A Free State

The year is 1855. Blackface minstrelsy is the most popular form of entertainment in a nation about to be torn apart by the battle over slavery. Henry Sims, a fugitive slave and a brilliant musician, has escaped to Philadelphia, where he lives by his wits and earns money performing on the street. He is befriended by James Douglass?leader of the Virginia Harmonists, a minstrel troupe struggling to compete with dozens of similar ensembles?who senses that Henry's skill and magnetism could restore his show's sagging fortunes.