Anthony Davis’s opera “Amistad,” a historical piece about slavery and freedom, opens again in Charleston, South Carolina, after 11 years since its initial debut at the Chicago Lyric Opera in 1997.

The restaged play is set out to be the centerpiece at this year’s Spoleto Festival U.S.A. in Charleston, S.C. and apparently, its strong racial language caused quite a shock for some of the people present at the rehearsals.

“Amistad” is the story of a Spanish slave ship, called La Amistad, and presents the story of a group of West Africans captured as slaves between 1839 and 1841 and their decision to rise up against their suppressors and attempt a return to Africa. The Mende and Temne people from today’s Sierra Leone were caught and taken to Cuba to be sold as slaves. During the ship’s trip, they rose up, killed a large part of the crew and decided to return home. Unfortunately, the ship’s navigator tricked them into heading for the United States.

The play is abundant in heavily derogatory terms for the black slaves and at the time of its initial release, some of the performers withdrew from acting.

Anthony Davis explained that the restage involved a careful analysis of the play, as he reached the decision to slim the production down by cutting out several characters.  "It just involved too many people," he said according to the Times. He also added that when he first released the play there might have been some parts misunderstood by the public, parts that he feels will be much better received now, as he considers that there is a right time for everything.