studies worldwide. For more information, visit

About ballet tech ohio performing arts association

Founded in 1997 by Claudia Rudolf Barrett, the non-profit ballet tech ohio performing arts association presents a season series of major dance programs and about a dozen community performances each year to provide Greater Cincinnati with a new venue for high quality dance performances featuring pre-professional and professional dancers and a wide variety of artists, dance styles, and music. The ohio ballet tech ohio performing arts association mission is to educate, entertain and amaze by providing diverse and innovative performances that have a phenomenal community impact. Visit www.ballettechohiopaa.org for more information.

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