The Article that Invigorated Research on Blacks in Dance

Abstract

In 1976, the New York Amsterdam News published an article by little known dance researcher Joe Nash as the complete September/October National Scene Magazine supplement. The 1976 article, Dancing Many Drums, quickly gained the attention of the community of African American dancers, artists and historians. This paper will focus on how the seminal article by Nash came to be written and published and its ultimate impact on the research and publication of articles and books on the artistic contributions of African Americans to the field of concert dance. Excerpts from personal interviews with Nash will illustrate how the publication forever changed his life.