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WELCOME by ROWENA RICHIE, Guest Editor
THIS IS MY THIRD AND LAST ISSUE of In Dance as Guest Editor. Or, as I prefer, Quest Editor. Because it has been an adventure to seek writ- ers from all corners of our community and help them clear the path their pieces want to take. My quest is urgent. That’s my answer to a question posed by Liv Schaffer, who wondered in the previous issue “what it’s like to make something…knowing it may be the last of its kind that you make”? I felt an urgency to explore a theme that I believe is vital to our dance community and beyond: intergenerational co-creation. So
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I asked the writers in this edition to consider the concept of Sankofa. Sankofa is a Ghanian symbol, a bird with its feet facing forward, its long neck craned back towards its tail. An egg floats under its open beak. Sankofa roughly translates to, “Go back and get it.” We owe it to the future as we owe it to the past. I first learned about Sankofa at a cogenerational fellowship retreat that Liv and I both attended. Sankofa served as a metaphor for our cogenerational fellowship. And I thought it could be a promising theme for this beginning-of- the-year issue. The writers, writers across six generations–from 20 something, to 70–indulged me. And they delivered. Some invoke Sankofa tangentially: “She is covered in a many-hued garnish of boas.” Others explicitly: “Another interpretation of the Sankofa bird says…if we mis- takenly overlook the past, it is okay to retrace our steps and make amends.” I grew up with the movie Back to the Future from 1985. Marty McFly travels back in time to 1955 on a quest to change the course of history. At his parents’ high school dance Marty finds himself onstage with the band playing guitar. He launches into an 80s-style solo, on his knees, eyes squeezed shut, jamming with abandon. Everything stops. He opens his eyes to looks of shock. In reflecting on the power of Sankofa and the trailblazing artists among these pages, I can’t help but think of Marty McFly in his urgent, electrifying moment. When he realizes the room’s gone silent he blurts out this message of hope: “I guess you’re not ready for that. But your kids are gonna love it.” Ready or not, here we come!
42/ Crip Ecstasy Centers
06 / Put Yourself on the Beam
Dancers’ Group gratefully acknowledges the support of Bernard Osher Foundation, California Arts Council, Fleishhacker Foundation, Grants for the Arts, JB Berland Foundation, Kenneth Rainin Foundation, Koret Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts, Phyllis C. Wattis Foundation, San Francisco Arts Commission, Wallace Alexander Gerbode Foundation, Walter & Elise Haas Fund, William & Flora Hewlett Foundation, Zellerbach Family Foundation and generous individuals.
notices, artistic opportunities, grant deadlines, local news, and more.
Accessibility in Nightlife by Octavia Rose Hingle
An email exchange between guest editor Rowena Richie and butoh legend Hiroko Tamano
46/ OMG Spill the Tea KHFRESH 2023
12 / If They Don’t Give You a Seat at the Table, Make Your Own Table by Olivia Winston and Madison Lindgren 18 / Afrimerica by Michael French 26/ Fourth to Fifth Generation Flamenco & Spanish Dancer by Tachíria Flamenco 30/ Adapting Instead of Excluding by Natalia Velarde 36/ Adaptar En Vez De Excluir Por Natalia Velarde
DANCERS’ GROUP Artist Administrator Wayne Hazzard Artist Resource Manager Andréa Spearman Community Resource Manager Shellie Jew Administrative Assistants Anna Gichan
A conversation between ainsley elizabeth tharp and gizeh muñiz vengel
50/ Artists in Exile
by Angela Arteritano
54/ at some point By Andersmith 56/ Dancing Rivers
Danielle Vigil
by Charlotte Moraga 60/ Notes on Rendering Vessels by James Fleming 64/ In Community Highlights and resources, activities and celebrations for our community – find more on dancersgroup.org
Office and Systems Technology Manager Claudia Mayoss Bookkeeper Michele Simon Design Sharon Anderson
Cover photo by Ashley Ross
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