In this episode, I had the pleasure of interviewing dancer and choreographer Lela Aisha Jones, whose work infuses her movement with the intellectual and movement traditions of the African diaspora. Find out what led her to her unique and multifaceted form of expression, her favorite recipes, what it means to be the archivist of the body, and more– all while she’s getting ready to teach class! Join us and tune in.
Lela Aisha Jones is a movement performance artist that intertwines personal history, diasporic movement, and social commentary. The foundation of her work is the individual and collective lived experiences of blackness as archived in and excavated from the body through dance. As the founder of her creative home FlyGround she directs her own artistic projects, the Dancing for Justice Philadelphia Initiative, and Requisite Movers Program and Performances. Lela is a 2016 Pew Fellow and also a member of the inaugural 2015 Innovative Cultural TheAdvocacy Fellowship program.
To follow Lela Aisha Jones’ work, the initiatives she’s leading, or to watch her performances visit her website at http://www.flygroundera.com, to be included on her mailing list please email her at flyground@gmail.com
Interested in the daance artists, companies, and projects Lela mentions on the show? Click these links!
- Dancing for Justice (video)
- Dancing for Justice (facebook)
- Margo Blake
- Kulu Mele
- Urban Bush Women
- The People’s Institute For Survival and Beyond
- Deneane Richburg
- Nia Love,
- Marjani Forte
- Dorothy Wilkie
- Onye Ozuzu
- Rize
- Onye Ozuzu
- Guinea Fare
- Sambada
Books To Read:
- M Jaqui Alexander’s Pedagogies of Crossing
Artists to check out:
- Leslie Zakiya Cornish
- Jorge Mayet
Favorite resource to rely on:
- Egusi Stew
The post Ep 2 Dancer and Choreographer Lela Aisha Jones appeared first on Contemporary Black Canvas.