WHYY News to host documentary screening highlighting Philadelphia street performer Celestine Tate Harrington

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Former Philadelphia street musician Celestine Tate Harrington will be highlighted during the upcoming screening of “Renegades: Untold Stories of Disabled Trailblazers Breaking Barriers, Making History” hosted by WHYY News on Tuesday, Nov. 19.

The event will be anchored by a screening of the PBS documentary short series “American Masters: Renegades,” which celebrates five disabled figures from across the country who shaped their communities through art, public service and activism. The cast and crew of the series is composed “almost entirely” of disabled individuals, according to PBS.

Harrington, the focus of the short “Building a Legacy: Celestine Tate Harrington,” was born with a condition that left her limbs “unusable.” Despite this, she led a full life, becoming a locally famous street performer in Philadelphia and Atlantic City by performing the keyboard with her tongue, teeth and lips.

She was also a mother and used similar techniques with her mouth to take full care of her daughter, Nia Tate-Ball. In 1975, Harrington won a trailblazing custody battle against the Philadelphia Department of Child Services after the department claimed that Harrington’s disability prevented her from providing adequate care to Ball.

After the screening, panel discussions will focus on the documentary and disability culture.

Panelists include members of the “Renegades” creative team, including creator Day Al-Mohamed, writer and producer Marsha Hallager, music supervisor Carvin Haggins and executive producer and Harrington’s daughter, Tate-Ball; Dr. Nathaniel Hyman Mayer, director of Jefferson Moss-Magee Rehabilitation’s Motor Control Analyst Laboratory, and Dr. Alberto Esquenazi, chief medical officer at Jefferson Moss-Magee Rehabilitation.

Bobbi Booker, managing editor of WHYY News’ PlanPhilly, will moderate. 

The screening will be held from 6 p.m. until 8 p.m. at WHYY Studios. For those interested in the screening, visit WHYY’s website to reserve a ticket.