Finding Aid to the Halifu Osumare papers
Marjorie Bryer
The Bancroft Library
2019
The Bancroft Library
University of California
Berkeley, CA 94720-6000
bancref@library.berkeley.edu
Contributing Institution:
The Bancroft Library
Title: Halifu Osumare papers
Creator:
Osumare, Halifu
Identifier/Call Number: BANC MSS 2019/198
Physical Description:
4.6 linear feet
(3 cartons, 2 boxes, 1 oversize folder)
Physical Description:
5.379 GB
(38 digital files)
Date (inclusive): circa 1967-2018
Abstract: This collection documents the professional and artistic career of scholar, educator, arts administrator, community activist,
dancer, and choreographer Halifu Osumare and her contributions to African American dance. Osumare divided her collection into
10 categories: career overview files; materials related to her memoir, "Dancing in Blackness"; Malawi and Central Africa files;
community cultural activism files; choreography projects; the Stanford University years; materials related to Black Choreographers
Moving toward the 21st Century and Black Traditions in American Modern Dance; color slides; and videotapes. The papers include
administrative records, choreography projects, correspondence, lectures, manuscript drafts, newspaper and magazine articles,
lots of photographs and slides, programs, publication files, reviews, digital audiovisual dance recordings, and teaching and
research files.
Physical Location: Many of the Bancroft Library collections are stored offsite and advance notice may be required for use. For current information
on the location of these materials, please consult the library's online catalog.
Language of Material: Collection materials are in English.
Conditions Governing Access
Cartons 1-2, Box 1, Digital Folders, and Oversize Folder 1A are open for research. Carton 3 and Box 2 contain videotapes and
are being processed.
Accruals
Future additions are expected.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
The Halifu Osumare papers were given to The Bancroft Library in 2019 by Halifu Osumare, Ph.D.
Alternate Forms Available
There are no alternative forms of this collection.
Appraisal
Temporary, deleted files, and unnecessary software files were removed from the collection.
Biography
Halifu Osumare is Professor Emerita in the Department of African American and African Studies at the University of California,
Davis. She is a choreographer, dancer, arts administrator, and a scholar of Black popular culture. Osumare holds a Ph.D. in
American Studies from the University of Hawai'i at Manoa and an M.A. in Dance Ethnology from San Francisco State University.
She is a protégé of Katherine Dunham and a certified teacher of Dunham Dance Technique. Osumare has performed, taught, and
done research in the United States, Ghana, Nigeria, Malawi, Kenya, and Brazil and is recognized as one of the foremost scholars
of global hip-hop.
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
Access to audio-visual materials may be restricted due to technical limitations.
Born digital materials can be accessed by requesting corresponding Digital Folders. Once the request has been processed, researchers
will be provided with a link to view materials online.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], Halifu Osumare papers, BANC MSS 2019/198, The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley.
System of Arrangement
Arranged to the folder level.
Processing Information
Processed by Marjorie Bryer in 2019. Digital materials processed by Christina Velazquez Fidler in 2021.
Processing Information
Osumare's born digital files were received on 2 CD-Rs and 1 memory card. The files were scanned for viruses using Malware
Bites. Archives staff utilized the Digital Archivists' Resource Toolkit (DART) to create logical copies of all files. Archivists
also screened material for personal identifiable information (PII) and protected health information (PHI). TIFF files were
migrated to .JPEG for access using Adobe Bridge, Audio CD-DA files were extracted using Exact Audio Copy version 1.3, and
VOB files stored on the memory card were migrated to MPEG-4 for access using Handbrake version 1.3.1.
Scope and Content of Collection
This collection documents the professional and artistic career of scholar, educator, arts administrator, community activist,
dancer, and choreographer Halifu Osumare and her contributions to African American dance. Osumare's original order was maintained.
She divided her collection into 10 categories: career overview files; materials related to her memoir, "Dancing in Blackness";
Malawi and Central Africa files; community cultural activism files; choreography projects; the Stanford University years;
materials related to Black Choreographers Moving toward the 21st Century and Black Traditions in American Modern Dance; color
slides; and videotapes. The collection includes administrative records, choreography projects, correspondence, lectures, manuscript
drafts, newspaper and magazine articles, lots of photographs and slides, programs, publication files, reviews, digital audiovisual
dance recordings, and teaching and research files.
Publication Rights
Some materials in these collections may be protected by the U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.C.). In addition, the reproduction
of some materials may be restricted by terms of University of California gift or purchase agreements, donor restrictions,
privacy and publicity rights, licensing and trademarks. Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by copyright beyond
that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owners. Works not in the public domain cannot be
commercially exploited without permission of the copyright owner. Responsibility for any use rests exclusively with the user.
For additional information about the University of California, Berkeley Library's permissions policy please see: http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/about/permissions-policies
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Osumare, Halifu -- Archives.
Dunham, Katherine.
African American women dancers.
African American dance.
African American dance -- History.
African American dance -- California -- San Francisco Bay Area.
African American dance -- New York (State) -- New York.
Modern dance -- United States -- History.
Dancers
Choreographers -- United States.
Dance -- Malawi.
Dance -- Ghana.
Dance -- Kenya.
Memoirs.
Born digital
carton 1, folder 2-3
Portrait Photos and Dance – Early Dance and Publicity Headshots, includes Nature and Rainbows, Galaxy's
circa 1974-1988, undated
carton 1, folder 4
Black Choreographers Moving toward the 21st Century (BCM) Book: Photos: Contact Sheets – Kathy Sloane, Photographer
circa 1989
carton 1, folder 5
Dance Photos – Harry Wade, Photographer – Proof Sheets
circa 1978-1988
carton 1, folder 6
Dance Photos
circa 1977-1984
carton 1, folder 7
Osumare Dance Programs and Reviews
1969-1986
carton 1, folder 8
News Articles about Osumare
circa 1989-1998
carton 1, folder 9
Published Black Dance News Articles by Osumare
1981-1990
carton 1, folder 10
"Arts in America," Handwritten Personal Reflections
1989-1994
carton 1, folder 11
Publications and Public Addresses
2000-2005
carton 1, folder 12
Osumare in the Bay Area
circa 1987-1995
carton 1, folder 13
Dixon-Gottschild Dance Criticism Controversy, "Village Voice"
1992
digital_folder 001
African slides, "Evolution" and Pyramids
2017
Physical Description:
.049 GB
(8 digital files)
Dancing in Blackness, A Memoir (DIBAM) (Specific Career Files)
carton 1, folder 14
Major News Coverage
2017-2018
carton 1, folder 15
Photos and Permissions
1969-2017
carton 1, folder 16
Introduction – Original Manuscript
2010, undated
carton 1, folder 17-18
Chapter 1 – Coming of Age in the San Francisco Bay Area – Original Manuscript, Correspondence
circa 1973-2015
carton 1, folder 19
Early Modern Dance Training in San Francisco
1991-2018
carton 1, folder 20
San Francisco State University Strike and Black Arts Movement-West
1989-2016
carton 1, folder 21
Zack Thompson – Project – Glenne McIlhinney
1996-2014
carton 1, folder 22-23
Chapter 2 – Dancing in Europe – Original Manuscript, Support Materials
circa 2014, undated
carton 1, folder 24
Notes on "March of the Created" – Choreography in Stockholm
1970
carton 1, folder 25-26
Chapter 3 – Support Materials, Photos and Programs (includes Boston/NY)
1971-2016
carton 1, folder 27
Boston Info – Support Materials
2014-2015
carton 1, folder 28
Rod Rogers Dance Company
1996-2016
carton 1, folder 29
Dance in New York – Interviews
2014-2015
carton 1, folder 30
Chapter 3 – African Dance in New York – Doris Green
2010-2015
carton 1, folder 31-32
Dancing in New York – Magazines/New York Dance Magazines
1967-2015
carton 1, folder 33
Chapter 4 – Materials: Bay Area – After Europe and East Coast
1973-1976, 2015
carton 1, folder 34
"Four Women" Original Script
1973
carton 1, folder 35
Research on Berkeley's Rainbow Sign
1973, 2017
carton 1, folder 36-37
Ntozake Shange – Friendship and Collaborations, Her Poems
1986-2015, undated
carton 1, folder 38
The Pyramids (Kimathi) in Performance, University of California, Berkeley – Slides
1976
carton 1, folder 39
University Without Walls – B.A. Degree
1975-2015
carton 1, folder 40
"Evolution of Black Dance," Manuscript
1975
carton 1, folder 41
Poems in "Hambone," Stanford University Committee on Black Performing Arts Literary Magazine
1974
carton 1, folder 42
Chapter 5 – Dancing in Africa – Support Materials
circa 1976-2016
carton 1, folder 43-45
Dancing in Africa – Ghana, Photos and Slides (includes Kenya)
1976-1996
carton 1, folder 46
Ghana Fieldwork Photos – Ga, Ashanti, and Ewe People
1976-1977
1990 Malawi, Central Africa Files
carton 1, folder 47
USIS Malawi Residency, with Kwacha Cultural Troupe (6 weeks)
1990, 2001
carton 1, folder 48-50
Malawi Residency/Dancing in Africa Photos, including Proof Sheets and Color Snapshots
1990
carton 2, folder 1-2
Malawi Residency/Dancing in Africa Photos/Beni Photos, including Proof Sheets and Color Snapshots
1990
carton 2, folder 3
Malawi Residency Written Field Notes
1990
carton 2, folder 4
Malawi Residency, Article in "In Dance" (Bay Area Dance Coalition)
1990-1991
carton 2, folder 5
Nairobi, Kenya – Bomas of Kenya Cultural Center Brochures, etc.
1990, undated
carton 2, folder 6
"Beni Dance of East and Central Africa" – Appendix to Master's Thesis
undated
Community Cultural Activism Files
carton 2, folder 7-8
Everybody's Creative Arts Center (ECAC) – Flyers, Programs, Board Meetings
circa 1979-2014
oversize_folder 1A
ECAC – Flyers, Programs
1979-1982
carton 2, folder 9-10
ECAC/CitiCentre Dance Theatre Photos/My Choreography (List)
1977-1997
carton 2, folder 11
Aquarius Rising Dance Theater – ECAC
1978-1979
carton 2, folder 12
"Evolution of Black Dance" – Slides for Lecture-Demo
circa 1976-2000
carton 2, folder 13
Correspondence with Interviewees for Chapter 6 [of DIBAM?] – Teacher/Dancers at ECAC (Key Contributors)
2015
carton 2, folder 14
CitiCentre Dance Theatre Company (CDT) – Photos and News Articles
1983-1988
digital_folder 003
CDT Olympic Festival Debut video recordings
1984
Physical Description:
2.29 GB
(3 files)
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
Files were originally digitized in 2008 from VHS and stored on a DVD. The quality of the recording is poor and audio is intact.
Recordings are accessible as MPEG-4 files and can be viewed virtually by request. An internet browser is required for virtual
access.
digital_folder 003
E.B. Dance Series video recordings
1985
Physical Description:
2.72 GB
(4 files)
carton 2, folder 15
Leon Jackson In Memorium (Founding Member, CDT)
1990
carton 2, folder 16-18
Dance Black America, 1983 (Osumare and Leon Jackson Perform)
1983
carton 2, folder 19
Dance Black America Documentary – San Francisco Chronicle Article
1985
carton 2, folder 20
Expansion Arts Services – Osumare as Arts Consultant
circa 1987
carton 2, folder 21
Osumare and Kimathi in San Francisco Carnival – Slides by Osumare
1990
digital_folder 002
Langston Hughes narration of "The Story of Jazz," Folkways Records audio recording
1954
Physical Description:
.32 GB
(2 files)
Language of Material:
English.
carton 2, folder 22
"Spell #7" and "Boogie Woogie Landscape" by Ntozake Shange, Lorraine Hansberry Theater – Choreography
1985
carton 2, folder 23
"For Colored Girls Who've Considered Suicide When the Rainbow is Enuf," Ntozake Shange, San Franciso State University
1987
carton 2, folder 24
"Joe Turner's Come & Gone," by August Wilson, American Conservatory Theater
1988-1989
The Stanford University Years
carton 2, folder 25
Stanford Dance Years
circa 1981-1993
carton 2, folder 26-27
Teaching in Stanford Dance Division, includes 1992 Cuban Dance Workshop
1989-1993, 2015
carton 2, folder 28
Program Coordinator – Stanford's Committee on Black Performing Arts
1991-1993
carton 2, folder 29
Stanford Choreography Photos – "Body Talk"
1992, 2015, undated
carton 2, folder 30
Mae Jemison – First Black Woman Astronaut – Stanford Dance Student
1992-1996
carton 2, folder 31
"Maskarade," by Sylvia Wynter and Jonkunnu Research – Choreography, Dancing at Stanford
1983
Black Choreographers Moving Toward the 21st Century (BCM)
carton 2, folder 33
Mission and History
1989-1996
carton 2, folder 34
Program Model (Dancing in Blackness)
1992-1993
carton 2, folder 35-36
Media Coverage, San Francisco, Los Angeles, National News
1989
carton 2, folder 37-38
Inauguration – News Articles, Programs, etc.
1989
carton 2, folder 39
Panels and Audience Photos
1989-1990
carton 2, folder 40-42
San Francisco and Los Angeles
1991
carton 2, folder 43-44
Dance Education Unit – Lower and Higher Levels
1991
carton 2, folder 45
San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Diego
1992
carton 2, folder 47
Symposia (Los Angeles/San Francisco)
1993
carton 2, folder 48
Continuation – News Articles and Reviews
1992-1999
carton 2, folder 49
Black Choreographs Moving: A National Dialogue – Book and List of Universities that Bought It
circa 1993-1998
carton 2, folder 50-51
BCM, Inc. Incorporation, California and Ohio
1992-2002
Black Traditions in American Modern Dance (BTAMD)
carton 2, folder 52-53
American Dance Festival's (BTAMD) Project (Precursor to BCM)
1990-2015
box 1, folder 1-2
American Dance Festival/Black Traditions/African Slides (Art)
1988
box 1, folder 3
American Dance Festival – Black Traditions – Revival – Programs, Articles, Power Points
1975-1995
box 1, folder 4
Notes from Joe Nash, Black Dance Historian
1993
box 1, folder 5
Donald McKayle Archives – Photographs, Signed Programs
1993-1994, 2016
box 1, folder 6
American Dance Festival (ADF) Correspondence
1993-1994, 2016
box 1, folder 7
"Free to Dance" – ADF Documentary, Osumare Featured as Dance Scholar
circa 1995-2002
box 1, folder 9
Nigeria (Pre-Festac)
1976-1977
box 1, folder 10
Festival 2000 – San Francisco, Osumare and Katherine Dunham
October 1990
box 1, folder 11
University of Ghana, Legon, Dance Department [and Other Slides from Africa]
1976-1977
carton 3, box 2
Videotapes (VHS)
1979-1999
Scope and Content Note
Consists of choreographic and community dance workshops, community events, and concert choreography.
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
Access to audio-visual materials may be restricted due to technical limitations.
Restrictions
Videotapes are in processS. Unavailable for use.
