In the Presence of Greatness: Danbury’s Marian Anderson

Marian Anderson was an international opera superstar, whose name is mentioned in the same breath as Martin Luther King, Jr., because of the way she overcame rampant racism. She lived in Danbury, CT for half-a-century. The famed contralto used her dignified presence to persevere personally and professionally, while attaining the highest honors possible. She’s perhaps best known for her 1939 performance on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, a concert arranged by First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt after Anderson had been barred from singing at Constitution Hall because of the color of her skin. This episode includes interviews featuring rarely heard accounts of her many decades as a Connecticut resident from people who knew her and her background.