PEARL PRIMUS FELLOWSHIP

"My life experience informs my belief in movement and drama as forms of, and routes towards knowledge. My teaching and research is inspired by pioneers whose methodologies helped to establish Black cultures and expressive forms as sources for artistic and scholarly production. Pearl Primus is an especially significant model because her artistic thrust and social activism established a deep concern for, and commitment to furthering understanding about the value of Black life, while also affirming the intrinsic worth of all humanity. In Primus’s work, I see a breadth of approaches that uncover and create knowledge by investigating cultural practices through multiple contexts while connecting performance and the stage to lived experiences." - Ninoska M'bewe Escobar, Ph.D.