"Incorporating a creative approach for teaching history, social studies, and language arts, Rhetoric of Survival is an ideal concept for implementing new historical information through a dramatic storytelling performance. Drawing on a wide array of previously untapped primary sources, Rhetoric of Survival examines the lives of black women during the 18th 19th & 20th century. Knowledge concerned with human nature, conceptual ideas and culture are a vital element to first-person interpretation. The portrayal of historical characters, real or composite, is an effective method for creating history into tangible life."

"This program connects very powerfully to student audiences and completely draws them in., " stated Mary Muller/Coordinator of T/O Programs

"Gwendolyn’s re-enactment was compelling for its aura of authenticity. We believe that her insistence on verifying the facts through her own research of primary sources contributed to her ability to recreate the era so effectively. She was an arresting presence in her period gown as she took us to the time and let us be witness to the events.," – Vivian Papson, Program Chairperson NCURHA

Characters are in the 18th, 19th, & 20th century. Folktales: weaving in history, artifacts and interactive storytelling . Gwendolyn will take you down the steps of American history, tales of the Black Cowboys, and the Black Seminoles of Texas, with her unique and spirited version of familiar traditions, her own original stories.

Click on the program buttons at left for more detailed information on each presentation.