The Kent Cultural Alliance (KCA), in Partnership with the Chesapeake Heartland Project at Washington College, presents the premiere of a new musical as a reading June 24, 25, and 26.

ISAAC: A MUSICAL JOURNEY was commissioned by the KCA for the Chesapeake Heartland Project. It is composed and written by Marlon Saunders, a native of Kent County, Maryland. Marlon has worked with various artists, including Cynthia Erivo, Michael Jackson, Lauryn Hill, Javier Colon, Billy Joel, Sting, Bobby McFerrin, Joe Henderson, Ron Carter, Shawn Colvin, Nine Inch Nails, Jane Siberry, Shania Twain, Martha Wash, and Dance Theatre of Harlem. Marlon appears as the Calypso Singer in the popular Disney film, Enchanted. Marlon sings the Academy Award-nominated song, “That’s How You Know” with Amy Adams, who appears in the role of Giselle.

ISAAC is based on the published autobiography of Isaac Mason. Isaac Mason was born into slavery in Kent County, Maryland in 1822. He was enslaved by Mr. & Mrs. James Mansfield at what is now 101 Spring Avenue, Chestertown, MD (the future home of the Kent Cultural Alliance). Mr. Mason ran toward freedom on December 26, 1846. He ended up in Worcester, MA where he was a prominent businessman and church elder. In 1893, he put his life story down on paper and published “Life of Isaac Mason as a Slave.”

This production will feature Paris Nesbit (Broadway: Book of Mormon) as ISAAC, Sue Matthews, as Enslaver Hannah Woodward, and Kelly Sloan as the Ancestral Goddess. The reading will be supported by musicians Marlon Saunders (Composer), David Inniss and Eric Brown. The premiere is being directed by Biti Strauchn and produced by John Schratwieser.