“I am a storyteller, that is what I do.”
-Natalie Daise
Natalie Daise as Harriet Tubman (at the Community Folk Art Center).
Long before there was Sheryl Sandberg, Mayor Miner, County Executive Mahoney, or other female CEOs, we had Harriet Tubman. Remember the abolitionist/nurse/spy/Underground Railroad conductor spent her latter days in nearby Auburn, NY. We feel the leadership strategies that solidified her reputation deserve further examination.
Last night we watched actress Natalie Daise slowly transform into Harriet Tubman during a one-woman show at the Community Folk Art Center (CFAC). We learned several facts during the performance, including the fact that Tubman had a close relationship with John Brown, and was scheduled to be at Harper’s Ferry for the raid. Also Tubman’s original name was Araminta Ross.
Earlier in the week the show played at SUNY Oswego.
Daise, who originally got the theater bug while at Nottingham High School, perfectly captured Tubman in costume, idiom and song during the 1 hour-show.
It has been a while since we visited the Harriet Tubman Home, but we suggest that the newly designated National Park location capture Daise’s work in audio or video and preserve it as part of a permanent educational collection/display.
Happy Women’s History Month.
