https://gateway.bibliocommons.com/v2/libraries/austin/rss/search?query=%22Valby%2C%20Karen%22&searchType=author&view=groupedRSS for NodeSun, 08 Mar 2026 08:03:28 GMThttps://austin.bibliocommons.com/v2/record/S67C2220648https://austin.bibliocommons.com/v2/record/S67C2220648Wed, 31 Jan 2024 00:00:00 GMThttps://austin.bibliocommons.com/item/comment/2220648067BKFive Black Ballerinas, Fifty Years of Sisterhood, and Their Reclamation of A Groundbreaking Historyenghttps://secure.syndetics.com/index.aspx?isbn=9780593317525/MC.GIF&client=austinpl&type=xw12&oclc=https://austin.bibliocommons.com/v2/record/S67C2231952https://austin.bibliocommons.com/v2/record/S67C2231952Wed, 31 Jan 2024 00:00:00 GMThttps://austin.bibliocommons.com/item/comment/2231952067LPRINTFive Black Ballerinas, Fifty Years of Sisterhood, and Their Reclamation of A Groundbreaking Historyenghttps://secure.syndetics.com/index.aspx?isbn=9780593862742/MC.GIF&client=austinpl&type=xw12&oclc=https://austin.bibliocommons.com/v2/record/S67C2242044https://austin.bibliocommons.com/v2/record/S67C2242044Fri, 31 Jan 2025 00:00:00 GMThttps://austin.bibliocommons.com/item/comment/2242044067BKFive Black Ballerinas, A Legacy of Sisterhood, and Their Reclamation of A Groundbreaking Historyenghttps://secure.syndetics.com/index.aspx?isbn=9780593643563/MC.GIF&client=austinpl&type=xw12&oclc=Meet five amazing Black ballerinas from The Dance Theater of Harlem, including some of the founding members. They broke barriers and made history in the world of classical dance, at a time when racism shut out Black dancers from major dance companies.
A young adult adaptation of Karen Valby's adult non-fiction title
At the peak of the civil rights movement, Lydia Abarca was the first ballerina in a Black ballet company to grace the cover of Dance magazine. Alongside founding members Shelia Rohan and Gayle McKinney-Griffith and first-generation dancers Karlya Shelton and Marcia Sells, Abarca invited a bright light to shine on Black professional classical dancers. Grit, determination, and exquisite artistry propelled these swans of Harlem to dizzying heights as they performed around the world for audiences that included celebrities, dignitaries, and royalty.
Now, decades later, these trailblazing ballerinas and longtime friends are giving voice to their stories on- and offstage, reclaiming their past so that it is finally recorded, acknowledged, and lauded, never to be lost again.
* "This powerful account is part cultural history, part biography as it traces the formation, rise, and decline of DTH through the experiences of these five ballerinas, as well as their continued importance to dancers of color today....this will appeal equally to fans of forgotten histories." —Booklist, starred review
"A poignant and gripping piece of little-known history." —Kirkus Reviews]]>https://austin.bibliocommons.com/v2/record/S980C10768676https://austin.bibliocommons.com/v2/record/S980C10768676Fri, 31 Jan 2025 00:00:00 GMThttps://austin.bibliocommons.com/item/comment/10768676980EAUDIOBOOKFive Black Ballerinas, a Legacy of Sisterhood, and Their Reclamation of a Groundbreaking Historyenghttps://secure.syndetics.com/index.aspx?isbn=9798217015191/MC.GIF&client=austinpl&type=xw12&oclc=THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW NOTABLE BOOK • Finalist for the PEN/Jacqueline Bograd Weld Award for Biography • The forgotten story of a pioneering group of five Black ballerinas and their fifty-year sisterhood, a legacy erased from history—until now.

“This is the kind of history I wish I learned as a child dreaming of the stage!” —Misty Copeland, author of Black Ballerinas: My Journey to Our Legacy

“Utterly absorbing, flawlessly-researched…Vibrant, propulsive, and inspiring, The Swans of Harlem is a richly drawn portrait of five courageous women whose contributions have been silenced for too long!” —Tia Williams, author of A Love Song for Ricki Wilde
At the height of the Civil Rights movement, Lydia Abarca was a Black prima ballerina with a major international dance company—the Dance Theatre of Harlem, a troupe of women and men who became each other’s chosen family. She was the first Black company ballerina on the cover of Dance magazine, an Essence cover star; she was cast in The Wiz and in a Bob Fosse production on Broadway. She performed in some of ballet’s most iconic works with other trailblazing ballerinas, including the young women who became her closest friends—founding Dance Theatre of Harlem members Gayle McKinney-Griffith and Sheila Rohan, as well as first-generation dancers Karlya Shelton and Marcia Sells.
These Swans of Harlem performed for the Queen of England, Mick Jagger, and Stevie Wonder, on the same bill as Josephine Baker, at the White House, and beyond. But decades later there was almost no record of their groundbreaking history to be found. Out of a sisterhood that had grown even deeper with the years, these Swans joined forces again—to share their story with the world.
Captivating, rich in vivid detail and character, and steeped in the glamour and grit of professional ballet, The Swans of Harlem is a riveting account of five extraordinarily accomplished women, a celebration of both their historic careers and the sustaining, grounding power of female friendship, and a window into the robust history of Black ballet, hidden for too long.]]>https://austin.bibliocommons.com/v2/record/S980C10029289https://austin.bibliocommons.com/v2/record/S980C10029289Wed, 31 Jan 2024 00:00:00 GMThttps://austin.bibliocommons.com/item/comment/10029289980EAUDIOBOOKFive Black Ballerinas, Fifty Years of Sisterhood, and Their Reclamation of a Groundbreaking Historyenghttps://secure.syndetics.com/index.aspx?isbn=9780593820452/MC.GIF&client=austinpl&type=xw12&oclc=https://austin.bibliocommons.com/v2/record/S67C1415171https://austin.bibliocommons.com/v2/record/S67C1415171Fri, 31 Jan 2014 00:00:00 GMThttps://austin.bibliocommons.com/item/comment/1415171067BKThe Great American Movie 75 Years Laterenghttps://secure.syndetics.com/index.aspx?isbn=9781618930705/MC.GIF&client=austinpl&type=xw12&oclc=