People, Locations, Episodes

Blackface in America, a story

*Blackface in America is affirmed on this date in 1441. Blackface is a form of theatrical or media makeup. It is used mainly by white performers to portray a caricature of a black person of African descent. There is no agreement about a single moment that constitutes the origin of blackface. The journalist and cultural […]

Black History, and American Art, a story

On this date, the Registry examines African American art—-painting, carving, graphic arts, and crafts created by people of African descent in the United States and influenced by African and African American culture.

The First Performance of Othello Takes Place

*The Tragedy of Othello was first performed on this date in 1604. This is one of the first stage classics featuring a Black lead character. The Moor of Venice, more commonly known simply as Othello, is a tragedy by William Shakespeare written around 1603. The first performance occurred at Whitehall Palace with Shakespeare’s friend Richard Burbage, Othello’s […]

Stepping or Step Dancing, a story

*Stepping, also called step dancing, is celebrated on this date in 1739. It is a percussive dance in which the participant’s body produces complex rhythms and sounds through a mixture of footsteps, spoken words, and hand claps.    Black Africans brought their dances to North, Central, South America and the Caribbean due to the Middle […]

Adolf Gustaf Badin, Royal Servant born

*Adolf Gustaf Badin’s birth is celebrated on this date, c. 1750. He was an Afro Swedish (Black Swede) court servant and chronicler. He was born enslaved at birth in Africa or the Danish island Saint Croix. He said the only thing he remembered about his past was burning his parents’ hut. It is known that […]

James Hewlett, Stage Actor, and Singer born

*This date in 1778 is celebrated as the birth date of James Hewlett. He was a Black actor, tailor, and waiter who also performed one-man shows.  From the British West Indies, he was a servant boy for actor George Frederick Cooke and learned to imitate his actions and attitude.  He was a principal actor and […]

Richard Potter, America’s First Black Magician born

The birth of Richard Potter in 1783 is celebrated on this date. He was a magician, one of the first Black illusionist in America.

Potter was born in New Hampshire, the son of an English baronet and an African servant woman. He was educated in Europe before beginning his 25-year career as a performer in post-Revolutionary America. He lived with his father in Hopkinton, NH, until he married his wife, Sally, and had three children.

William A. Brown, Playwright born

*This date in 1790 is celebrated as the birth date of William A. Brown, a Black playwright and theatrical producer.   William Alexander Brown, also known as William Henry Brown, was born in the West Indies. After he retired from working at sea, he had been a ship’s steward; he settled in a community of […]

Ira Frederick Aldridge, Stage Actor born

This date commemorates the birth of Ira Frederick Aldridge in 1807. He was a Black actor, considered one of the greatest interpreters of his day.

His place of birth has been listed as Africa, and Bel Air, Maryland. Some accounts of his life in the United States are inconsistent. Because of the lack of schools for African Americans in Maryland, Aldridge moved to New York and attended the African Free School and Schenectady College. The great British-American actor James William Wallack is believed to have hired him as a personal attendant while visiting the United States.

Thomas Rice, The Face of ‘Jim Crow’ born

*Thomas Dartmouth Rice was born on this date in1808. He was a White entertainer and playwright who popularized the Jim Crow character in minstrel shows.

Elizabeth T. Greenfield, Vocalist born

On this date, Elizabeth Taylor Greenfield was born in 1817. She was a Black singer whose exceptional voice made her a popular performer in Great Britain.

The African Grove Theater Opens

*The origin of the African Grove Theater in 1821 is celebrated on this date.

Based in Manhattan, in its seven years of existence the venue played host to Black productions of ballets, plays, and ballad operas that were enhanced by musical performances. These included Shakespeare and original plays (including The Drama of King Shotoway, which called for a slave rebellion) in 1823.

Robert Duncanson, Artist born

The birth of Robert S. Duncanson in 1821 is celebrated on this date. He was a Black artist.

Alexandre Dumas Fils, Playwright born.

*Alexandre Dumas fils was born on this date in 1824. He was a Black French author and playwright. Dumas fils was born in Paris, France, the illegitimate quarteron child of Marie-Laure-Catherine Labay, a dressmaker, and novelist Alexandre Dumas. In 1831, his father legally recognized him and ensured that the young Dumas received the best education possible at the Goubaux Institution and […]

Master Juba, Minstrel Performer born

*The birth of Master Juba is celebrated on this date in 1825.  He was a Black stage entertainer specializing in dance and one of America’s first publicly recognized black performers.  Born William Henry Lane in Providence, RI, he began his career in the saloons and dance halls of the Five Points neighborhood of Manhattan in […]