February is Black History Month! It’s a time, as President Ford put it, to “honor the too-often neglected accomplishments of black Americans in every area of endeavor throughout our history.” Here are ten books to check out this month, each of which contributes to a fuller articulation of African American
African-American ballet dancer Misty Copeland has been in the news a lot in recent months. From her now viral Under Armor commercial to the pages of Vogue, from network and cable talk shows to So You Think You Can Dance, from the New York Times bestseller list to Jacobs Pillow, Ms. Copeland
Although Pearl Primus was born in Trinidad and grew up in New York City, she identified strongly with her African heritage from a young age. When, in 1948, she was awarded a fellowship to pay for a trip, she wrote, “My soul hopped out of my body, swung on the
In our newest 3@2 Interview, we asked Peggy and Murray Schwartz, professor emeritus at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and professor at Emerson College respectively, about their intimate knowledge of legendary dancer, Pearl Primus (1919-1994). A noted anthropologist in her tireless studies of Afro-Caribbean cultures and folklores and her pioneering
As a lead up to our May publication of The Dance Claimed Me: A Biography of Pearl Primus, by Peggy and Murray Schwartz, there are two dance-related events in New York for the book next week. First up, the Urban Bush Women will perform “Walking with Pearl…Southern Diaries” at the
What if this were a Leap Year? Anyone with a birthday on February 29 would tell you that it hangs in there somewhere every year, even without a date on the calendar. Black History Month would have an extra day and Women’s History Month would have to wait. Instead, we’ll