- Estelle T. Barada
- MY BIO:
- Providence, Rhode Island, United States
- I studied ballet at the Harlem School for the Arts, dance with the Dance Theater of Harlem under Arthur Mitchel. I attended Boston Conservatory of Music for Dance and Theater, modeled for Michi Knitwear Designs and raised 6 wonderful children. I am employed at a local hotel in Providence, as Concierge. I enjoy the art of taking tea, having Victorian tea parties and teaching young girls tea etiquette and proper manners in public.
I have created a Victorian Tea Corner in my home.
I love all things Victorian and have become a living history re-enactor with a passion for history and the way people lived in the past. I have done much research on the positive roles the African American's played in history and how it will help in modern day times.
- MY VICTORIAN DREAM:
I am the daughter of William Alexander Tucker from Norfork, Virginia. Being his middle daughter, I was often left unnoticed. Therefore , I became a dreamer. I spent most of my childhood pretending I was the only child of a very wealthy man, that traveled the seas to bring home treasures for his little girl. My father was what they called back in those days , "the junk man." He worked as a handyman for a wealthy family in Scarsdale, New York .He would bring home all kinds of things that he cleaned out from their attic, basement and garage. Sometimes it was old clothes from days gone by. I was too young to appreciate these old things as I do now. But still, I would play for hours dressing up and wishing I lived in a big castle or mansion. As time went by , I was forced to leave my home, to live in an institution . The Lt. Joseph P. Kennedy Home, for underprivileged children . I still kept hope for a grandeur life. I dreamed of a life of luxury and great position.
In the institution, I was encouraged to pursue my dreams. I took up ballet for the first time at the age of eight. It was hard for me at first because of my age. Most girls start much younger, but I loved it. It was the style, the grace and the history that held me. It was so new to me. I attended The Harlem School for the Arts. Studied under Arthur Mitchell. I studied hard and became an excellent dancer. 
I danced with the Dance Theatre of Harlem. I wanted to be the prima ballerina, Here I could be the beautiful swan or Princess. As you can see I was still the great dreamer! I studied the history of the French and the English. I was introduced at this time to the 1800's and the Victorian Era.I was amazed. I wanted to go back in time and live in that fashionable era. As, I studied the Victorian Era and the history of black Americans, in the 1800's, I was awaken to the fact that my family situation would have still been as a servant of that time. I still was intrigued by the manners, etiquette and fashions of that era. 
The fashions of the Victorian Era were both very elaborate and restrictive on the bodies of those who wore them. Victorian lace was used as ornamentation on long slim sleeves and high necklines lyered over satin and silk due to the 1840 invention of the lace machine. Fashion dictated that women wear white, tight-fitting, kidskin gloves fastened with up to 100 tiny buttons along with button-down, heel boots.
Because of my love for the Victorian Fashions and Era, I have, up to this day hold to the dream of grandeur and position.
I have started my own Victorian Tea Corner, in my home, that can be viewed at: http://www.orgsites.com/ri/teatime.
