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• Virginie Gireaudeau article in J19

English professor recovers legacy of historic African American actress

Associate Professor of English and Director of Core Literature Juliane Braun recently published a groundbreaking article in the prestigious J19: The Journal of Nineteenth-Century Americanists. The article, "Recovering Virginie Gireaudeau: Race, Language, and Representation on the American Stage," reclaims the life and career of Virginie Gireaudeau, one of the first African American actresses to appear in a major North American theater.

Performing in New Orleans in 1826, Gireaudeau played the female lead in two tragedies, supported by a group of white professional actors and actresses from France. But despite Gireaudeau's obvious significance for American theater historiography, her story has not yet found its way into theater criticism or history.

The article suggests that Gireaudeau's marginalization is symptomatic of an American "national" theater historiography that is largely focused on the anglophone stage. Drawing on a multilingual approach and the careful analysis of a range of newspaper accounts and notarial records, the article argues for the inclusion of non-English-language voices and materials in American (theater) history and reconstructs how Gireaudeau navigated an environment that was stacked against her.

Braun specializes in early American studies, with an emphasis on the multilingual and transnational literatures of the Americas. Her research and teaching focuses on theatre and drama, transoceanic studies, and the environmental humanities. Her award-winning book, "Creole Drama: Theatre and Society in Antebellum New Orleans" (University of Virginia Press, 2019), examines the transnational, political and social reach of French Louisianian theatrical culture. She has also done work on "Les Cenelles," the first African American poetry anthology published in the United States.

Tags: English Faculty Research