Footnotes by Caseen Gaines, Read by the Author
The History of Shuffle Along, the First All-Black Musical
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One hundred years ago, the first all-Black musical, Shuffle Along, helped change the face of Broadway. Host Jo Reed and AudioFile’s Sandi Henschel discuss author and narrator Caseen Gaines’s fascinating and well-researched history of the struggles of Black actors, Footnotes. Noble Sissle, Eubie Blake, Flournoy Miller, and Aubrey Lyels combined their talents to write Shuffle Along, a political satire that challenged the racist norms and had Black actors portraying non-stereotypical characters. Gaines’s narration brings both the period and the people to life.
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