Cracking Up
Black Feminist Comedy in the Twentieth and Twenty-First Century United States
by Katelyn Hale Wood
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Pub Date Jun 01 2021 | Archive Date Jun 01 2021
University of Iowa Press | University Of Iowa Press
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Description
Performing Arts / Women's Studies / African American Studies
Cracking Up archives and analyzes Black feminist stand-up comedy in the United States over the past sixty years. Looking closely at the work of Jackie “Moms” Mabley, Mo’Nique, Wanda Sykes, Sasheer Zamata, Sam Jay, Phoebe Robinson, Jessica Williams, Amanda Seales, and Michelle Buteau, this book shows how Black feminist comedy and the laughter it ignites are vital components of feminist, queer, and anti-racist protest.
Katelyn Hale Wood interprets these artists not as tokens in a white, male-dominated field, but as part of a continuous history of Black feminist performance and presence. Broadly, Cracking Up frames stand-up comedy as an important platform from which to examine citizenship in the United States, articulate Black feminist political thought, and subvert structures of power. Wood also champions comedic performance and theatre history as imperative contexts for advancing historical studies of race, gender, and sexuality. From the comedy routines popular on Black vaudeville circuits to stand-up on contemporary social media platforms, Cracking Up excavates an overlooked history of Black women who have made the art of joke-telling a key part of radical performance and political engagement.
Advance Praise
“Cracking Up is a timely and beautifully written book that boldly centers Black queer feminist subjectivity within the stand-up comedy tradition. By situating Black/queer feminist comedians as intellectuals, activists, and Black cultural producers in their own right, Katelyn Hale Wood captures a long-overdue chapter in Black women’s history and culture.”—La Donna L. Forsgren, author, Sistuhs in the Struggle: An Oral History of Black Arts Movement Theatre and Performance
Available Editions
| EDITION | Other Format |
| ISBN | 9781609387723 |
| PRICE | $35.00 (USD) |
| PAGES | 204 |
Links
Available on NetGalley
Featured Reviews
Susan D, Reviewer
Thanks to NetGalley, University of Iowa Press and Katelyn Hale Wood for an ARC of this engaging book in exchange for an honest book review.
I didn’t, know what to expect when I started reading this book but I was intrigued by the description. I recalled seeing Moms Mabley on television when I was young and remember that she was not only funny but different than what I was accustomed to. Not because she was black but because she was a woman and one that was not glamorous. Her frumpy hat, house dress, deep voiced delivery. toothless smile and picture perfect storytelling was infectious. Katelyn Hale Wood brings “Moms” and other talented comedians such as Wanda Sykes, Phoebe Robinson and Mo’Nique (to name a few) to center stage as she explores the world of Black women’s history. The Black feminist brings a combination of intellect, culture, activism and queerness to their performance. Theirs is a story of survival in this white male dominated entertainment sector. It is a story of strength, determination and one that it told with tenderness and moving content.
These wonderfully talented women are champions as is Katelyn Hale Wood for telling a well deserved and ‘needed to be told’ chapter.
Educator 550974
NetGalley ARC Educator 550974
Well written expose on BIPOC female comedians. It gives glimpse of Wanda Sykes, Amanda Seales, Whoopi and a full analysis of Mom's life and comedy. You will learn about the challenges women of color face in a male driven world and they way they confront the isms of life. In some ways it reads like a dissertation., in others, like a recounting of an awesome night at the theater.
Cass M, Bookseller
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me a free advanced copy of this book to read and review.
Emma C, Reviewer
*I am not a Black women so please consider the reviews of Black women as holding more weight than mine*
An essential read for anyone in the arts!
I haven't finished this book yet as I feel it isn't one to power through, but it is such an important addition to the discourse on race, comedy, and how they intertwine. I love getting a history of Black comedians I didn't know (but clearly should!) and think the concept of "joke-telling as truth telling in the name of Black women's expression and freedom" is critical to having a more intersectional understanding of comedy and comedic spaces (I did my MA mini thesis on how theatre is used as a tool of social change and Indigenous reconciliation, so this sort of thing is right up my alley). This book is unabashedly Black, queer, and feminist, and is an excellent addition to the shelves of both scholars and people who just want to more about Black comedy.
Black feminist comedy is something I know very little about and I am excited to fill in some of my gaps of knowledge.
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