New Books Network Es-pranza Humphrey, "Act Black: Posters from Black American Stage & Screen" (Poster House Museum, 2026)
May 12, 2026
Es-pranza Humphrey, Assistant Curator of Collections at Poster House Museum who researches Black chorus girls and historic Black theater and film. She explores the gallery-scale power of rare stage and film posters. Short scenes cover advertising “All Colored” casts, sourcing lost-film evidence, debates over displaying minstrel artifacts, and themes like colorism, race films, and theatrical marketing.
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Focus Collection Strategy On What Exists
- Narrow your collecting scope to what's both meaningful and available when primary sources are rare.
- Humphrey limited selection to all-Black productions and used collectors, lenders, printing blocks, and window cards to fill gaps.
Uncle Tom Posters Show Blackface Prehistory
- Early Uncle Tom's Cabin stage posters expose how white actors in blackface shaped popular portrayals of Black characters.
- Humphrey uses these to show prehistory to all-Black reviews and how characters like Topsy became comic tropes.
Acquiring And Contextualizing Blackface Makeup
- Humphrey tracked and acquired an actual blackface makeup lot (burnt cork, grease, wigs) and debated showing it.
- After consulting family, activists, and scholars she displayed it with contextual labels to prevent misuse and educate audiences.
