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Tuesday, September 1, 2015

Legendary dance artist Blondell Cummings passes

RIP, Blondell Cummings

This morning, our dance community is reeling from the news that a beloved veteran artist and advocate for social justice, Blondell Cummings, has died. Few people were aware that Blondell had pancreatic cancer.

I hope to have more information for you later today. For now, here is a recording of her most recent appearance as moderator of a roundtable discussion at 92Y's Fridays at Noon program. The event opened with a performance of Manufacturing Consent by Edisa Weeks.

Blondell Cummings--Point of Reference
March 27, 2015

4 comments:

Unknown said...

Thank you for posting Eva, Blondell gone is a loss for all of us. Such a wise and gorgeous soul.

Edisa said...

Deeply Saddened. Blondell is/was a trailblazer, a storyteller, a fierce performer, a humanitarian, and a true artivist. I agree - a wise gorgeous soul!

Eva Yaa - In my conversations with Blondell she credited you with helping to launch her career as a choreographer. Early in her career she was struggling and considering giving up dance, especially as she was getting more consistent work as an administrator and grant writer. Then you interviewed and wrote an article about her, which changed her life. I've been looking for that article on line without success. Do you have a copy? Is it possible to post it?

Eva Yaa Asantewaa said...

Hi, Edisa. Yes, Blondell's passing is a profound loss and sad time for our community. I will see if I can find the article. There are many old pieces from The Village Voice and Dance Magazine that I no longer have, but some might be available from the NYPL's dance library. I know that, at one point at least, they were saving my work. I don't know if that's still true or if they happen to have that particular article. Let me see what I can find out.

Eva Yaa Asantewaa said...

Edisa, I might have found what you're looking for, although I'm not yet able to access it. I'll get in touch with you.

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