Jim Thomas and the U.S. Slave Song Project will bring a special performance of 1854 A Folk Opera to Union Chapel in Oak Bluffs on Friday, August 23, beginning at 5 p.m.

The story was conceptualized by Jack Schimmelman and imagines a tale about slavery on the Vineyard.

The cast will portray real Vineyarders of the time at a town meeting. A minister will preside and a chorus of singers representing slaves and abolitionists will sing slave songs. There will be an African Griot serving as a bridge between two worlds, Lucretia Mott will attend the meeting and sing a song about Harriet Tubman and a whaling master will lead the audience in a sea chanty.

At the end of the performance, the leading Vineyard families of the day will vote whether or not to end slavery.

The adaptation is by the U.S. Slave Song Project and Susanna Sturgis. Its directors are Dr. Thelma Johnson and Jim Thomas.

Tickets are $15 at the door.