Mystic Chords of Memory: Abraham Lincoln and the Performing Arts: Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Day Celebration

On February 12, 2009, the Library presented a program celebrating Abraham Lincoln's 200th birthday. The event opened with "The Battle Hymn of the Republic," sung by Metropolitan Opera Chorus members Constance Green, Ellen Lang, Irwin Reese, and John Shelhart, with Robert Rogers at the piano. Following the song, a program of readings featured Arthur Mitchell, co-founder and artistic director of the Dance Theatre of Harlem, and Dance Theatre of Harlem alumni dance artists Duncan Cooper and Virginia Johnson. The program concluded with the screening of an excerpt from Lincoln Center Theater's 1993 production of Abe Lincoln in Illinois, starring Sam Waterston (the screened excerpt is not archived here).