Black dance collection

1939-1990

Joe Nash was a dancer, black dance historian, coordinator of black dance history courses at the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater School in New York, and director and founder of the Multiethnic Christian Education Resources Center of the National Council of Churches. Born in New York City, Nash came from a musical family and trained to become a secretary. He began dancing in 1940 with the National Youth Administration, then spent four years in the Army in Europe. Following World War II, he enrolled in the dance division of the American Theatre Wing. He studied ballet and modern dance, making his first professional appearance with the Charles Weidman Dance Group.

Nash's dance career includes such Broadway shows as Show Boat, Finian's Rainbow, Bless You All, Flahooley, My Darlin' Aida, Livin' the Life, and Inside the U.S.A.. His concert performances include New York City Center's production of Carmen Jones and Love for Three Oranges. His television credits include Omnibus, The Hit Parade, The Paul Whiteman Show, The Ed Sullivan Show, and the Canadian production of Portfolio.

Joe Nash's role with dance moved into the area of art administration with such organizations as the National Endowment for the Arts and the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre Foundation, where he served as a dance panelist and a member of the Board of Trustees, respectively. He also worked as a lecturer, dance teacher, and exhibition coordinator. In the role of researcher of black dance history, Nash compiled an extensive collection of photographs, manuscripts, programs and flyers, news clippings, decoupage art, books, and dissertations documenting black dance and dancers from the 1920s through the l980's.