Forgotten Pioneers

From WolfWikis

Dancing in the Dark by Caryl Phillips

• Caryl Phillips--Dancing in the Dark
• Bert Williams
• George Walker
• Blackface Minstrelsy

At the beginning of the twentieth century, an especially hostile atmosphere existed for black Americans who, not far removed from slavery, were regarded as an undesirable subclass of citizens. Expected to know their "place," blacks rarely challenged the white establishment, either politically or socially, and remained invisible except in service positions to the white establishment. In the midst of this environment, the comedic duo of Bert Williams and George Walter emerged as an entertainment force that shook Broadway to its roots by being the first black headliners, in an all-black troupe, to perform on the esteemed stages of New York. This success had its cost, however, as Bert Williams performed in black-face and played a bumbling, shuffling caricature of a black man, while Walker played his straight man. Caryl Phillips, in his newest novel Dancing in the Dark, has chosen the duo––particularly the elegant West Indies-born Williams––as a means of exploring the rise of black performers and the strengthening of Harlem as an artistic and societal haven. --(Reviewed by Debbie Lee Wesselmann OCT 30, 2005)

When Winter Come by Frank X. Walker

• Frank X. Walker--When Winter Come
• Lewis and Clark
• York

A sequel to the award-winning Buffalo Dance, Frank X Walker's When Winter Come: The Ascension of York is a dramatic reimagining of Lewis and Clark's legendary exploration of the American West. Grounded in the history of the famous trip, Walker's vibrant account allows York — little more than a forgotten footnote in traditional narratives — to embody the full range of human ability, knowledge, emotion, and experience. Knowledge of the seasons unfolds to York "like a book," and he "can read moss, sunsets, the moon, and a mare's foaling time with a touch."