Cynthia Oliver and Dormeshia are 2021 Doris Duke Awardees

Cynthia Oliver (photo: Ian Douglas)

Dormeshia (photo: AK47 Photography)

 

Congratulations to two of our stellar dance artists--Cynthia Oliver and Dormeshia--who are among seven winners of the 2021 Doris Duke Awards announced today by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation!

Other 2021 awardees include saxophonist/composer Wayne Shorter, pianist/composer Danilo Pérez, pianist/composer Kris Davis, theater director Lileana Blain-Cruz, and actor/writer/director Teo Castellanos.

The annual Doris Duke Award, the largest national award to individuals in the performing arts, provides artists in theater, dance, and jazz with an award of $275,000.

“We are thrilled to award this year’s cohort of exceptional artists with this support,” said Maurine Knighton, program director for the arts at the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation. “With the knowledge that these performing artists excel in their forms, we recognize that they deserve funding that trusts them to best determine how to invest in their own futures. These awards are intended to enable artists with the freedom to create the way that artists are meant to create: freely, organically and without restrictions.”

Read more about the Doris Duke Artist Awards and the 2021 Doris Duke Artists here. 

About the Doris Duke Artist Awards

The Doris Duke Charitable Foundation designed the Doris Duke Artist Awards to invest in exemplary individual artists in contemporary dance, jazz and theater work who have demonstrated their artistic vitality and ongoing commitment to their field. The award is not a lifetime achievement award. Rather, it is a deep investment in the creative potential of dedicated artists. The foundation aims to empower Doris Duke Artists through the freedom of unrestricted support to take creative risks, explore new ideas, and pay for important professional and personal needs not typically funded by the project-related grants that dominate arts funding. While the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation initially conceived the Doris Duke Artists Awards as part of a larger $50 million special initiative that finished in 2017, recognition of the program’s importance in helping artists thrive spurred the foundation to cement a place for the flexible awards in its core strategy to support the arts.

About the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation

The mission of the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation (DDCF) is to improve the quality of people’s lives through grants supporting the performing arts, environmental conservation, medical research and child well-being, and through preservation of the cultural and environmental legacy of Doris Duke’s properties. The Doris Duke Charitable Foundation focuses its support to the performing arts on contemporary dance, jazz and theater artists, and the organizations that nurture, present and produce them. In 2015, the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) awarded the foundation with a 2014 National Medal of Arts, presented by President Barack Obama, in special recognition of DDCF’s support of creative expression across the United States and “bold commitment” to artistic risk, which has helped artists, musicians, dancers and actors share their talents and enriched the cultural life of the nation. For more information, please visit www.ddcf.org.

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DISCLAIMER: In addition to my work on InfiniteBody, I serve, at Gibney, as Senior Director of Curation and Editorial Director. The postings on this site are my own and do not necessarily reflect the views, strategies or opinions of Gibney.

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Alice Sheppard wins Neilsen prize, plans fund for disabled artists

 

Alice Sheppard (photo: Beverlie Lord)

Congratulations to dance artist Alice Sheppard who has just won the Craig H. Neilsen Foundation's 2021 Neilsen Visionary Prize!

Sheppard will direct 100% of the prize money--$1 million--towards support for other disabled artists. This fund will address disabled artists' need for equipment, access, care, travel and other resources related to training, development, and creation.

Sheppard, artistic director of world-renowned Kinetic Light, expressed gratitude to the Neilson Foundation: "Through this honor, they emphasize the fact that disability is not a deficit; it is a powerful creative and cultural force....I dedicate these funds to disabled artists. We do not move alone. We are interdependent, collective, and communal.”

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DISCLAIMER: In addition to my work on InfiniteBody, I serve, at Gibney, as Senior Director of Curation and Editorial Director. The postings on this site are my own and do not necessarily reflect the views, strategies or opinions of Gibney.

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Some personal news from Eva!

Eva Yaa Asantewaa (Photo: D. Feller)

 

Some personal news...and I’ll try to keep it nice and simple!

In early July, I marked three years of employment with the Gibney organization. Many of you know that, on August 26, I reached my 69th birthday and, from out of the blue, suffered my first panic attack, a severe, terrifying one. On August 31, I resigned my position on Gibney's staff as Senior Director of Curation, effective December 17.  

The reasons behind this professional shift are complex, but it fits my new aim, as I age, to finally pull back and reclaim rest, time and focus for myself and a world of interests beyond the dance field I have served with fierce love for more than 45 years.

Even so--for now, at least--I will continue on as a consultant for Gibney, retaining my role as Founding Director of the Black Diaspora program and Editorial Director of Imagining: A Gibney Journal. Both are relatively young projects, launched during and largely because of this pandemic, and I’m eager to see them develop and flourish.

As for my current curatorial projects–some of which I inherited, some which I created for Gibney--I will support them on staff through December 17. I have been assured that artists and projects I planned for Gibney all the way through July 2023 will be honored and supported by the organization.

So, there you have it!

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Please also read: My Body Wants Something Different for Me Now (June 21, 2021)

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DISCLAIMER: In addition to my work on InfiniteBody, I serve, at Gibney, as Senior Director of Curation and Editorial Director. The postings on this site are my own and do not necessarily reflect the views, strategies or opinions of Gibney.

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My body wants something different for me now.

 

 

My body wants something different for me now.

In August, I will turn 69.

A handful of people have already heard from me that I am retiring from reviewing dance and, indeed, from much engagement with writing about dance, serving on artist selection panels, speaking on panels and similar activities. Some folks have responded with shock or just surprise and sadness, especially to see a Black woman, or any rare person of color, leaving the field of dance criticism and journalism. Others have kindly expressed relief for me and even excitement that, after more than 45 years pursuing this work--I first took dance criticism courses at The New School and Dance Theater Workshop in 1974--I finally feel free to say I’ve done my do, given what I can, and now I’m reclaiming my time.

Like so many others, I have the pandemic of 2020-21 to thank for a radically-altered life.

But, actually, retiring from this work has been on my mind since before I suddenly got hired as Gibney’s curator in July 2018, a life transition that plunged me even deeper into a whole mess of unanticipated things.

However, these drawn-out months away from you all and the live performances I dearly loved have rewired me. On the physical level, I now find myself incapable of staying awake very far into the evening, making even the thought of turning up alert and receptive for night-time shows completely impossible. Seriously, my body rules it out, and I’m not going to fight that body wisdom. I cherish the extra sleep.

And on the mental level, well, my mind seems to be making its selections crystal clear. If something does not spark and hold its interest, engagement is short-lived (or never-lived). That means I might prioritize certain things and let others slide, not always rushing to be there for everything and everyone. No apologies. This is real.

But there’s unexpected fun, too, at this moment. Suddenly and brilliantly, BodyMind has skipped in the direction of healthier (and more colorful and flavorful) eating. Things I somehow just know to throw together work out well and have good health value for me. Intuition kicking in again and right on time. Again, something I’m not going to question--just make more time for and enjoy.

Listening has always been a central part of my spiritual and professional practice (and of my superpowers as an introvert). That continues. Listening to what I need is central to what’s centered. Even the things and spaces I’ve chosen to create for others during this time of uncertainty, anxiety, loss and grief--initiatives such as my Black Diaspora group for rising Black dance and performance artists and the Imagining journal at Gibney; the Black Curators in Dance and Performance group; and my monthly Zoom “séances”--are things and spaces I also happen to need for my own mental and spiritual well-being. As they serve and fulfill their purpose for others, they nourish me. These will continue and flourish. Over the next few years, I will also be shifting the areas of my focus at Gibney to better reflect the community relationships, broader concerns, and activities that matter most to me now.

I have spent decades tending an art discipline that does not get what it needs from this society. Far from it. It needs a ton of care, and working around that can be all-consuming. As I enter my elder years, I choose a wider world and a chance to reclaim some of the things I’ve had to push aside.

I thank everyone for receiving me into the world of dance and for always being, whether you knew it or not, my teachers. You have offered me a way to give back, as a writer, for all the wonder and beauty you sacrifice so much to create. With all the fierce questioning and work being done now towards true justice in the arts, I hope dance artists will also fiercely commit to making dance writing a necessary bridge to the outside world, a tool of witness, clarity of expression, openhearted sharing, much-needed documentation, and acknowledgment. Yes, a force for justice.

Eva Yaa Asantewaa

June 21, 2021

[Note: InfiniteBody will stay up, serving as a space for me to just keep saying whatever I need to say! :-D]

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DISCLAIMER: In addition to my work on InfiniteBody, I serve, at Gibney, as Senior Director of Curation and Editorial Director. The postings on this site are my own and do not necessarily reflect the views, strategies or opinions of Gibney.

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Sign up for my freeskewl Idea Lab -- Saturday, May 15!

Eva Yaa Asantewaa (photo: D. Feller)

 

 

freeskewl presents 

 

IDEA LAB

 

facilitated by 

Eva Yaa Asantewaa

via Zoom

 

Saturday, May 15, 2021

1pm-3pm EST

 

Proposed group agreement: Everyone is creative! 

How can we dedicate time and make space to generate a flow of good ideas with ease?

How do you honor, activate and support the living energy of the ideas you receive? 

Bring writing implements, your curiosity, and your willingness to support others in community.

 

Register and learn more here.

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DISCLAIMER: In addition to my work on InfiniteBody, I serve, at Gibney, as Senior Director of Curation and Editorial Director. The postings on this site are my own and do not necessarily reflect the views, strategies or opinions of Gibney.

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nowlater! Johnnie Cruise Mercer/TheREDprojectNYC announces new digital project/fundraiser

Isaiah Jones and Johnnie Cruise Mercer (still from PM6: thenowlater (SOUL))

 

The brilliant Johnnie Cruise Mercer/TheREDprojectNYC presents PM6 thenowlater: SOUL -- a project Mercer has described as "a dance film, a crafted gospel to ‘black revelations.' Filmed during the COVID-19 pandemic, and marking the 60th Anniversary of Alvin Ailey’s Revelations, the process memoir, film, and journey is guided by one question: What happens when we burn the flesh, and follow the spirit? The film marks the third journey of four within Process memoir 6: thenowlater, and is an active documentation of the company’s becoming, a shedding towards collective freedom."

 

Trailer: https://vimeo.com/504862359

 

Tickets--by sliding scale donation--are on sale from now through February 28. Reserve your ticket at: https://www.eventbrite.com/.../process-memoir-6...

 

PM6:thenowlater (SOUL) coincides with a four-week fundraiser supporting The City Dance Theater of Richmond at Pine Camp Cultural Arts Center. All proceeds from the watch party and fundraiser will go to building virtual programming, hiring instructors, and supplying artistic resources for the Richmond VA’s Black/Brown youth.

 

 

Adrianne Ansley (still from PM6:thenowlater (SOUL))

Choreographic/Company Director: Johnnie Cruise Mercer

Creative Director/Videographer/Lead Editor: Torian Ugworji

Choreographic/Video Artists: Shanice Mason, Adrianne Ansely, Thomas Tyger Moore, Tabitha Kelly

Music Production/Drummer/Choreographic Artist: Isaiah Jones

Tech Design: Michael Combs

Creative Asst./Guest Artists: Tj Jacobs

Guest Dance Artist: Steven Vilsaint, Reggie Mebane

Editors: Lester Nue Nue Matthews, Johnnie Cruise Mercer 

 

Process Memoir 6: thenowlater marks itself as the sixth of ten chapters within, A Process Anthology: The Decade from Hell, and the Decade that Followed Suite.

 

This film was created, in part, through the Artist in Residence Program at BAX/Brooklyn Arts Exchange with support from the National Endowment for the Arts, New York State Council on the Arts, NYC Department of Cultural Affairs, the Howard Gilman Foundation and the Jerome Foundation. The work was also developed in part through New Dance Alliance’s Black Artists Space to Create Residency (curated by Angie Pittman) at Modern Accord Depot in Accord, NY.

 

Choreographic/Company Director: @jcruisem

Creative Director/Videographer/Lead Editor: @t

Choreographic/Video Artists: Shanice Mason, Adrianne Ansely, Thomas Tyger Moore, Tabitha Kelly

Music Production/Drummer/Choreographic Artist: Isaiah Jones

Tech Design: Michael Combs

Creative Asst./Guest Artists: Tj Jacobs

Guest Dance Artist: Steven Vilsaint, Reggie Mebane

Editors: Lester Nue Nue Matthews, Johnnie Cruise Mercer

Music by Jekayln Carr, Tye Tribbett & G.A, Kirk Franklin, Donald Lawrence & The Tri-City Singers Featuring an Original Composition by Guest Music Artist Young Denzel

Poster Design: Amanda Barnes

Icon Design: Corbin Gravers, Hannah Lazarte

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DISCLAIMER: In addition to my work on InfiniteBody, I serve, at Gibney, as Senior Director of Artist Development and Curation and Editorial Director. The postings on this site are my own and do not necessarily reflect the views, strategies or opinions of Gibney.

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Join me for "Centering Our Power" workshop for BIPOC

 

 

CENTERING OUR POWER

a drop-in workshop for BIPOC

 

via freeskewl 

 

Saturday, February 20, 2021

12pm EST (9am PST)

 

Join our BIPOC Zoom "circle" for an active meditation practice to center and ground you (and all of us) in expansive power. Come as you are and leave with the awareness of all that you are. We will work with practices that sense and move personal and transpersonal energies.

 

Bring whatever you love to have near you to support this self-care--a journal, divination cards, crystals, shells, stones, sacred images, essential oils, stuffed toys, family/ancestor photos, what have you.

 

This is a seated visualization but, if you like, feel free to move with it. You may turn your camera on or off as you prefer at any time.

 

Please respect this circle as BIPOC space.

Accessibility: Closed captioning will be available through Rev Live Captioning

 

No payment required!
Donations welcome: Venmo: @Eva-YaaAsantewaa 

Zoom link: zoom.us/j/3093774924

Zoom password: 640262

 

Eva Yaa Asantewaa (she), native New Yorker of Barbadian-immigrant heritage, works as Senior Director of Artist Development and Curation as well as Editorial Director at Gibney. A veteran arts writer (since 1976), educator and curator, Ms. Yaa Asantewaa won the 2017 Bessie Award for Outstanding Service to the Field of Dance. She blogs on InfiniteBody and edits Imagining: A Gibney Journal. In 2016, for Danspace Project’s Lost and Found platform, Eva created the skeleton architecture, or the future of our worlds, an evening of group improvisation featuring 21 Black women and gender-nonconforming performers. Her cast received a 2017 Bessie for Outstanding Performer. Eva is founder of Black Curators in Dance and Performance. She is also a Tarot counselor with forty-plus years of experience.

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DISCLAIMER: In addition to my work on InfiniteBody, I serve, at Gibney, as Senior Director of Curation and Editorial Director. The postings on this site are my own and do not necessarily reflect the views, strategies or opinions of Gibney.

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