The Chevalier chronicles a period during the life of 18th-century Black violinist, composer, swordsman, and activist, Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges. Bologne, the archetypical Renaissance man, a gentleman of the nobility revered during his time for his prowess as a musician and as a fencer, has long since been forgotten by history if only for the color of his skin.

Barclay’s play portrays Bologne in a deservedly heroic light: as a friend to a young Mozart, as an enlightening mentor to Marie Antoinette, and above all as a true patriot of equality—an ideal that shines even through the fabric of his music.