Leslie Dunton-Downer

Leslie Dunton-Downer is a writer and producer. Her works include books about Shakespeare, opera, and the evolution of the English language from its Proto-Indo-European roots to its current status as a global lingua franca. As a librettist she has teamed with composers for pieces that premiered in Paris, Evian, Spoleto, Berlin, Aspen, and Santa Fe.  She produced albums of sacred and secular music from the Autonomous Region of Gorno-Badakhshan for the French label Buda Musique and, in response to the Snowden revelations, with transmediale and NK Projekt she co-produced “The Magical Secrecy Tour,” a bus tour for passengers to explore and debate Berlin’s myriad cultures of surveillance.

Leslie studied Ancient Greek and oral literature for her BA, and comparative literature for a PhD from Harvard, where she was also a Lecturer and fellow. She has served on the boards of educational non-profit organizations in the United States and in the European Union.