Photograph of Laura Cathrell performing on stage: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

A silver gelatin print depicting a black-and-white image of Laura Cathrell performing on stage with three (3) female performers behind her. Cathrell is wearing a light colored dress with ruffled short sleeves and a short, tiered, ruffled skirt. She is dancing with her arms outstretched and slightly rounded. She is holding her proper left leg slightly forward of her proper right leg. The female performers are all wearing identical costumes that include white, short sleeve shirts with dark, peter pan collars; dark, short overalls; and white Mary Jane shoes. Behind the performers is a painted set. The letters [DBA] are painted on the set just below a cartoon bird with a long beak. A small ladder is visible on the left side of the image. There are two stamps in black ink on the back of the image. The stamp at the top center reads, [OCT 14, 1938] and the one at the center reads, [harry rossner / CANDID PHOTOGRAPHER / 116 ave. c, b’klyn, n.y.]. There is a small piece of newsprint adhered to the back of the image.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: October 14, 1938
• Photograph by: Harry Rossner
• Subject of: Laura Cathrell, 1914 - 1999
• Subject of: Unidentified Woman or Women
• Type: gelatin silver prints
• Type: portraits
• Medium: silver and photographic gelatin on photographic paper
• Dimensions: H x W (Image): 9 1/2 × 7 5/8 in. (24.1 × 19.3 cm)
• Dimensions: H x W (Sheet): 9 15/16 × 8 1/16 in. (25.3 × 20.5 cm)
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Dance
• Topic: Music
• Topic: Photography
• Topic: Theatre
• Object number: 2013.46.25.120
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
• 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: Unknown - Restrictions Possible Rights assessment and proper usage is the responsibility of the user.