"WILD: Act 1"

February 25, 2021

Emmy-Nominated Choreographer Jeremy McQueen’s Black Iris Project Presents

WILD: Act 1

The Second Installment Of A Groundbreaking New Feature Length Dance Film Exploring Systemic Racism and Injustices Through the Real-life Accounts Of Youth Embroiled in the Justice System

Premiering Exclusively on BronxNet Television to the Bronx Community Beginning Saturday, March 13th

World Premiere on Monday, March 15th

Elijah Lancaster in “WILD: Act 1”, photo by Matthew Murphy.

Celebrated Emmy-nominated choreographer Jeremy McQueen today announced the world premiere of the second installment of his groundbreaking new ballet and four-part dance film entitled WILD to be presented under his Black Iris Project. Jeremy McQueen’s Black Iris Project, the only ballet collaborative of its kind in the country dedicated to telling stories about the Black experience and to providing a platform and safe haven for Black artists, celebrates its fifth anniversary this month. With social justice issues dominating the current national conversation, WILD explores systemic racism and injustice through the real-life accounts of youth who have grown up in juvenile detention centers around the country. The second installment of the four parts will premiere exclusively on BronxNet Television to the Bronx community beginning Saturday, March 13th. The world premiere of WILD: Act 1 will stream exclusively on Vimeo On Demand from Monday, March 15th though Sunday, April 11th. Visit www.blackirisproject.org/wild beginning March 15th to purchase a ticket. Additional parts of “WILD” will debut in the Spring and Summer of 2021.

Click here to watch “WILD: Overture”

Inspired by Maurice Sendak’s classic children’s novel Where the Wild Things Are, WILD follows the journey of several young men as they struggle to break free from the systemic injustices that permeate Black and Brown communities. Using physical movement to illustrate and honor the history of Black bodies moving through space while encountering oppression, this cutting-edge contemporary ballet will incorporate poetry, reflective journal entries, visual art, and original music, WILD transforms the young men’s personal stories into an artistic dance work which is intended to be a reclaiming of time, unity, space, and Black culture.

The second installment, titled WILD: Act 1, traces the journey of a young man celebrating his 14th birthday behind bars, explores the effects of isolation and imprisonment on childhood development. McQueen was deeply moved upon seeing a photograph by Richard Ross at the Equal Justice Initiative’s Legacy Museum in Montgomery, Alabama. WILD: Act 1 is also inspired by and features Ross’ award-winning book, Juvenile-in-Justice , a collection of images, interviews, audio documents, and texts created over a dozen years, at 300 sites in 35 states, drawn from the lives of more than 1,000 kids. Ross’ work turns a lens on the placement and treatment of American juveniles housed by law in facilities that treat, confine, punish, assist and, occasionally, harm them.

Click here to learn more about the collaborators

Rehearsed both on Zoom and safely in person, as part of a two-week “bubble” residency at Vineyard Arts Project in Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts, WILD: Act 1 is filmed and edited by ongoing Black Iris Project collaborator and award-winning cinematographer Colton Williams/Three Strikes Inc. “Act 1” is led by dancer Elijah Lancaster (Ailey II) with additional performances by Fana Tesfagiorgis (formerly of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater), Quaba Ernest, Derick McKoy, Jr. (Nimbus Dance) and Eric Parra (Limón Dance Company). The soundtrack for “WILD: Act 1”, presented in a mixtape-like format, features original works composed by internationally acclaimed singer/songwriter morgxn, actor & former Hamilton cast member Phillip Johnson Richardson (Phil.), R&B artist Brittany Campbell, sound design artist Mauricio Escamilla, and Seattle, Washington based composer Chari Glogovac-Smith. “Act 1” also features illustrations by Aria Feliciano and projection design by Yale School of Drama graduate Brittany Bland.

McQueen, a recently named 2020 Soros Justice Fellow from Open Society Foundations recipient, is the first choreographer to receive the highly coveted fellowship since its inception in 1997. McQueen hopes WILD will encourage and inspire youth of color to pursue the arts, movement and music as an expressive outlet as well as means for educating audiences about how Black history relates to the modern Black journey.

“Since its inception in 2016, BIP has been committed to telling Black narratives through ballet and to using art as a mirror to reflect the times and consistently intertwine themes of social justice in everything we do. As someone who has worked to break through many doors in the world of dance, particularly ballet, I feel it is our duty as artists to be a catalyst for those that are unheard, unseen, and undervalued. I am committed to, now more than ever, dismantling those barriers through my art,” McQueen stated. “This fervent effort stems from the need to address issues currently plaguing our nation from civil unrest to systemic oppression to the societal ripple effects of COVID-19. In order for us to heal as a society, we have to expose the wounds that have historically been overlooked. With WILD specifically - which I view as a tough work centered around healing - we wanted to continue to uplift diversified voices while breaking down the ivory silos and pillars so that we not only have a seat at the table and our work on the table, but to ensure that the voices of the voiceless are heard and amplified.”

Set and filmed in The Bronx, New York, WILD’s first installment, Overture premiered in November 2020 and featured dancers Shawn Lesniak (Paul Taylor Dance Company), AJ Libert (Sidra Bell Dance New York), and DaMond Garner (Parson Dance Company). The films original score included musical contributions from singer/ songwriter Morgxn, Jazz composer and bassist Amina Scott, hip hop artists Wes Period & Shmuck the Loyal, actor & former Hamilton cast member Phillip Johnson Richardson (Phil.), popular singer/songwriter Josh Dean and with original poetry by emerging New York City poet Gabriel Ramirez.

Fana Tesfagiorgis & Elijah Lancaster in “WILD: Act 1”, photo by Matthew Murphy.

WILD: Act 1 is co-commissioned by Open Society Foundations, Rockefeller Brothers Fund, CUNY Dance Initiative and the Gerald W. Lynch Theater at John Jay College, with additional support from New Music USA , Dance/NYC’s Coronavirus Dance Relief Fund & Dance Advancement Fund, Howard Gilman Foundation, and The Black Iris Project’s generous seed planters.

WILD: Act 1 will first premiere exclusively on BronxNet Television - the not-for-profit 501c3 television network for the people of the Bronx - beginning Monday, March 13th. The film will have its world premiere on Monday, March 15th though Sunday, April 4th via www.blackirisproject.org/wild.

Click here to download our one sheeter.

Funding Credits

“WILD: Overture” is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council and the Bronx Council on the Arts.

Major support for “WILD” has been provided by Open Society Foundations

“WILD: Act 1” is co-commissioned by the Rockefeller Brothers Fund

“WILD: Act I” is co-commissioned by the CUNY Dance Initiative (CDI) and the Gerald W. Lynch Theater at John Jay College, with support from The Howard Gilman Foundation, The Mertz Gilmore Foundation, Jerome Robbins Foundation, the SHS Foundation, the Harkness Foundation for Dance, and Dance/NYC’s New York City Dance Rehearsal Space Subsidy Program, made possible by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. CDI is produced by The Kupferberg Center for the Arts at Queens College.

“WILD” is supported by New Music USA, made possible by annual program support and/or endowment gifts from Mary Flagler Cary Charitable Trust, Helen F. Whitaker Fund, The Aaron Copland Fund for Music, Inc., New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, Howard Gilman Foundation.

“WILD” is supported by Dance/NYC’s Coronavirus Dance Relief Fund & the Dance Advancement Fund, made possible by the Ford Foundation.

“WILD: Overture” was supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council and the Bronx Council on the Arts.

“WILD: Overture” was made possible with funds from the Decentralization Program, a regrant program of the New York State Council on the Arts, with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo and the New York State Legislature, and administered by the Bronx Council on the Arts.

Inaugural "AMP" Choreographers

January 21, 2021

Jeremy McQueen’s Black Iris Project

is proud to announce the inaugural recipients of

AMP

a choreography commissioning project providing emerging Black choreographic voices an opportunity to hone and showcase their talents through the creation of an original dance film.

The Black Iris Project is proud to announce the inaugural recipients of “AMP” a choreography commissioning project which will provide emerging Black choreographic voices an opportunity to hone and showcase their talents through the creation of an original dance film. As a Black choreographer who understands what limited opportunities exist exclusively for those like himself, Black Iris Project founder Jeremy McQueen aims to use his platform to uplift and illuminate up-and-coming Black talent.

“Our community is being disproportionately affected inside and outside of the arts sector, and it’s more important than ever that we fortify ourselves against these challenges by working together and elevating each other’s voices,” shares McQueen.

Kayla Collymore and Christian Warner were selected from an open call pool of applicants from across the United States to showcase their talents through our national platform, as the Opening Acts for our March 2021 virtual performances of “WILD: Act 1”. The choreographers will each receive a $500 honorarium, rental equipment, 10 hours of editing support, and 1-on-1 mentorship from J. McQueen to help them create a brief, ballet-based masterpiece (10 mins or less) rooted in Black history or the Black experience.

Kayla Collymore, a New Jersey native, graduated (Summa Cum Laude) from Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University with a BFA in Dance. Kayla has performed with several dance companies including METdance Company(Texas, USA), Hou Ying Dance Theater (Beijing, China), Brian Brooks Moving Company (New York, USA) and Stephen Petronio Company (apprentice). In addition to performing in Beijing she taught numerous local dance classes and founded the dance department at Limai International English School. Her professional experience ranges into Dance for Film, guest artist residencies, and hosting master classes. She is an alumna of Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival and was voted 2017’s “Top 25 to Watch” by Dance Magazine. Kayla recently completed an 18 month international tour with Matthew Bourne’s Swan Lake and is currently based in Houston, Texas as a free lance performer, dance educator, yoga instructor, and movement designer.

Christian A Warner is a New York based multi-disciplinary artist with a career that spans over dance, musical theatre, and film. He most recently joined the ranks of Boca Tuya (Omar Roman de Jesus’) contemporary dance company after completing a three year commitment with TU Dance (Saint Paul, MN) in which he not only performed concert dance works by artists such as Alvin Ailey and Kyle Abraham, he was also a founding dancer in “Come Through” - an evening length collaboration with the Grammy-award winning band Bon Iver. Christian also provided background vocals for the recent Bon Iver album “i,i” for the track “Naeem.” Other dance credits include repertoire acquired by Kevin Iega Jeff and Gary Abbott, Kyle Abraham, Gioconda Barbuto, Marcus J. Willis, Stefanie Batten Bland, Aszure Barton, Troy Powell, Sonya Tayeh, Dwight Rhoden, and Luke Murphy. His musical theatre credits include productions such as Disney’s The Lion King (Broadway and Nat. Touring productions), Oliver! The Musical (National Tour), and Hairspray (Regional/Houston, TX). His choreographic credits include musicals such as Working and Ragtime as well as residencies with BAK Middle School, HSPVA, and most recently TX State University, TU Dance, and James Madison University.

Jeremy McQueen’s Black Iris Project, photo by Matthew Murphy

About The Black Iris Project

Founded by choreographer Jeremy McQueen in 2016, The Black Iris (BIP) is a ballet collaborative and education vehicle which creates new, relevant classical and contemporary ballet works that celebrate diversity and Black history. Based in New York City, the project hosts a team of predominantly artists of color delivering cross-disciplinary and original works. Championing individuality, the collaborative harnesses the Black inherent creative spirit.

McQueen was inspired during a period when his mother was battling breast cancer. Upon a trip to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, he fell in love with Georgia O'Keeffe's painting, "Black Iris III" (1926). Struck by the beauty, his mother's resilience, and the work of the many Black women who helped raise him, Jeremy began creating his first en pointe ballet. "Black Iris" came to life at Joffrey Ballet in March 2013, and served as a catalyst to new ideas on diversifying the dialogue within classical ballet.

Jeremy McQueen’s Black Iris Project held its debut season in July, 2016 in New York City at New York Live Arts with three original ballet works rooted in the Black culture and history, highlighting a cast of predominantly Black dancers from world-renowned ballet companies.

In April 2017, The BIP made its John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts debut (at the personal invitation of American Ballet Theatre ballerina Misty Copeland) performing MADIBA, a ballet McQueen created based on the life of Nelson Mandela, as part of the Misty Copeland and Justin Peck curated Ballet Across America festival. MADIBA has become one of the collaborative’s most popular works and was recently presented by City Parks Foundation’s SummerStage in celebration of the 100th anniversary of Nelson Mandela’s birth.

In 2019, McQueen was commissioned by the Ford Foundation to create “The Storm” an original ballet that centers on the disruption caused by tumultuous hurricanes that have taken place in the United States over the last fifteen years and the Middle Passage. “The Storm” had its world premiere on August 16, 2019 at the Miller Outdoor Theatre in Houston, Texas as part of a headlining Black Iris Project program and was named one of Pointe Magazine’s Standout Performances of 2019, Audience Favorite.

The ballets that McQueen choreographs for The Black Iris Project are rooted in Black history and community, bringing inadequately-represented stories to the public attention through an art form that has only recently begun to expand outside its privileged past. His works push the boundaries of the ballet world, as they highlight the personal narratives of significant Black public figures as well as extraordinary individuals amongst the general public who navigate a world that is prejudiced against and dangerous for them. The Black Iris Project’s vision is to encourage and inspire youth of color to pursue art, movement and music as an expressive outlet and means for collective healing, as well as educating audiences about how Black history relates to the modern Black journey.

"WILD" Collaborators & Performers

November 9, 2020

Jeremy McQueen is an award-winning choreographer, dedicated to story-telling rooted in experience and social engagement. His work aims to create spaces of comfort, solace, and connection through reflection—a sharing of observations of what is going on around him.

Born and raised in San Diego, California, McQueen is a 2008 graduate of The Ailey School/ Fordham University, B.F.A. in dance program and has also trained in the schools of American Ballet Theatre, San Francisco Ballet, and Alonzo King’s LINES Ballet.

McQueen is a 2020 Emmy® Award-nominated director/choreographer, a 2019 recipient of the Bronx Council of the Arts’ BRIO (Bronx Recognizes Its Own) Award, a 2013 recipient of the Joffrey Ballet of Chicago’s Choreographers of Color Award [Winning Works] and two-time finalist of the Capezio Award for Choreographic Excellence (2012 & 2013). McQueen was recently named a 2020 recipient of the Soros Justice Fellowship from Open Society Foundations, and is the only choreographer to receive the fellowship since the fellowship’s inception in 1997.

McQueen has performed in Broadway's Wicked and The Color Purple, the Radio City Christmas Spectacular, and numerous Metropolitan Opera productions. McQueen cites two influential instructors as a source for his work and creative energy. From Donald Robinson, McQueen learned his guiding principle of discipline, doing what you know you’re supposed to do even when no one is there to make sure you do it. At a time when McQueen was struggling to make his way as a dancer, Kazuko Hirabayashi encouraged him to choreograph about it. It is in the craft of story-telling and making a way for yourself through discipline and focus that McQueen was led to start The Black Iris Project, a space for like-minded artists to reflect their experiences.

McQueen is the founding artistic director and choreographer of The Black Iris Project. Jeremy McQueen and his Black Iris Project have had featured articles and profiles in The New York Times, New Yorker, Out Magazine, Elle Magazine, Washington Post, Ebony Magazine, The Root, Pointe Magazine, BroadwayWorld, AfroPunk, Huffington Post, A Plus, Dance Magazine, Talks at Google, NY1, San Diego Union Tribune, Houston Chronicle, among other publications.

Colton Williams is a Filmmaker and Creative Director, currently based in New York and Los Angeles. His craft is built from solving problems and always pushing the script–attempting something different. Much of his work is informed by experience; with his default lens seeking a ‘moment after the moment,’ shooting the model after the flash, or the artist when the performance ends. Most of Colton’s work is based in fashion and non-fiction performative works, with the occasional scripted narrative sprinkled in.

In 2018, Colton founded Three Strikes Inc. Servicing both film and photography, the agency has allowed for there to be not only a diversity of thought and craftsmanship, but a collection of trusted creatives, filmmakers and designers. Their clients have included P&G, Amazon, Oribe, Ogilvy, American Express, Tweezerman, Revlon and Cadillac.

Brittany Bland is a storyteller who has dedicated her life to the proliferation of empathy. As a projection designer for the stage, she has designed for theater, dance, and opera. Her work as a video artist often explores the ideas of legacy, memory, and empathy. Brittany is interested in how emerging media and technology can elevate those concepts and experiences. Originally from Atlanta GA, she holds a BA in Technical Theater and Production from Catawba College and MFA in Design from the Yale School of Drama.
Her recent design credits include Cuttin Up (Classical Theater of Harlem), Rage (Quinnipiac University), Florencia en el Amazonas (Shubert Theater), Alice (Yale University Theater), Black History Museum (Here Arts Center), Twelfth Night (Yale Repertory Theater).

Los Angeles R&B artist, animator, actress, and activist Brittany Campbell has released a powerful protest anthem inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement, “Matter.” Written after an intense conversation with a friend whose parents’ store was destroyed in the protests, Campbell also illustrated the video herself with striking animation - addressing deep-rooted issues over a poignant refrain: “We wanna breathe again.” She hopes it’ll inspire support for people and organizations involved in the fight, like Abundant Beginnings and Sista Afya Community Mental Wellness. Known for her roles in Broadway productions such as Hamilton to Spike Lee's She's Gotta Have It remake on Netflix, Campbell is also in the band Mermaid with girlfriend Candace Quarrels, who were recently featured on NPR’s Tiny Desk Top Shelf, curated by Alabama Shakes’ Brittany Howard.

Campbell explains, “I was having a lot of difficult conversations with people that I hold close to my heart. I left many of these exchanges knowing something was missed or left unsaid. I thought, why is the statement ‘Black Lives Matter’ even up for debate? Why is it viewed as a political statement instead of fact? I wrote ‘Matter’ to address everyone. To encourage introspection and to keep peeling back the layers of ourselves.”

“I know there are a plethora of causes we can be donating our money to in the name BLM,” she continues. “I feel particularly excited about these organizations. Abundant Beginnings is an org dedicated to educating youths in social and environmental justice. Sista Afya provides resources to black women in order to sustain mental wellness and community. What I like about both of these, is that they are building towards a healthier and sustainable future.”

Joining the Metropolitan Opera at an early age, Campbell went on to grace Broadway stages in productions such as Hamilton, where she met girlfriend Candace Quarrels and formed R&B folk duo Mermaid - whose upcoming debut album showcases production by Matt Otto (Solange, Moses Sumney) and Sam Hoffman (Mereba). Campbell's own debut album Stay Gold was self-released in 2018, showing off her arsenal of emotion-invoking lyrics and vocals. Campbell’s creative passions also led her to become a self taught animator, who apart from animating her own videos, has animated videos for the likes of supermodel Shaun Ross, who tapped her to animate a video for his debut single "Symmetry."

Josh Dean is carving out a unique lane for himself at the intersection of art and music. He has been groomed under the tutelage of multi-talented artist and actor Janelle Monáe and Wondaland Records, where he prepared visuals for the collective as an art director.

His big break as a singer-songwriter came when Monáe accidentally discovered his raw musical talent after he left his vocals on a Jidenna demo when learning how to engineer his own vocals. Jidenna later enlisted Dean to contribute vocals for his GRAMMY-nominated song, “Classic Man,” featured in the Oscar winning film, Moonlight. Monáe also recruited Dean as a writer for “I Got the Juice” and “Don’t Judge Me,” off of her GRAMMY-nominated album of the year “Dirty Computer.”

In March 2019 Josh Dean debuted the EP, Dear BlackSheepe with LA Reid’s record label, HITCO. It since has been praised by Billboard for its innovation and breakthrough sound. Dean’s latest “IMPATIENT” is his first release as an independent artist under his imprint BLCKSHPE Recording Co. and is available on all major streaming platforms.With plans to release more music and art in 2021, Josh Dean is certainly forging his way as a rising star to watch with talent to match!

Khalid Dunton was born and raised in Washington, DC/ Maryland. He began his dance training at Ngoma Dance theatre at the age of 18 and continued his training at Montclair State University where he graduated with a BFA in Dance and a minor in Business. He has had the privilege of performing works by Martha Graham, Stacey Tookey, Bill T. Jones, Danial Shapiro and Joanie Smith, Maxine Steinman, Christian Von Howard, Earl Mosley, Daniel Padierna. Khalid was also a backup dancer for numerous gospel artist such as Tye Tribbett, Mary Mary, and many more. Khalid has performed on numerous platforms like the Joyce Theater, Alexander Kasser Theater, Bryant Park, and New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC).

Quaba Venza Ernest born and raised in Brooklyn, New York. He began his dance training at Dance Theatre of Harlem under the direction of Arthur Mitchell & Robert Garland. After attending Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music And Art & Performing Arts, he later went on to study dance at State University of New York at Purchase College Conservatory of Dance. There he selected as a recipient of an Adopt-A-Dancer Scholarship. He has danced in works by Kimberly Bartosik, George Balanchine, Ronald K. Brown, Sidra Bell, Norbert De La Cruz lll, Sharon Eyal, Johan Inger, Ana Maria Lucaciu, Ohad Naharin, Crystal Pite, Jerome Robbins, Ted Shawn, Medhi Walerski and Doug Varone. He has studied at Alonzo King Lines Ballet, Doug Varone & Dancers, Eastman, Jacob’s Pillow, and Springboard Danse Montreal under the direction of Alexandra Wells. Quaba is a recipient of the 2019 Thayer Fellowship in the Arts and was a member Ballet BC in 2019. Quaba has been featured in HBO’s Random Acts of Flyness, the NY Times for performances at BAM Fisher & Jacob’s Pillow, the aYia Music Video Directed by Salomon Ligthelm/Choreographed by Amy Gardner and has also been a featured model in JBL’s Spring Vibes Model Campaign. He has recently begun creating works for his own company Venza Dance. His piece titled “String Theory” was selected to be a part of the 2019 New Century Dance Festival & his dance film “Astomi” was selected as a winner in the 27th Quinzena de Dança de Almada – International Dance Festival (2019).

Mauricio Escamilla, MOWRI, is a sound design artist, music producer, composer, drummer, percussionist and audio engineer based in Queens, New York. Having a decade of experience composing and designing for theatre, film, commercial, and live music performance, MOWRI thrives within collaboration and uniquely creative settings and applications. mescamilla.com

Aria Feliciano is a 26 year old Bronx-born illustrator and animator, who currently resides in Puerto Rico. She has a passion for animation, cartoons and graphics, as well as understanding the importance and significance of how these visual mediums can be used to communicate and translate ideas in fun and approachable ways. Aria currently works for Bronxnet Television as a junior Graphic Designer, as well as a freelance artist.

DaMond LeMonte Garner, Charlotte, North Carolina native, attended Point Park University where he received a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance with concentration in Modern. While at Point Park, he performed works by choreographers including Alexandra Damiani, Sidra Bell, Lucinda Childs, Lar Lubovitch, Jessica Hendricks, and Anthony Tudor alongside the Conservatory Dance Company. After graduating, DaMond danced with METdance in Houston, TX and performed works by Kyle Abraham, Christian Denice, and Kate Skarpetowska. Mr. Garner has worked as a guest artist with The Francesca Harper Project, The Black Iris Project, Texture Contemporary Ballet, and The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. As an emerging artist, DaMond works to be an advocate for all art forms, both in and out of creative spaces. DaMond is currently a company member with Parsons Dance Company.

Chari Glogovac-Smith is a composer, vocalist, instrumentalist, filmmaker, and mixed media artist. Using an evolving mixture of traditional and experimental techniques, Chari is dynamically exploring and illustrating various counterpoints between society and the human experience. Chari’s recent works have posed questions about empathy, conflict, emotional intelligence, identity, social justice, healing, listening, and time. Their examinations and integrations of mediums, materials, and methodologies have centered around their research into the theories and practices of afro-futurism, deep listening, minimalism, jazz, classical music, experimentalism, mechatronics, and machine learning.

Chari’s compositional trajectory was ignited during their MFA studies in Electronic Music and Recording Media at Mills College (2018-2020). During this time Chari had the great privilege to study with Roscoe Mitchell and Tomeka Reid of the Art Ensemble of Chicago, William Winant, Steed Cowart, Zeena Parkins, Laetitia Sonami, Molly Holm, David Bernstein, and John Bischoff. Before this time, Chari spent a decade as an underground vocalist/rapper in various touring rock and hip-hop bands, sharing stages with The Flobots, Nappy Roots, Dj-Quik, Uh-Huh Her, Sage Francis, K-Flay, and Jodeci.

Chari currently resides in Seattle, WA, and is pursuing their Ph.D. in Experimental Arts and Digital Media at the University of Washington. Chari is a proud McNair Scholar and a Nevada Art Council Fellow. Chari has worked as a commissioned composer in collaboration with The Center for the Art of Performance UCLA, The Black Iris Project, and has exhibited media works internationally.

Elijah Lancaster was born in Port Au Prince, Haiti. He began his formal dance training at the age of seven at Aspire Dance in Arkansas. He has trained on scholarship at The Ailey School and graduated from the Certificate Program. Mr. Lancaster attended summer intensives at Complexions Contemporary Ballet, Gelsey Kirkland Academy of Classical Ballet, and the Joffrey Ballet School. He has worked with choreographers Travis Wall, Fredrick Earl Mosley, Amy Hall Garner, Robert Battle, Winston Dynamite Brown, Darrell Grand Moultrie, and Troy Powell, and appeared in Alvin Ailey’s Memoria during Ailey’s 2016 and 2017 New York City Center seasons. Mr. Lancaster was also a part of the Nutcracker cast for the Houston Ballet and is currently in his first season with Ailey II.

Rayan Lecurieux-Durival is a young French Guyanese dancer who started his dance career at a very young age. He pursued his dance course in Guyana in 3 institutes, Conservatoire de Guyane EPCC, The Music and Dance School of Matoury and ADACLAM, before relocating to Paris in 2016 where he joined the Institut de Formation Rick Odums. While attending the Insitut, Rayan danced in "Jeune ballet jazz" directed by Rick ODUMS and Christelle CHINONIS, as well as the "Jeune ballet Modern" directed by Bruce Taylor and Florence MAREGALIE. Rayan also has had the opportunity to work with choreographers such as: Matthew Rushing, Freddie Moore, Kirven Douthit-Boyd, Brice Mousset, Troy Powell, Elisa Clark, Francesca Harper, Shay Bland, Yoshito Skuraba, Jennifer Muller and Bill T Jones Rayan has accompanied artists such as: Magali VÉRIN in 2016 and Saïna Manotte in 2020 on their perspective tours. In July 2018 he was selected to join “ALVIN AILEY DANCE THEATER,” where he participated in the Summer Dance Intensive in New York City and eventually left Paris to relocate to NYC. Where he has had the honor of performing with the 1st company, as well as with the “Ailey Students Performing Group” and is currently perfecting the Horton technique with the goal to teach it down the road. Rayan is currently a company member at Jennifer Muller/ The Work and Pony box dance theatre

Shawn Lesniak is from New Haven, Connecticut and began dancing at the age of seven. For most of his youth, Shawn trained in various dance techniques such as ballet, jazz, modern and tap, and he danced competitively for more than a decade. He continued his training at The Ailey School and Point Park University. He has toured both internationally and domestically as a member of Parsons Dance, and has worked with choreographers such as Trey McIntyre, Matthew Neenan, Matthew Powell and Emery LeCrone. Mr. Lesniak joined the Paul Taylor Dance Company in Winter 2019.

AJ Libert is a highly-trained, lifelong dancer from Pittsburgh, PA. He graduated from PBT’s full-time program and subsequently attended Point Park University, where he received a BFA in Modern Dance. AJ enjoys the complexities movement exploration has to offer. His love for both the natural world and his love for movement drives AJ to continue to synchronize and explore the two worlds seamlessly. AJ would like to thank his two beautiful mothers, without them he would not be where he is today.

Derick McKoy, Jr. is a graduate Glorya Kaufman BFA Scholar of the Ailey/Fordham BFA Program in Dance. Derick has performed with Nimbus Dance in Jersey City, The Black Iris Project and on the hit tv show POSE on FX. He started his official training under Luctricia Welters and after a year, joined her dance company, Jubilee Dance Theater, as an apprentice. He furthered his training at Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Arts Umbrella, BalletX, Ballet Hispanico, Springboard Danse Montreal, under scholarships, as well as NW Dance Project’s LAUNCH. Derick has performed works by Alvin Ailey, Matthew Rushing, Crystal Pite, Jiri Kylian, Nacho Duato, Annabelle Lopez Ochoa, Sharon Eyal, Alejandro Cerrudo, and others. Also, a choreographer, Mr. McKoy has presented his works around New York City and the tri-state area. He currently helms his own project dance company called McKoy Dance Project || MDP, based in Brooklyn, NY. @dmckoyy

Bio coming soon!

morgxn The world according to morgxn is one where traditional boundaries do not exist. At his core, alt/pop artist morgxn is a storyteller who navigates the expanse between everything devastating and joyous about the human condition. Through his collection of danceable, relatable and memorable songs, morgxn moves seamlessly between the alternative and pop worlds; using his soulful voice and magnetic presence to set an intoxicating, mesmerizing mood. Over the past two years, morgxn has been not-so-quietly releasing new music that has culminated in a debut album, vital, and a lush, acoustic EPvital :blue (s t r i p p e d). His work has since made festival debuts at Lollapalooza, Firefly, LaurelLive and Hangout Music Festival. He has toured extensively with artists including XAmbassadors, Phoebe Ryan, Skylar Grey, miike snow, Dreamers, Robert Delong, ARIZONA; received megawatt licensing looks (ABC, HBO, SHOWTIME, NBC, The CW, USA Networks); and has garnered high praise across the board. A re-recorded track of his song “home” featuring WALK THE MOON was released in 2018, and in 2019 reached Top 10 at alternative radio and adult alternative and has accrued upwards of over 25 million combined global streams.

Khayr Fajri Muhammad A native New Yorker, began his pre-professional training at The Harlem School of the Arts at age 11 from 2009-2014 under the direction of Aubrey Lynch II. Khayr studied dance at Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School for the Performing Arts and attended the summer intensive at the School of American Ballet, where he was invited to continue his training from 2014- 2017 as a full scholarship student. Khayr is a recent graduate and full scholarship student of Premiere Division Ballet, studying under the directorship of Nadege Hottier. Mr. Muhammad had joined Complexions Contemporary Ballet as an artist from 2018- 2021. Most recently, Khayr was a guest performer in Leslie Browne’s production of La Bayadere at The School at Steps and is a returning guest artist with Jeremy McQueen’s Black Iris Project.

Eric Parra began his dance training at Montclair State University where he graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance Performance. Eric has danced for Carolyn Dorfman Dance, Earl Mosley’s Diversity of Dance, Maxine Steinman & Dancers, Von Howard Project, Pajarillo Pinta'o, and Doug Elkins Choreography, etc among others. Eric has served as a teaching artist for NJPAC, Earl Mosley's Institute of the Arts, the José Limón Dance Foundation, and Sharron Miller's Academy for the Performing Arts. Mr. Parra is the recipient of the 2016 Martha Hill Dance Fund Young Professional Award, 2017 Linda Roberts Outstanding Senior Dance Award, and has been featured in The New York Times Arts Section (2019). Eric is currently a performing artist with the Limón Dance Company.

Wes Period is an artist, rapper, and producer from La Habra, California. He began his career working with artists such as Ye Ali and Tommy Genesis. He was previously signed to Interscope Records and collaborates with various SOFTCORE members, exercising his various artistic styles through these artistic outlets.

Marlon is a writervist. Since his decade of incarceration, he has written, created programming, lectured, organized, and advocated alongside the formerly incarcerated, victims of gun violence, womxn, immigrants, and young people. Marlon is the author of Bird Uncaged: An Abolitionist’s Freedom Song, host of the DEcarcerated Podcast, and owner of his own social impact endeavor, The Precedential Group Social Enterprises and its nonprofit arm, Be Precedential, Inc. His TED talk, “Am I not human? A call for criminal justice reform”, has amassed over 1.2 million views. As a Soros Fellow, Senior Atlantic Fellow, and Aspen Civil Society Fellow, Marlon has used his activism and pen to advocate for safer communities, reduce the footprint of law enforcement, and to amplify the work of individuals and grassroots organizations across the globe. Marlon’s writervism and DEcarcerated Podcast has allowed him to lecture and conduct workshops throughout the US, Trinidad & Tobago, South Africa, and Oxford, London.

Marlon’s bylines have appeared in USA Today, The Nation, Ebony, Essence, Gawker, The Marshall Project, The Root. Cassius.com, and Mic.com. His essays have also been published in How to Slowly Kill Yourself and Others Kiese Laymon and How We Fight White Supremacy by Kenrya Rankin & Akiba Solomon., Colin Kaepernick's Medium Series: Abolition for the People. Marlon is a soca and steelpan lover, and a Brooklyn representer.

Samora was born a mixed-race kid in the Bay Area, a hotbed of revolutionary organizing and incredible music and art that immediately seeped into his soul. He started playing music at 2 yrs old; His father played him The Delfonics, Tupac, and Bob Marley, while his mother introduced him to Nina Simone, Fela Kuti, and Pete Seeger.

He became serious about making music his life after living in Cuba studying spiritual musical traditions. He moved to NYC to study at Juilliard under master teachers Kenny Barron and Kendall Briggs; It was during this time that he also met his artistic mentor, MacArthur-winning playwright Anna Deavere Smith. This started him down the path of writing lyrics and combining film/theatre with his music in radical new ways.

With the help of these mentors, Samora eventually began to create his very own unique style, a combination of striking intimacy and carefully crafted, radically honest lyrics with lush, immersive music, maximalist visual storytelling and high levels of concept.

Samora is currently pursuing a PHD in Creative Practice and Critical Iniquiry under mentor Vijay Iyer at Harvard University.

Phillip Richardson/Phil. At just 23 years old Phillip Johnson Richardson has already established himself as a promising singer, rapper, and actor. But the journey wasn’t always easy for Phil., his mental fortitude and meteoric rise can be attributed to the perseverance gained when his family suddenly fell homeless and found themselves sleeping on a relative’s garage floor. The hardship dialed up his drive and appreciation for the arts, so he pushed himself even harder. The Charlotte-bred quadruple threat then honed his raw talents at the University of Cincinnati’s College-Conservatory of Music, where he graduated from the musical theatre program in 2018. Immediately after graduation he landed his first role in the Chicago company ensemble of sold-out musical phenomenon Hamilton, playing various characters including it’s titular persona, Alexander Hamilton. Since then, Phil has moved to New York City, where he’s developed a successful acting career, with appearances on TV shows including Chicago PD, Proven Innocent, and The Other Two and horror film Haunt. He was cast as a series regular on the new Apple TV+ show Little Voice created by Sara Bareilles and JJ Abrams. An incredible range of talent is seen across his music and best showcased in his upcoming EP ‘Different Cities’. The project features a range of musical styles, from turn up Hip-Hop tracks like “Watch Out” to softer, seductive tones, like those in his R&B piece, “One That I Want.”

Gabriel Ramirez is a Queer Afro-Latinx poet, activist, and teaching artist. Gabriel has received fellowships from The Conversation Literary Arts Festival, Palm Beach Poetry Festival, The Watering Hole, CantoMundo and was a participant of the Callaloo Writers Workshop. He has performed on Broadway at the New Amsterdam Theatre, United Nations, Lincoln Center, Apollo Theatre and other venues & universities around the nation. Gabriel has been featured in the Huffington Post, VIBE Magazine, Blavity, Upworthy, The Flama, and Remezcla. You can find his work on Youtube, and in various publications, including The Volta, Split This Rock, Winter Tangerine, Drunk in a Midnight Choir, VINYL, and in Bettering American Poetry Anthology (Bettering Books 2017), What Saves Us: Poems of Empathy and Outrage in the Age of Trump (Northwestern University Press 2019) and The Breakbeat Poets Vol. 4: LatiNEXT (Haymarket Press 2020). Follow Gabriel @RamirezPoet and RamirezPoet.com.

Jersey City native, Tamir Rios, has been a dancer for nearly 14 years of his life. He takes on a progression of personas through his art in an attempt to interpret the stories of his everyday life. Rios practices in all forms of dance but mainly focuses on his ballet and modern techniques. In 2017, Rios was offered the New Jersey Governors Award in Dance Arts from County Prep High School, where he majored in dance in the performing arts department. While overseeing dance in high school, in 2011 Rios began training at Nimbus Dance Works, where he was able to build up his techniques and understand himself better as an artist. A year later Rios earned a scholarship that benefitted him for the rest of his high school career. As a high school student, Rios had the door opened to train at Earl Mosley’s Diversity of Dance, in Kent, Connecticut.

In 2017, Rios began his studies in dance at Montclair State University. Passionate about movement exploration and the connection between the mind-body and soul, Rios is recognizable for utilizing eye contact and his physical emotions to capture the nature of his existence through dance. At MSU, Rios has trained with a handful of choreographers from Maxine Steinman, Earl Frederick Mosley, Antonio Brown, Alwin Nikolais, Christian Vonhoward, Bill T. Jones, and Stacey Tookey.

In time, Rios plans to use his everyday connections and skills to create new stories with the obstacles and challenges he comes into contact with.

Richard Ross is an artist/activist/photographer, distinguished research professor of art based in Santa Barbara, California. As the creator of Juvenile-in-Justice, his work turns a lens on the placement and treatment of American juveniles housed by law in facilities that treat, confine, punish, assist and, occasionally, harm them. Ross has been the recipient of grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Annie E. Casey Foundation, MacArthur and the Center for Cultural Innovation. Ross was awarded both Fulbright and Guggenheim Fellowships. Three books and traveling exhibitions of the work continue to see great success while Ross collaborates with juvenile justice stakeholders, using the images as a catalyst for change.

Amina Scott, born and raised in Oakland, CA, is an upright and electric bassist, composer, and arranger. Her interest in music began at an early age when her grandmother began giving her piano lessons. From then, her love and passion for music has yet to cease, playing electric bass at the age of twelve and was soon playing gigs with local bands in Oakland.

In Oakland, Amina has ties to the Oakland Public Conservatory of Music (OPCM) which was started by trombonist Angela Wellman to provide arts and music classes the Oakland community with an economical way. Through OPCM, Amina was able to take her skills to Lima, Peru to be part a of a group that represented the United States at the first Festival of Music and Dance in the African Diaspora where she played various concerts around Lima and held seminars discussing the music of the African Diaspora in the United States.

In 2012, Amina relocated to New Orleans, LA where she studied at Loyola University New Orleans under Allen Nisbet, Roland Guerin, and Ed Wise. She graduated from Loyola in 2016 with a Bachelor of Music in Music Industry Studies. In 2017, Amina began her studies at Florida State University (Tallahassee, FL) studying with Rodney Jordan, Leon Anderson, Marcus Roberts, and Bill Peterson. In 2019, she obtained her Masters in Music in jazz studies. In 2017, Amina joined the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra led by Adonis Rose. With them, she has performed at festivals such as the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, Detroit Jazz Festival, Ascona Jazz Festival (Ascona, Switzerland), and the Detroit Jazz Festival as well as with the small group, NOJO 7, performing at venues and festivals such as the St. Lucia Jazz Festival (St. Lucia) & the Exit Zero Jazz Festival (Cape May, NJ). Additionally, she also led her own quartet at the 2019 Jacksonville Jazz Festival (Jacksonville, FL).

Now based in New Orleans, Amina has performed with various artists including Steve Turre, Wessell “Warm Daddy” Anderson, Nicholas Payton, David Murray, Jamison Ross, Joanne Brackeen, Herlin Riley, Christian Scott Atunde Adjuah, and more. She has also performed with the Tallahassee Symphony Orchestra (Tallahassee, FL) and the Albany Symphony Orchestra (Albany, GA). In 2017, Amina was a fellow in the Steans Institute of Music Jazz Program (Ravinia, IL) under the direction of Rufus Reid, Billy Childs, and Nathan Davis. She is also a bandleader in her own right leading her quartet, her six-piece fusion band PHYRA, and the up and coming band, Noruz. Noruz has currently released two records with their most recent being The Witching Hour which can be found on all streaming services. Amina currently teaches as an adjunct professor at Loyola University New Orleans working with various ensembles and bass students within the Popular and Commercial Music program. She endorses Aguilar Amplification.

Christopher Taylor grew up in Newark, New Jersey. He started his dance training at The Ailey School when he was eleven years old. He later attended Arts High School in 2014. During his training, he attended Ailey Camp Newark’s summer program which allowed him to perform at The Apollo Theater and Lincoln Center numerous times for AAADT. After graduating in 2018 from Arts High School he attended The Ailey School’s Professional Division Program under scholarship. Christopher has choreographed while at the school, performed in music videos and other dance projects based in New York City.

Jermaine Terry began his dance training in Kissimmee, Florida, at James Dance Center. He graduated cum laude with a BFA in dance performance from the University of South Florida, where he received scholarships for excellence in performance and choreography. He also received the Distinguished Alumnus Award from USF for outstanding service to the arts. Mr. Terry was a scholarship student at The Ailey School and a member of Ailey II. He has performed with Buglisi Dance Theatre, Arch Dance, Dance Iquail, Philadanco and as a guest artist on the television show So You Think You Can Dance. He has designed costumes for New York City Ballet, Ailey II, Philadanco, Dance Iquail and The Black Iris Project, to name a few. His eveningwear designs have been in Essence online as well as photographed by the late Bill Cunningham for the style section of The New York Times. Mr. Terry joined the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in 2010. Instagram: @Jerms83.

Shmuck the Loyal is an experimental music producer based out of Nashville, TN. His idealistic approach to production is driven by the pursuance of maximalism and the deeper, emotive side of electronica. Shmuck has been featured by NoisePRN, CULTR, DLNW music, and EDMSauce.

Fana Tesfagiorgis is a graduate of the Ailey/Fordham BFA Program in Dance, with a minor in journalism. She began training at Ballet Madison, under the direction of Charmaine Ristow, and attended Interlochen Arts Academy. Ms. Tesfagiorgis also trained at summer and winter intensives at Earl Mosley’s Institute of the Arts, Alonzo King LINES Ballet, and Lar Lubovitch Dance Company. Professionally, she has danced with The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Ailey II, The Black Iris Project, Ebony Williams and Company, Brian Harlan Brooks, and Nimbus Dance Works. Fana has been a rehearsal assistant for Hope Boykin, Clifton Brown, Earl Mosley, Pedro Ruiz, Matthew Rushing, and Sylvia Waters. Recently, she appeared in the opening of the 73rd Annual Tony Awards. Fana is currently performing in the First National Tour of My Fair Lady. Instagram: @fanaminea

TheUltraVisitor (Aaron C. Harmon, in collaboration with morgxn, Schmuck The Loyal & Wes Period) is the freaky brainchild of softcore’s Aaron C. Harmon. While Aaron writes and produces everything from pop to film score, TheUltraVisitor’s alternative identity allows him to explore the bounds of music-creation and surpass them without the restraint of expectation.

"WILD: Overture"

November 9, 2020

Emmy-Nominated Choreographer Jeremy McQueen’s Black Iris Project Presents

WILD

A Groundbreaking New Feature Length Dance Film Exploring Systemic Racism and Injustices Through the Real-life Accounts Of New York City Youth Embroiled in the Justice System

WILD will be Divided into Four Parts with

Part One – “Overture” Premiering Exclusively on BronxNet Television to The Bronx Community Beginning Monday, November 9th

World Premiere on Thursday, November 12th

DaMond Garner in “WILD: Overture”, photo by Argenis Apolinario

Celebrated Emmy-nominated choreographer Jeremy McQueen announced the world premiere of a groundbreaking new ballet and feature length dance film entitled “WILD” to be presented under his Black Iris Project, the only ballet collaborative of its kind in the country dedicated to telling stories about the Black experience and to providing a platform and safe haven for Black artists. With social justice issues dominating the current national conversation, “WILD” explores systemic racism and injustice through the real-life accounts of New York City youth who have grown up in juvenile detention centers throughout the city. The ballet will be broken up into four parts with the first part- “Overture” - premiering exclusively on BronxNet Television to the Bronx community beginning Monday, November 9th. The world premiere will take place on Thursday, November 12th via www.blackirisproject.org. The additional parts of “WILD” will debut in Winter/Spring/Summer, 2021.

Click here to watch “WILD: Overture”

Inspired by Maurice Sendak’s classic children’s novel Where the Wild Things Are, “WILD” follows the journey of several young men as they struggle to break free from the systemic injustices that permeate Black and Brown communities. Using physical movement to illustrate and honor the history of Black bodies moving through space while encountering oppression, this cutting-edge contemporary ballet will incorporate poetry, reflective journal entries, visual art, and original music, transforming the young men’s personal stories into an artistic dance work intended to be a reclaiming of time, unity, space, and Black culture. Additionally, McQueen - in collaboration with various juvenile justice organizations including Exalt - will work with both currently and previously incarcerated young men throughout New York City over the course of the next year to create a series of virtual workshops, harnessing their creativity and providing opportunities to creatively express themselves through artistic mediums and will be performed by a number of professional male dancers.

Colton Williams & Jeremy McQueen, photo by Argenis Apolinario

Filmed and edited by ongoing Black Iris Project collaborator Colton Williams, “Overture” features dancers Shawn Lesniak (Paul Taylor Dance Company), AJ Libert (Sidra Bell Dance New York), DaMond Garner (Parson Dance Company). With an original score composed by internationally acclaimed singer/ songwriter Morgxn and Jazz composer and bassist Amina Scott , the music for “WILD: Overture“ will be presented in a mixtape- like format and will include additional contributions from: hip hop artists Wes Period & Shmuck the Loyal; actor & former Hamilton cast member Phillip Johnson Richardson (Phil.), popular singer/songwriter Josh Dean with original poetry by emerging New York City poet Gabriel Ramirez.

Click here to learn more about “WILD”’s collaborators

McQueen, who was recently named a 2020 Soros Justice Fellowship from Open Society Foundations and is the only choreographer to receive this fellowship since its inception in 1997, hopes that “WILD” will encourage and inspire youth of color to pursue the arts, movement and music as an expressive outlet as well as educate audiences about how Black history relates to the modern Black journey.

“Since its inception in 2016, at the core of BIP’s DNA, has been our commitment to telling Black narratives through ballet using the art as a mirror to reflect the times and consistently intertwine themes of social justice in everything that we do. As someone who has worked to break through many doors in the world of dance, particularly ballet, I feel it is our duty as artists to be a catalyst for those that are unheard, unseen, and undervalued and I am committed to, now more than ever, dismantling those barriers through my art,” said McQueen. “This fervent effort stems from the need to address issues currently plaguing our nation from civil unrest to systemic oppression to the societal ripple effects of COVID-19. In order for us to heal as a society, we have to expose the wounds that have historically been overlooked. With “WILD” specifically - which I view as a tough work centered around healing - we wanted to continue to uplift diversified voices while breaking down the ivory silos and pillars so that we not only have a seat at the table and our work on the table, but so that we ensure that the voices of the voiceless are heard and amplified.”

AJ Libert in “WILD: Overture”, photo by Argenis Apolinario

Each of the WILD’s four parts will include different opportunities for audience engagement, including plans to broadcast the film on various television stations around the country, digital experiences including a socially distant site-specific performance in The Bronx.

With WILD being filmed in the Bronx and the borough serving as its own character in the piece, the Bronx-based McQueen wanted to ensure that his community would have access to the film and “WILD: Overture” will first premiere exclusively on BronxNet Television - the not-for-profit 501c3 television network for the people of the Bronx - beginning Monday, November 9th. The film will have its world premiere on Thursday, November 12th via www.blackirisproject.org.

Funding Credits

“WILD: Overture” is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council and the Bronx Council on the Arts.

“WILD: Overture” is made possible with funds from the Decentralization Program, a regrant program of the New York State Council on the Arts, with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo and the New York State Legislature, and administered by the Bronx Council on the Arts.

“WILD” is supported by Dance NYC’s Coronavirus Dance Relief Fund & The Dance Advancement Fund, made possible by the Ford Foundation.

The Storm Television and Digital Broadcast

August 7, 2020

BronxNet Television Broadcast & Worldwide LIVESTREAM

National Dance Day is THIS SATURDAY and though we haven’t organized a virtual version of Boogie Down Dance Day, we’ve teamed up with BronxNet television to bring you another television broadcast and livestream of “The Storm”.

Bronx, New York residents will be able to view the program on BronxNet channel 68 (Optimum) & 2134 (FiOS) at 8:30 A.M., 12:30 P.M. and 9 P.M. (Eastern Time). If you’re not in The Bronx you can simultaneously livestream the ballet online at the previous times.

To view the program on your computer or electronic device:

Head to BronxNet.tv
Click on “WATCH” at the top of the screen
Click on “BX OMNI”
The program will automatically start at its designated time. Enjoy!

Click Here to make a Donation

Please consider making a tax-deductible donation to The Black Iris Project to help us create new Black-centric works and further sustain our artistic practice. The suggested donation for this screening is $16.19 in recognition of the year 1619 when the first enslaved Africans arrived to the United States. Thank you in advance for your support.

The Storm is an original ballet which centers on the disruption caused by tumultuous hurricanes that have taken place in the United States over the last sixteen years and the Middle Passage. Drawing inspiration from hurricane Katrina (New Orleans), Sandy (New York), Maria (Puerto Rico) and Harvey (Houston), this new ballet focuses on the stories of communities who are displaced during occurrences such as these and how they come together in the wake of tragedy. The Storm premiered on August 16, 2019 at the Miller Outdoor Theatre in Houston, Texas as part of a headlining Black Iris Project program, which featured a collection of our most popular social justice rooted works.

Named one of Pointe Magazine’s Standout Performances of 2019 (Audience Favorite)

With the support from the Ford Foundation, choreographer Jeremy McQueen spent a month in New Orleans and Houston, during the spring of 2019, conducting research, choreographic development and community engagement, including workshop and residencies in NOLA with; Dillard University, Boys and Girls Club of New Orleans, Dancing Grounds, New Orleans Center for Creative Arts (NOCCA), New Orleans School of Ballet, Kelly School of Dance and KM Dance Project.

““When the storms of life are raging, how do you weather the storm? That’s what gave me the overall artistic theme. How do we prevail when things start to weigh us down,””

— Jeremy McQueen

The Storm has been generously co-commissioned by the Ford Foundation, with additional developmental support provided by the Bronx Council on the Arts, Vineyard Arts Project, New Orleans Center for Creative Arts, METdance, and a 2019-20 CUNY Dance Initiative residency at Lehman College. To invite the voices of those who have been directly affected by Hurricane Harvey on a greater level, McQueen invited six Houston local professionals to perform in the ballet.

Click image to read our feature in the “Houston Press”

Click image to read our feature in the “Houston Chronicle”

Twenty-five minutes in length, The Storm, performed to Sergei Rachmaninoff’s haunting orchestral composition “Isle of the Dead”, features direction, choreography and costume design by Black Iris Project founder Jeremy McQueen, lighting design by award-winning designer Alan C. Edwards, with additional costume and scenic design by Mondo Morales. Composed in 1908 and rarely choreographed to, “Isle of the Dead” is an orchestral work inspired by a painting of the same name by visual artist Arnold Böcklin, which is currently on display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. McQueen’s The Storm stars freelance ballet dancers Jenna Marie (formerly of Ballet Hispanico) and Kelly Marsh IV (formerly of Complexions Contemporary Ballet).

Sinclair Davis & Jeremy McQueen’s Black Iris Project in The Storm, photo by Amitava Sarkar — Sinclair Davis & Jeremy McQueen’s Black Iris Project in *The Storm*, photo by Amitava Sarkar

The Storm’s BronxNet television broadcast and digital broadcast is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council and the Bronx Council on the Arts. And by Dance NYC’s Coronavirus Dance Relief Fund & The Dance Advancement Fund, made possible by the Ford Foundation.

Click here to watch THE BIP's CW39 Houston news segment

BronxNet is the not-for-profit 501c3 television network of the people of the Bronx, providing public services including award winning local TV programming, media training, access to technology, studios, and channels, with workforce development opportunities for middle school, high school and college students. The BronxNet studios are located on the beautiful campus of Lehman College and in the East Bronx at Mercy College in the Hutch Metro Center. BronxNet's newest studio is in the South Bronx as part of La Central, at the Hub. BronxNet programming helps connect the Bronx to the World, while our training programs and partnerships with organizations, local leaders, and agencies are a part of community development through media.

Strike Out: Valiant efforts to control the Black voice

July 17, 2020

The world must be mindful of how we amplify melanated voices. I woke up this morning excited to share an article that Dance Magazine has written about me and my collaborative, The Black Iris Project. Instead, I am here to explain another valuable learning lesson as it pertains to media outlets who claim they want to share our stories and voices. But in reality, it turns into a prime example of efforts to control the Black voice and our honest narratives.

Dance Magazine has never once highlighted nor featured The Black Iris Project within the four years that we have been in existence. It took my personally reaching out to my college classmate, freelance writer and BIP supporter, Jen Peters, for a change to occur. Nevertheless, I was excited to share with my community something that was written about the hard work I have been doing with my collaborative. I have admired and dreamed of being in Dance Magazine since childhood. I had hoped to wake up this morning and share the article with my followers, friends and family and move on with the rest of my busy schedule. But I have been utterly devastated by this situation. I find it necessary to bring all of this to your attention and to engage in these conversations so that Black artists in the future don’t have to be subjected to this type of censorship or the editing of words for the comfort of others.

Instead of providing a platform for Black writers and/or artists to freely share their experiences, Editor-in-Chief, Jennifer Stahl has contrived a space that will show performative solidarity with Black lives but will silence them just enough to appease white readers, sponsors, and make my work palpable for “younger audiences.” Plainly stated, this is unsatisfactory and wrong! You don’t get to access our work and exclude our authentic experiences and voices. Ms. Stahl shared by phone that this was not her intention and that she has recently taken action to rectify the inadequate representation of Black writers and editors in the magazine. I believe we need spaces where we can be transparent and honest about our journeys. In reality, this is a pure example of a a primarily white institution which just doesn’t understand what #amplifymelanatedvoices really means.

This is not editing, this is censorship. Upon reaching out to the writer at Dance Magazine about my confusion and disheartenment of the modifications and exclusion of my quotes, the editor quickly backtracked to rectify one of the quotes that was redacted. I am witnessing firsthand the tool of “track changes” used as a part of oppression. Maybe if there were more Black editors and writers in positions of leadership perhaps a conversation such as this wouldn’t even be needed.

In an earlier conference call with Ms. Stahl and the writer, Stahl acknowledged that the changes were in fact made by her and not Jen Peters and that in hearing of my discontent of the omission of my quote in the last sentence, it should have not been edited out ( it has since been added back to the article but was the only quote or originally written phrase that was added back in). She also expressed her reasoning retaining statements in an effort to “make the story as impactful as possible”. I shared with Jennifer that the article captured the project and its inner-workings in a way that was most impactful by people of her similar lens and demographic pedigree. Lastly, I offered a suggestion in what she can do to amplify Black voices, in an unedited fashion due to the need for those spaces to allow our words to flow freely without manipulating them to fit the white gaze.

I felt this was important to share with you at this time especially because Nelson Mandela’s life was one where people often made great attempts to “redact” or silence his voice. Nelson wrote many letters to his wife Winnie Mandela that were redacted in an attempt to silence his voice and to further oppress and suppress his unapologetically Black voice and the liberation of Black people. It is devastating to me that 20 years following the historic release of Nelson Mandela from 27 years in jail, we are continuing to redact and silence Black voices to make their words more digestible and comfortable for white viewers.

I stand firmly on words I’ve said in the unpublished version, and they are “we are UNAPOLOGETICALLY BLACK.”

(See the redacted draft here)

Warmly,

Jeremy McQueen - Founder of The Black Iris Project

MADIBA Television Broadcast & Livestream

July 13, 2020

Jeremy McQueen’s Black Iris Project celebrated Nelson Mandela’s posthumous 102nd Birthday on Saturday, July 18, 2020 with a special television broadcast & livestream of MADIBA. Presented in partnership with BronxNet television, BronxNet broadcast the previously recorded, 2016 world premiere of MADIBA. In effort to further our mission of making our artistic works accessible and affordable, BronxNet simultaneously live streamed the ballet on BronxNet’s website, BronxNet.tv, for viewers to enjoy around the world. In The Bronx, NY, BronxNet can be found on channel 68 on Optimum/ 2134 on FiOs in The Bronx.

“MADIBA” Trailer

Click here to read the New York Times feature about the MADIBA anniversary screenings.

The ballet aired on BronxNet and was simultaneously streamed on BronxNet.tv at the following dates and times:

Saturday, July 18 (Mandela Day 2020): 12:30, 4:30 and 8:30 p.m. EST

Sunday, July 19: 1:00, 5:00 and 9:00 p.m. EST

Based on the life of the humanitarian and political icon Nelson “Madiba” Mandela, MADIBA is a classical ballet that takes Mandela’s experience as an avid activist and encourages others to discover the value and purpose in their lives just as he did, despite his 27-year prison sentence. Paralleling Mandela’s teachings, MADIBA invokes the sense that each individual can and should believe that their life makes a positive difference in the world. This story—told through the intersection of movement, music, and aesthetic—works to empower any audience members who have ever felt ignored or rejected by society to reclaim their hope and create change.

The Black Iris Project, personally selected by guest curator and American Ballet Theatre principal dancer Misty Copeland, to perform Jeremy McQueen’s socially-relevant classical ballet, MADIBA, at the historic John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, as part of the Ballet Across America series, in April 2017.

MADIBA elevates Black men and women by featuring Black artists in various outstanding artistic capacities. Presenting a cast of 14 dancers from world-class ballet companies. The world premiere of MADIBA was led by L.A. Dance Project’s David Adrian Freeland, Jr., as Nelson Mandela and Dance Theatre of Harlem’s Daphne M. Lee as Winnie Mandela. The ballet’s original classical score, written by award-winning composer Carman Moore, was originally commissioned by the American Composers Orchestra solely as an orchestral composition, and premiered in February 2015 at Carnegie Hall to immense accolades. Rounding out this Black cadre of artisans are Yale School of Drama alumnus Montana Levi Blanco and Alan C. Edwards as costume designer and lighting designer, respectively. Off-stage, MADIBA is comprised of an entire team of artistic collaborators who are Black men.

MADIBA’s success began in July 2016, when The Black Iris Project held a sold out preview performance and discussion, with members of the ballet's creative team, at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture moderated by arts activist Susan Fales-Hill. With generous support from the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, MADIBA was developed over the course of a year, including a 10-day developmental residency at the Rockefeller Brother’s Pocantico Estate, and premiered on July 27, 2016 within The Black Iris Project’s debut self-produced New York season at New York Live Arts. Click here to view the program from MADIBA’s premiere.

MADIBA’s BronxNet television broadcast and livestream is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council and the Bronx Council on the Arts. And by Dance NYC’s Coronavirus Dance Relief Fund & The Dance Advancement Fund, made possible by the Ford Foundation.

Learn more about Jeremy McQueen’s Black Iris Project at blackirisproject.org

"Rockettes" Revelation

June 5, 2020

It has been challenging for me to express how I am feeling, but this past week has been truly devastating. It has been so sad to see so many organizations delaying or not showing public support for Black lives and standing in solidarity with us against systemic issues such as racism, white supremacy, racial inequity, social injustice and police brutality. Therefore, in light of James Dolan’s [CEO of Madison Square Garden Company which operates the Radio City Rockettes] lack of statements made to support Black lives, along with The Rockette managements public silence in support of Black lives; I have made the executive decision to discontinue my relationship with The Rockettes as a liaison for their diversity and inclusion initiatives.

I, in good faith and Black consciousness, can no longer continue to work with an organization whose leadership's actions do not support me as a Black man. It’s important to me that our partnerships are in alignment with our morals and values. This is especially important not only because of the ongoing injustices within our country, but also because The Black Iris Project represents and celebrates Black lives through art.

My relationship with The Rockettes dates back to 2008 when I was a dancer in the ensemble of the Radio City Christmas Spectacular. I was one of 5 Black cast and crew members out of about roughly 60 people. Last year the Radio City Rockettes provided commissioning support for a new ballet I created for The Black Iris Project entitled The Storm; it traces the treacherous journey of the middle passage and hurricanes that have greatly impacted Black and Brown communities. In addition to this, my organization not only tells stories of Black lives but also impacts communities through various outreach and educational initiatives. The Black Iris Project, in partnership with the Radio City Rockettes, hosted Black Iris Project night at the Radio City Christmas Spectacular, which brought 300 Bronx youth and adults together for a free performance of the spectacular, a workshop with myself, and a Q&A with two Rockettes of color.

On Tuesday The Rockettes posted a pure black square (as many organizations have also done), meant to be a symbol of their solidarity, though I have found this act with no further words besides "#blackouttuesday" to be performative in nature. We need individuals and organizations who are willing to stand with and speak out with us in the face of injustice.

The Black Iris Project, currently celebrating its 4th anniversary of Black excellence, has always been a space where Black individuals can feel seen, respected and find community in being able to express themselves. We look forward to partnering with individuals and organizations who align with our mission to further the advancement and advocacy of Black people.

This week I have been continually reminded of a quote by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. that states “There comes a time when silence is betrayal”. #BlackLivesMatter and should be recognized!

To learn more about The Black Iris Project and to support our continued efforts, please visit blackirisproject.org.

~J. McQueen

Founding Artistic Director

The Black Iris Project

Boogie Down Dance Day

June 25, 2019

BOOGIE DOWN DANCE DAY
JULY 27, 2019
12-6PM

The Bronx celebrates National Dance Day, in the birthplace of hip-hop! Offering a day of free dance classes for youth and adults in a variety of disciplines ranging from hip-hop to ballet.

National Dance Day was created in 2010 as a day to raise awareness and to encourage Americans to embrace dance as a fun and positive way to maintain good health and combat obesity. Boogie Down Dance Day in the Bronx will offer free access to dance, supports diversity and inclusion, and encourages participants to celebrate the art of dance through movement. Launched by “So You Think You Can Dance” co-creator Nigel Lythgoe, National Dance Day is traditionally observed each year on the last Saturday in July with activities taking place in Los Angeles, Washington, DC and other cities around the country. Boogie Down Dance Day in the Bronx will be produced by The Black Iris Project, in partnership with Lehman College and the CUNY Dance Initiative.

Spaces are limited. Click here to reserve your spot and learn more!

Houston, Texas Debut

June 25, 2019

The Black Iris Project at the Miller Outdoor Theater in Houston, TX
August 16, 2019
8:30pm

For our Texas debut, Jeremy McQueen’s Black Iris Project will be performing a collection of our most dynamic works including the world premiere of The Storm, a new ballet inspired by the Middle Passage, Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Harvey. Also on the program will be Black Iris, the collective’s signature work, inspired by Georgia O’Keeffe’s painting Black Iris III, and A Mother’s Rite, a solo work set to Stravinsky’s iconic The Rite of Spring.

Houston’s Miller Outdoor Theatre in Hermann Park is unique in the United States, offering an eight-month season of professional entertainment that is artistically excellent, culturally diverse and always FREE of charge to the public. This is the largest “always free” program of its kind in the country.

This is a ticketed event for the covered seating area. Free tickets are available (4 per person over age 16 while they last) at the Miller Outdoor Theatre box office the day of the performance between the hours of 10:30 AM-1:00 PM. If tickets remain at 1:00 PM, the box office will re-open one hour before show time to distribute the remaining tickets. As always, open seating on the hill. The show goes on rain or shine.

For more information, click here.