Singing in Prisons, Part 1 // Catherine Roma & Michael Powell

The Choral Commons begins our spring gather series on incarceration by welcoming Dr Catherine Roma, professor emerita of Wilmington College, and one of the foremost figures in prison choral music. Her work in Ohio has attracted admiration and attention nationwide. To this gathering, she has invited Michael Powell, an artist with whom she worked in the Marion Correctional Facility’s KUJI Men’s Chorus. An accomplished percussionist, Michael, recently released, starred in the production of Hamilton while incarcerated.

This session will undoubtedly shed light on the perennial question of how to begin and build a prison choral program. Perhaps, more importantly, it will present the transcendent and compassionate power of choral music in inhumane settings.