Opera as (Racial) Politics
8-weeks | Registration closed 9/1/2024
This course will examine the history of Black representation and presence on stage, from the
Renaissance and Shakespeare to the current opera season. From actors in blackface and Jim Crow dancers to today’s all-Black casts, we’ll explore how the theater reflected and challenged the racial stereotypes of the times in Europe and the United States. Class presentations will include video commentaries and performances.
Chuck Mishaan
Chuck Mishaan has been presenting courses at Vassar LLI for many years, including his popular Opera as Politics series and recently, The Roaring 20s, Between the Wars: Arts and Culture of the 1930s, and The War and After: Arts and Culture of the 1940s. His commentary on the intersection of politics and the arts continues with this course.