Dance Theatre of Harlem #91: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

A color digital image of a photograph by Anthony Barboza of a performance of Fall River Legend by Dance Theatre of Harlem in 1983. A group of dancers on a dimly lit stage are dressed in late nineteenth century style costumes. In the far-left foreground is The Accused (Virginia Johnson) in light colored clothing in a spotlight looking upward. An axe and a bloody shawl lie on the stage at her feet. Behind her are three (3) male dancers facing upstage and away from the camera, all standing with their hands resting behind their lower backs. On the right side of the frame are more dancers in couples, the foremost in slightly stronger lighting. The backdrop is a cloudy red-orange sky.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: 1983
• Photograph by: Anthony Barboza, American, born 1944
• Subject of: Dance Theatre of Harlem, American, founded 1969
• Subject of: Virginia Johnson, American, born 1950
• Subject of: Unidentified Woman or Women
• Subject of: Unidentified Man or Men
• Type: digital images
• Type: digital media - born analog
• Medium: digital
• Dimensions: H x W: 2980 pixels × 4155 pixels
• Dimensions: File size: 20.03 MB
• Place captured: Harlem, New York City, New York, United States, North and Central America
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Ballet
• Topic: Photography
• Object number: 2016.96.11
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Anthony Barboza
• Data Source: National Museum of African American History and Culture

Sources and reuse

Catalogue descriptions and facts adapted from National Museum of African American History and Culture through the Smithsonian's official Open Access dataset. This record explicitly marks its metadata CC0 1.0; formatting and selection have been changed. The underlying object's rights statement is: © Anthony Barboza Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.