Erica Armstrong Dunbar, historian and professor of African American studies at Emory University, will give a lecture titled, “From the Page to the Stage: Telling History through Television” on Monday, April 13, at 7:30 p.m. in Schewel Hall’s Sydnor Performance Hall.
The event is part of the John M. Turner Endowment lecture series. Attendance is free and open to the public.
Dunbar, who was a historical consultant and co-executive producer for HBO’s “The Gilded Age,” will discuss her work on the series and historical work in the entertainment industry more broadly, said Dr. Beth Savage, professor of English and John M. Turner Distinguished Chair in the Humanities.
“Besides getting to hear from an Emmy-nominated historical consultant, [people] will be able to get a broad sense of how a television show or any large piece of work goes from initial research phases into the production of a grand final product.”
Dunbar is the author of “A Fragile Freedom: African American Women and Emancipation in the Antebellum City” and “Never Caught: The Washingtons’ Relentless Pursuit of Their Runaway Slave, Ona Judge,” which was a finalist in nonfiction for the 2017 National Book Award and won a 2018 Frederick Douglass Book Prize.
“While there is a deep pain associated with these topics,” Dunbar writes on her website, “I marvel at the incredible triumph of survival and the beautiful history of resistance.”
She describes herself as “a social historian, a scholar of urban history, slavery, women’s history, and Philadelphia history.”
“The work [Dunbar] does is so important in making sure that there is complete and accurate representation of Black women in this historical time period,” Savage said. “For people interested in television and television production, this will be a great talk to give a sense of the amount and type of work that goes on behind the scenes.
“Her work is also unique and important because, as academics, we often publish our research mostly for a small group of academics who study the same things we do. She is an important example of how research in the academy is beneficial to the broader public as well.
“Last, but not least, it’s a great excuse to watch an excellent show!”
This event is sponsored by the John M. Turner Endowment. For more information about this or future Turner Lectures, contact Dr. Elizabeth Savage at [email protected] or call 434.544.8828.
