Associate Professor | Department of Theatre & Dance
Howard University
Howard University
Short documentary on the stereotypes of African-American and women of African descent in contemporary media images.
Through spoken word, Crystal Valentine discusses the tragedy of police brutality against Black people in America. Most importantly, how it effects the Black community.
Course Description:
This is a contemporary history course that discusses performance and identity in the human experience through an aesthetic lens, and examines how performance has been used to create, renew, and in some cases, appropriate, commodify, and deconstruct Black identity. Through an examination of dance, theatre, speeches, and spoken word, literature, visual arts, grassroots movements, rituals, and everyday life, students will engage the ways in which performance has historically been used to shape or advance collective and individual identity globally. Although the course is organized thematically, the themes will be discussed in historical context. The purpose of the course is to challenge students to critically analyze the global impact of performance and how it shapes identity and society. This interdisciplinary course engages the fields of performance studies, history, critical race theory, cultural studies, visual arts, theatre arts, mass communications, international studies, political science, sociology, and comparative literature studies. The content on this website is provided to supplement Performance and Identity class discussions, readings, research, writings, and other course activities described in the syllabus. This course is designed for undergraduate third and fourth year students.
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