"The wordless joy of freedom"

Pearl Primus performs The Negro Speaks of Rivers (1944)

I have been much preoccupied with joy recently, as you might have seen in previous posts. Peggy Topf Schwartz--co-author, with Murray Schwartz, of The Dance Claimed Me--reminded me, just a short while ago, that October 29 was the day of Pearl Primus' passing in 1994.

“I dance not to entertain, but to help people better understand each other . . . because through dance I have experienced the wordless joy of freedom. I see it more fully now for my people and for all people everywhere.” --Pearl Primus