Ephraim Slaughter: Freedom's Witness
by
Teresa Miller

February 14-22, 2026

Presented by, The National Civil War Museum , Sankofa African American Theatre Company, and Gamut Theatre

“Freedom did not come with your papers. It came when I chose to live without permission!"

Ephraim Slaughter: Freedom's Witness is a powerful one-act play that brings to life the extraordinary journey of Ephraim Slaughter—born into slavery in North Carolina, who escaped bondage, fought as a Union soldier in the Civil War, and ultimately became a pillar of his community in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Through evocative storytelling, this original drama invites audiences into Ephraim's modest Harrisburg home on a single summer night in 1943, where voices of the past press against the present. The play explores the cost and complexity of freedom, the endurance of dignity in the face of erasure, and the quiet heroism found in survival and remembrance.

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ABOUT

As Ephraim declares, "Freedom did not come with your papers. It came when I chose to live without permission!" This production is a collaborative effort of Sankofa African American Theatre Company, Gamut Theatre Group, The National Civil War Museum, and the Dauphin County Commissioners. Student matinees will be offered to all Dauphin County public, private, parochial, charter, virtual and home-schooled students, serving as both powerful theater and vital historical education.

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