Photo: William Perrigen

One of the key figures associated with the Harlem Renaissance, painter Jacob Lawrence was a ground-breaking modern artist who often chronicled the experience of black America in his work. Using some of the artist’s most iconic works as inspiration, Washington, D.C.-based dance company Step Afrika! has created the work The Migration: Reflections on Jacob Lawrence, which ArtsEmerson brings to the Emerson Cutler Majestic Theatre May 3–6. A celebration of the African-American men and women who left their Southern homes in search of a better life, this multimedia production combines dance, music and audience participation in one glorious spectacle.