Chatham Middle School’s character education theme of the month for February is heroism. On February 13, Capital Repertory Theatre brought their production of Henry Johnson: Ballad of a Forgotten Hero to the CMS stage for a special school-wide assembly.
Johnson was a World War I soldier who proved his bravery with heroic actions on the battlefield in France with the all-Black New York National Guard 369th Infantry Regiment. While he was awarded France's highest medal for bravery in 1918, Johnson was denied official recognition by the United States military for decades. With research by Skidmore professor Eunice Ferreira, playwright Rachel Lynett brings Johnson's true story to life in this play, complete with music from the Jazz and Ragtime era. As the story unfolded onstage, student’s learned how the fight to recognize this real American hero was finally won in 2015 when Johnson was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor, our military's highest honor for bravery.
At the show’s conclusion, the cast took time to answer questions from the students. Pictured here are some of our eighth graders with the cast (William Belvin, Gus Stuckey, and Rachel Henry Lloyd) after the show.