Open Book, Open Mind; Jennifer Jones, "Becoming Spectacular"

The First African American Rockette

The first African American Rockette discusses her journey to one of the world's most celebrated dance troupes with Montclair's own Sharron Miller of SMAPA.

REGISTRATION IS CLOSED BUT THERE ARE STILL SEATS. Come to the auditorium and we'll seat you at 6:30 p.m. Doors open to reservation holders at 6 p.m. After the discussion, there will be a Q&A period and a book signing and sale with Watchung Booksellers. Co-presented by Sharron Miller's Performing Arts Academy.

Open Book / Open Mind is sponsored by Montclair Public Library Foundation, Watchung Booksellers, the New Jersey Council on Humanities, Anonymous, David and Mary Lee Jones, Dr. Alex and Doris Malaspina and our individual Underwriters. To support Open Book / Open Mind and other library programs, click here to donate.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jennifer Jones is a Tony Award–winning dancer and activist known for becoming the first African American Rockette. Since 1987, she has advocated for equal rights in the arts, and her work has been celebrated by the Harlem School of the Arts, Radio City Music Hall, and Madison Square Garden. A survivor of colon cancer, she lives in New Jersey with her husband, Jeffrey.

ABOUT THE BOOK

"The Radio City Rockettes are as American as baseball, hot dogs, and the Fourth of July. Their legendary synchronized leg kicks, precise lines, and megawatt smiles have charmed audiences for a century. But there is a hidden side to this illustrious national institution. When the Rockettes began in 1925, Black people were not allowed to dance on stage with white people. However, during the Civil Rights Movement, dance history changed significantly when Black and white dancers were permitted to perform together, marking a moment of progress and inclusivity in the world of dance and entertainment. Even so, as late as the early 1980s, Rockette director Violet Holmes said having “one or two Black girls in the line would definitely distract.”

In 1987 the 63-year color barrier at Radio City was finally broken by one brave and tenacious woman. When she arrived, Jennifer Jones was met with pushback—a fierce resistance she details in this intimate and inspiring memoir. After overcoming seemingly impossible odds to join the line of The Rockettes, a PR director summoned the Black dancer to her hotel room and announced, 'You’re old news, nobody cares about you, your story or anything about you. You're just lucky to be here.'"

Like Gelsey Kirkland’s iconic "Dancing on My Grave," "Becoming Spectacular" allows us to walk in Jones’ tap shoes—beautiful and glittering, yet painful and binding. Bringing into focus the wounded life of a trailblazer, this searing memoir is also a triumphant celebration of a spirit who refused to be counted out."—Harper Collins

ABOUT THE CONVERSATION PARTNER

Sharron Miller is the founder and director of Sharron Miller’s Academy for the Performing Arts (SMAPA), celebrating 29 years as a not-for-profit arts education organization. Miller, a Juilliard graduate, is a former Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater principal dancer and veteran of seven Broadway shows. She has appeared on television, in film, and in hundreds of radio and television commercials. She is a member of Actors’ Equity Association and SAG/AFTRA. 

In addition to her duties as Artistic/Executive Director of SMAPA, Sharron Miller has served on the faculty of The Renaissance Middle School in Montclair, Montclair Kimberley Academy, Far Brook School, and continues her affiliation with the New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC) as an arts-in-education consultant/partner. She continues to develop SMAPA’s arts enrichment programs, both in-school and after-school, which include working in partnership with Paterson Public Schools, North Star Academy in Newark, Arts Education Newark (AEN), and other neighboring communities within Essex County. 

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