This Black Ballerina Was Told To Paint Her Face White To Perform

Black History Year

PushBlack

History, Society & Culture

4.3 • 2.1K Ratings

🗓️ 19 April 2023

⏱️ 3 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

She’d been practicing for years just for this moment. She floated onto the stage with a poise that had their mouths on the floor. As she’d hoped, the company wanted her as their star ballerina – but only on one racist condition. _____________ 2-Minute Black History is produced by PushBlack, the nation's largest non-profit Black media company. PushBlack exists to amplify the stories of Black history you didn't learn in school. You make PushBlack happen with your contributions at BlackHistoryYear.com — most people donate $10 a month, but every dollar makes a difference. If this episode moved you, share it with your people! Thanks for supporting the work. The production team for this podcast includes Cydney Smith, Len Webb, and Lilly Workneh. Our editors are Lance John and Avery Phillips from Gifted Sounds Network. Julian Walker serves as executive producer." To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:01.0	She'd been practicing for years just for this moment.
0:05.0	She floated onto the stage with a poise
0:07.5	that had their mouths on the floor.
0:10.3	As she'd hoped, the company wanted her
0:12.5	as their star ballerina, but only on one racist condition.
0:19.0	This is Two Minute Black History,
0:21.4	what you didn't learn in school.
0:31.0	She danced her way onto the audition stage with Grace,
0:37.0	and a hush fell over the room of white judges.
0:40.0	They stood stunned in disbelief
0:43.0	that a black ballerina as good as Janet Collins existed.
0:48.0	She was accepted into the ballet company,
0:50.0	but only on one racist condition.
0:55.0	She had to paint her face white.
0:59.0	The company wanted her to disguise her blackness
1:02.0	to perform with them,
1:04.0	but despite being only 15 years old,
1:07.0	Collins refused to stoop so low.
1:10.0	Instead, she pivoted,
1:12.0	and ultimately made some big moves.
1:19.0	Collins performed in vaudeville shows and theater troops,
1:23.0	and eventually performed her own choreography
	...

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