A Conversation Between Friends

Jene' Watson and Kupenda Auset

Last spring, my friend, Jene' Watson and I, had a conversation about ways we've found inspiration in the lives of our chosen ancestors: pioneering arts activists, Adrienne McNeil Herndon and Maud Cuney Hare. The conversation was recorded by StoryCorps on March 22, 2016.  As a part of the StoryCorps Griot Initiative, the conversation was archived at the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress and the Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History & Culture. CLICK HERE to listen.  

Maud Cuney Hare 

Maud Cuney-Hare was born February 17, 1874. She was an African American musician and writer from Galveston, TX. 

Maud was a folklorist and music historian who was especially interested in African and early American music. She collected songs in Mexico, the Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, and Cuba, and was the first music scholar to direct public attention to Creole music. 

She married William P. Hare in 1906 and moved to Boston. She gave recitals and lectures and founded the Musical Art Studio. Maud is best known for her book, Negro Musicians and Their Music. Maud died in Boston on February 13, 1936.

Sources: Jene' Watson; 
Dictionary of American Negro Biography
Rayford W. Logan and Michael R. Winston, eds.,
(New York: Norton, 1982)

A Secret Place Where Adrienne Herndon Performed

Undated Photo of an audience inside Steinert Hall

It was January 28, 1904 and she herself was a secret.

Adrienne Herndon was smack dab in the middle of Boston's Theater District on the stage of Steinert Hall pretending to be a white woman named Anne DuBignon. In her one-woman show, she played the part of all 22 characters of Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra from memory.

In the present day, the once popular theater within the building that housed Steinway & Sons piano company since 1896 is pretty much unknown. Few people (one of whom was Elton John) have been granted a tour of the hall since it's closing 70 years ago and despite her legacy, Adrienne Herndon is lost in history.

Today I was excited to learn that I've been granted special permission to tour Steinert Hall. I will be accompanied by Emmy-award winning journalist, Clennon L. King (www.augustinemonica.com). During my planned visit, which will take place in a couple of months, I will also explore how Adrienne lived, what she was doing, and her associations. Take a look of Steinert Hall as it looked 6 years ago in rare footage captured by Andrew Vella: SteinertHall

Adrienne Herndon used her education, money, experiences and travel for social uplift. She was Chair of Drama and Elocution at Atlanta University for 15 years and was the primary architect of the Herndon Home, which is now a national historic landmark located near Morris Brown College (http://www.herndonhome.org/). She was the first wife of Atlanta's first black millionaire, Alonzo Herndon.