Karen Warrington & Bernard Collins Jr. talk Philadelphia's Black Dance Legacy Mural | Midday Break Room w/ Tiffany Bacon - 4.13.026

Karen Warrington is a dance historian and former ballerina. Bernard Collins Jr. is a visual and spoken-word artist. On April 21st, a mural called, The Philadelphia Black Dance Mural, will be unveiled at The Free Library of Philadelphia’s Parkway Central Library. This mural is designed by Bernard Collins Jr. https://muralarts.org/events/black-dance-legacy-mural-design-unveiling/ This mural honors generations of dancers and educators, from Essie Marie Dorsey to Joan Myers Brown, who shaped the city’s cultural identity and global influence. Experience live performances, a film screening, and a powerful conversation, culminating in the unveiling of a new mural design rooted in history, resilience, and community. Among those featured in the design are dance instructor Essie Marie Dorsey (1893–1967), who passed as white to circumvent racial barriers to classical ballet training, and her students—Sydney King (1919–2024), Marion Cuyjet (1920–1996), and Philadanco founder and National Medal of Arts recipient Joan Myers Brown (b. 1931)—all of whom became members of a powerhouse generation of transformative dance educators.