Chautauqua Festival 2026 – Revolutionary Americans – Paul Robeson

Hear his story in his own words. Born in Princeton, New Jersey in 1898, Paul Robeson was the son of a Presbyterian pastor. His mother died in a fire when he was only six years old, and as a result community members pitched in to help Reverend Robeson raise Paul, the youngest of five children. In his autobiographical book, Here I Stand, Paul wrote: “If I were to try to put down the names of all the folks who helped raise me, it would read like a roster of Negro Princeton.” Paul was also influenced by the role of music in the Princeton African American community: “Songs of love and longing, songs of trials and triumphs, deep-flowing rivers and rollicking brooks, hymn-song and ragtime ballad, gospels and blues and the healing comfort to be found in the illimitable sorrow of the spirituals…Yes, I heard my people singing!” After graduating from Rutgers, he earned a law degree from Columbia University in 1923 and became part of the intellectual, cultural and artistic ferment known as the Harlem Renaissance. Like many black artists at the time, Paul felt his artistry could be a weapon in the fight against racism. Between 1924 and 1925, Paul’s career, as both an actor and a singer, exploded onto the national scene, but it would be as a singer that Paul would have the artform that best expressed his hopes and beliefs. While living in London from 1927 to 1939, Paul gained a reputation as “the people’s artist” by dedicating his artistry to the struggle against oppression. In in his activism, Paul was a precursor to the modern day Civil Rights movement.

Marvin Jefferson (Paul Robeson)

Marvin Jefferson has an extensive background as a professional actor/director, educator and living history scholar. He has devoted many years to studying the lives of Paul Robeson and Martin Luther King, Jr. Since 1997, he has engaged audiences across the country with his popular Chautauqua performances of these two important historical figures, with a particular focus on the Civil Rights issues that were central to the lives of both. His portrayals have also included Louis Armstrong and York, a member of the Lewis and Clark expedition. Marvin studied acting at the Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University.
Between 1981 and 1996, he was the producer/artistic director and co-founder of the Ensemble Theatre Company. From 1995 to 2018, he taught acting at Bloomfield College, a private liberal arts college. He began his training as a Chautauquan with the help and guidance of two nationally renowned scholars, the late Giles R. Wright and Dr. Clement A. Price.

Based in Greenville, SC, Chautauqua History Comes Alive is interactive theater and the performances offer an astonishing journey into the past allowing the audience to hear stories of the characters in their own words. This year’s character performances are Rebecca Motte (Saturday, June 13); Paul Robeson (Tuesday, June 16); Mother Jones (Thursday, June 18); Captain Henry Felder Saturday, June 20); and Edgar Allen Poe (Tuesday, June 23). Doors open one hour before show, seating is first come, first served. The Chautauqua Festival at the Transylvania County Library is made possible by the generous support of the Friends of the Library.