Entertainment
Representation matters. Who we see on screen and on stage, and who we hear on recordings, shapes our understanding of the world. The trailblazing women entertainers featured in the Smithsonian’s collections shattered stereotypes and gender norms to redefine who could tell stories in America. Many entertainers used their celebrity to actively change society.
Celia Cruz celebrated her Cuban American identity as one of the first women salsa singers. Mincy, a student, speaks with Ariana A. Curtis, curator at our National Museum of African American History and Culture.
Collection Objects
Learn the stories behind these featured objects or explore more entertaining women in the collections.
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Fighting to be Viewed Beyond Hollywood Stereotypes -
Oprah Winfrey and Her Inviting Couch Got People Talking -
Bringing African American Women's Voices to Mainstream Theatre -
Singer-Songwriter Jean Ritchie Revived an Appreciation of Folk Music -
Madame Evanti Made Her Mark in Europe, then at Home -
Yolande Betbeze Used Her Miss America Win to Challenge Stereotypes
Videos
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Kathleen Franz, a curator of work and labor at the National Museum of American History, discusses Gilda Mirós and Isabel Norniella, two Latina trailblazers in advertising and broadcasting.
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Star Trek's decision to cast Nichelle Nichols, an African American woman, as major character on the show was an almost unheard-of move in 1968. But for black women all over the country, it redefined the notions of what was possible.
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Hazel Dickens became an accomplished bluegrass performer at a time when the genre was dominated by men. She was also an admired advocate for women's and worker's rights. Along with fellow musician and friend Alice Gerrard, she empowered countless female singers and musicians to succeed without sacrificing integrity. In this performance, Dickens, herself the eighth of eleven children born to a West Virginia mining family, pays homage to her home state.
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Portrait in a Minute: Guest presenter Alina Collins Maldonado, Head of Education at the Gala Hispanic Theatre in Washington, D.C., discusses a 1993 photograph of Selena by Al Rendon.
Playlist
Smithsonian American Women
