performers - The Cambridge Historical Commission Blog

The Dunbar Associates

Posted on February 28, 2019October 12, 2022 by cambridgehistoricalcommission

dunbar associates 03 — The Dunbar Associates in an undated photo with President and founder Ernest Collins Di Natale, front row, third from right, and Vice President Nelson Ambush, to his right. See the end of the article for the names of all the men. *Cambridge Historical Commission. Courtesy Gertrude Di Natale.*

The Dunbar Associates was an African American social club started in 1937 by Ernest Collins Di Natale, who also organized the Dunbar Quartette [sic], a musical group noted for their beautiful singing of spirituals. (Ernest later adopted the last name of his birth family, Di Natale. The new name first appeared on his WWII draft registration card.) Collins Di Natale named the group in honor of Paul Lawrence Dunbar, who was a Black poet, novelist, and playwright in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Dunbar received international acclaim for his work, which included Majors and Minors and Lyrics of Lowly Life. The Quartette performed in churches, at teas and parties, and on the local radio. The Dunbar Associates featured other musical groups, including the Dunbarettes, a women’s group; Dunbar Juniors, a choral group comprising boys from the neighborhood; and Dunbar Serenaders.

The Dunbar Associates organized teams for sports including basketball and bowling and supported other recreational activities such as sponsoring inter-club whist tournaments. Initially located at 52 Brookline Street, the clubhouse moved to 185 Franklin Street in 1939 and remained there until the early 1960s. The property had a large yard providing children with the only play area in the neighborhood at the time. The clubhouse hosted a variety of events, including weddings, birthday parties, dances, and lectures, as well as a rally in support of John F. Kennedy in his 1952 race for U.S. Senator.

dunbarsd — The Dunbar Quartette: Seated, Ernest Collins Di Natale. Standing, left to right: Thomas Henderson, Stanley Davis, Howard Langford, Melvin Cox. *Cambridge Historical Commission. Courtesy Gertrude Di Natale.*

The Dunbar Associates also sponsored dances all over New England, engaging many big-name swing bands, starting with Chick Webb and Ella Fitzgerald in 1938. Held in the Cambridge Elks Lodge Ballroom, this event also celebrated the organization’s first year anniversary. An article in the Cambridge Chronicle credited the Dunbar Associates with bringing to Cambridge, “its biggest dancing attraction in history.” In a reminiscence written by Ernest’s wife, Gertrude, she explained that “the dances in those days were really enjoyable, happy, pleasant evenings, something to take the stress of the days away. It was a time to dance and enjoy each other’s company, make new friends and see old acquaintances.”

185 Franklin St 01 — View of 185 Franklin Street, headquarters of the Dunbar Associates from 1939 to the early 1960s. *Cambridge Historical Commission, staff photo.*

The Di Natale family generously shared much information, including copies of photographs, with the Historical Commission. Do you remember the Dunbar Associates? Or perhaps you’ve listened to older relatives and friends reminisce about their dances and concerts. The Cambridge Black History Project invites you to share photos and memories of this extraordinary organization on the Project’s Facebook page. Thank you!

Members of the Dunbar Associates: back row, left to right: George Greenidge, Thomas Henderson, Barry Gainor, Gilton Jones, Paul Revaleon, Clarence Edwards, Tom Scott(?). Middle row: Dana Williams, Ralph Marshall, Melvin Cox, Cecil Alleyne(?), Alfred Burke, Walter Thurston, Benjamin Sealy. Front row: Gilbert Hutcherson, Russell Whaley, Louis Merritt, Ernest Collins Di Natale, Nelson Ambush, Edwin Ridley.

Sources
Di Natale Family Papers
Cambridge Chronicle, May 19, 1938, and May 26, 1938, June 15, 1939, May 1939
Poetry Foundation, https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/paul-laurence-dunbar

Updated October 2022

Modern Monday: Loeb Drama Center, 64 Brattle Street

Posted on February 11, 2019May 14, 2020 by cambridgehistoricalcommission

Exterior of Loeb Drama Center_Radcliffe College Archives

Completed in 1960, the Loeb Drama Center at 64 Brattle Street stands as one of Cambridge’s greatest examples of Modern Architecture. The structure is human-scaled, made of regional materials and is a sensitive addition to its residential and commercial neighbors along Brattle Street. The scale of the building was reduced to blend in with adjacent heights and the use of New England waterstruck brick is a nod to the Harvard and Radcliffe buildings nearby. Exposed concrete serves as a sort of frame to the delicate ornamental grille which provides a lace-like effect, enhanced further at night when the light from inside the building shines through.

Exterior View of Loeb Drama Center_night_Radcliffe College Archives Exterior View: Harvard - Loeb Drama Center, 29 Brattle Street

Architect Hugh Stubbins wanted the theater to be architecturally exciting, while still serving as a backdrop to the purpose of the building, the arts. Stubbins was quoted as saying, “the auditorium should please the imagination in such a way as to release it, not captivate it” and later went on to reference examples of recent museums and art galleries erected by architects to overshadow the art within them.

Interior View of Loeb Drama Center_Radcliffe College Archives View of Loeb Drama Center setbuilding_Radcliffe College Archives

The building opens right off the sidewalk of Brattle Street by the way of deep setbacks off the first floor, forming a porch-like or arcade feeling. The sides of the building open to a garden court on one side and a spacious terrace on the other. The travertine flooring in the lobby extends gracefully to the brick-paved courtyard, contained by a red brick serpentine wall.

Exterior courtyard Loeb Drama Center_Radcliffe College Archives Exterior View of Loeb Drama Center (2)_Radcliffe College Archives

The theater was unveiled as a mechanical marvel as the first fully-automatic and flexible theatre in the United States. The audience’s position in relation to the stage, along with the position and shape of the stage itself could be altered between three main configurations: theater-in-the-round, proscenium, and arena seating, all possibly during the same performance. Yale’s noted stage technician and theater design engineer, George C. Izenour worked with Stubbins to integrate lighting, rigging and staging into an automated and hydraulic lift system, which could be altered and staged by just two people in mere minutes.

Courtesy of Architectural Forum, 10-1960.

The Loeb Drama Center is now home to The American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.) at Harvard University, which collaborates with artists around the world to develop and create work in new ways. To learn more about A.R.T. and their upcoming shows and events, check out their website at: https://americanrepertorytheater.org/

1960 color photo_CHC_LOEB — Color slide courtesy of CHC Staff.

Historic photos courtesy of Radcliffe College Archives and CHC slides.

Igor Fokin Memorial Sculpture, One Brattle Square

Posted on February 7, 2019May 14, 2020 by cambridgehistoricalcommission

Since the 1970s, summer evenings in Harvard Square have featured a vibrant street theater scene. In 1985, a major subway construction project that extended the Red Line subway to Alewife was completed, resulting in major changes above ground, including wider sidewalks and small plazas, that created even more opportunities for busking (Lotman, Harvard Square, An Illustrated History Since 1950, 2009). Performers ranged from jugglers, mimes, tightrope walkers, and fire eaters, to musicians and singers. This dynamic street performance culture continues today.

igorshow courtesy of http://www.igorfokin.com

In the early 1990s, one performer stood out as a unique and remarkably gifted entertainer. From 1993 to 1996, Igor Fokin enchanted people with his life-like marionettes that mesmerized young and old alike as they danced, played, and interacted with the audience. Igor hand-carved his wooden puppets who ranged from dancing skeletons, a witch sweeping up the sidewalk, to a puppet named Doo-Doo with a fluted nose, and Satchmo playing his trumpet to the song Mack the Knife. Each puppet, measuring less than 12 inches, was elaborately detailed and truly came to life under Igor’s nimble handling, when climbing up someone’s leg, petting someone’s nose, or sitting on a child’s lap.

castcolor courtesy of http://www.igorfokin.com

Born in Russia and a graduate of St. Petersburg Theatrical Institute, Igor moved to Cambridge in the summer of 1993 with his collection of puppets, and by the end of the summer he was one of the most popular performers. Igor put on several shows a day, including passers-by in the late afternoon and culminating in the evening with a large audience who purposely came out to see his show. He was always refining his craft and developing new characters for his street performances which he referred to as the “most democratic art form” (Schmidt, The Puppeteer, 2003).

igorandcast courtesy of http://www.igorfokin.com

Igor performed in Harvard Square until his untimely death in 1996 at the age of 36. Today, at the corner of One Brattle Square, where Igor enjoyed performing the most, a bronze replica of Doo-Doo by sculptor Konstantin Simun is perched on a bollard, a permanent reminder of Igor’s joyful imagination and the delight he brought to everyone lucky enough to experience his magical world.

Sources
Lotman, Mo. Harvard Square, An Illustrated History Since 1950. Abrahms, 2009.

Schmidt, Chris, and Gary Henoch, The Puppeteer, 2003, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cJ2gizaqVw8

http://www.igorfokin.com