Uploaded July 2024 | Updated September 2026, 7 hours ago
Award-winning actress, playwright, and professor Anna Deavere Smith explores performance as a way of knowing in this four-part series. Since 1980, Smith has been interviewing Americans through her project “On the Road: A Search for American Character,” which she developed into a new form of theater. Delivered with segments of performance, these lectures examine this material collected over the course of Smith’s career: nga.gov/research/casva/meetings/mellon-lectures-in-the-fine-arts/smith-2024.html
Lecture 1 of 4: “On the Road: A Search for American Character”
youtu.be/jhQxG0Znf68
Lecture 2 of 4: “This Ghost of Slavery: A Solo Reading”
Smith conducts a solo reading from her newest play “This Ghost of Slavery,” published in The Atlantic (December 2023).
youtu.be/-pXLXAKh_kA
Lecture 3 of 4: “Let Me Down Easy: On the Vulnerability of Our Bodies / The Resilience of Our Spirits”
Featuring photographs by Diana Walker.
youtu.be/Ru5zMVVnSSU
Lecture 4 of 4: “Me: Shot Out of a Moving Canon—Black, Female, and the 1970s”
youtu.be/2eYUdk0YLG0
The A. W. Mellon Lectures in the Fine Arts is the longest-running lecture series at the National Gallery of Art. Past lecturers have included art historians, artists, poets, and musicologists: nga.gov/research/casva/meetings/mellon-lectures-in-the-fine-arts.html
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National Gallery of Art ►►youtube.com/NationalGalleryofArtUS
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The National Gallery of Art serves the nation by welcoming all people to explore and experience art, creativity, and our shared humanity.
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Award-winning actress, playwright, and professor Anna Deavere Smith explores performance as a way of knowing in this four-part series. Since 1980, Smith has been interviewing Americans through her project “On the Road: A Search for American Character,” which she developed into a new form of theater. Delivered with segments of performance, these lectures examine this material collected over the course of Smith’s career: nga.gov/research/casva/meetings/mellon-lectures-in-the-fine-arts/smith-2024.html
Lecture 1 of 4: “On the Road: A Search for American Character”
youtu.be/jhQxG0Znf68
Lecture 2 of 4: “This Ghost of Slavery: A Solo Reading”
Smith conducts a solo reading from her newest play “This Ghost of Slavery,” published in The Atlantic (December 2023).
youtu.be/-pXLXAKh_kA
Lecture 3 of 4: “Let Me Down Easy: On the Vulnerability of Our Bodies / The Resilience of Our Spirits”
Featuring photographs by Diana Walker.
youtu.be/Ru5zMVVnSSU
Lecture 4 of 4: “Me: Shot Out of a Moving Canon—Black, Female, and the 1970s”
youtu.be/2eYUdk0YLG0
The A. W. Mellon Lectures in the Fine Arts is the longest-running lecture series at the National Gallery of Art. Past lecturers have included art historians, artists, poets, and musicologists: nga.gov/research/casva/meetings/mellon-lectures-in-the-fine-arts.html
Still haven’t subscribed to our YouTube channels?
National Gallery of Art ►►youtube.com/NationalGalleryofArtUS
National Gallery of Art Talks ►►youtube.com/NationalGalleryofArtTalks
ABOUT THE NATIONAL GALLERY OF ART
The National Gallery of Art serves the nation by welcoming all people to explore and experience art, creativity, and our shared humanity.
More National Gallery of Art Content:
Facebook: facebook.com/nationalgalleryofart
Twitter: twitter.com/ngadc
Instagram: instagram.com/ngadc
Pinterest: pinterest.com/ngadc/_created
E-News: nga.us4.list-manage.com/subscribe/post?u=e894a1837aca4526f7e8a11b3&id=2085ff9475
