Artist Statement

As a multidisciplinary artist, I specialize in choreography, direction, filmmaking, and education, all unified by my passion for movement. Movement is my expertise and my preferred way to communicate. Yet, my disciplines in theater, music composition, and film allow me to perform, teach, and speak as a dance practitioner and scholar without borders. By adopting an interdisciplinary approach, and combining these disciplines into the work I create, I connect with a broader range of individuals and communities. My work is a reflection of my existence as a Black queer woman, and I channel my emotions and inquiries about life into my creative process. The work itself is a protest because it originates from a place of intersecting identities, and through my art, I address issues related to race, sexuality, gender, and religion. Through art, I believe we can acknowledge differences while discovering commonalities, leading to healing and change. Success for me is creating performances that not only entertain but also educate and inspire audiences. Fueled by the many artists who have paved the way for me to feel flight, I am indebted to the trailblazers who came before me, and I hope to continue the legacy of making beautiful performances that merge art and activism. 

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Teaching

I aim to instill a sense of the “presence of movement” in my dance technique courses. The movement quality, teaching, and training are derived from Afro-Contemporary Modern, Ballet, Jazz, Hip-Hop, and Musical Theatre Dance. While my training is across the board, my focus and expertise are teaching movements of the African Diaspora. Decentering the eurocentric standard of dance technique and recentering the history of movement of West African, Caribbean, and Black social dance in the theory of modern, jazz, and hip hop styles, forms, and meanings. Whether teaching these techniques and styles individually or fusing them together, attention is focused on incorporating challenging compositions and designs to develop a conceptual awareness of space, time, and musicality.

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My classroom structure aims to enhance motor skills and condition the body for strength, coordination, endurance, and flexibility.  Integrating non-traditional exercises to prepare the student to execute combinations and retain the information taught in class.  I work towards creating inclusive spaces that foster learning, sharing perspectives, experiencing culture, and discussing history. This approach allows for a shared agency, where everyone's input is valued and contributes to the final product.

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