Renaissance Dance Across Bridges connected communities through movement, music, social awareness, and cross cultures. Renaissance began when the Alvin Ailey II Dance Company traveled up to Hudson, NY and presented a panel discussion with John Campbell of JCInetime LLC and Masazumi Chaya, former Associate Artistic Director, prior to the showing of the “Ailey” documentary. The next evening, Ailey II company presented two youth workshops and a performance at the Hudson Area Library. On July 27th the library’s Community Room overflowed with families and children spilling out onto the floor. It was an amazing event for Hudson and well received by an audience of 200. Community partners were John Campbell of JCineTime LLC, Tracy Robinson of the Hudson Area Library and Operation Unite NY/Kuumba Dance and Drum. This event kicked off the Bridges Project with patrons asking for their return.

Tatiana Desardouin and Passion Fruit Dance company brought community dance workshops to Hudson with a pre-planning workshop in 2022, two workshops in the fall of 2023 and spring of 2024 in partnership with DanceForce member Ivan Sygoda. Sygoda’s 2023-2024 residency project included community partner Kaatsbaan Cultural Park, with workshops were held at the Hudson Area Library. Sygoda’s Passion Fruit Project supported the performance at Kaatsbaan.

We crossed over to the Greene County side of bridge to support a new work by the ongoing collaborative team of Marcus McGregor and Dan Safer. They continued the trajectory which began with “The History of Empires”, a two+ year project started early in the pandemic that premiered at La Mama in NYC in 2023.The two embarked on developing a second work, fusing and contrasting their respective backgrounds in contemporary ballet and downtown dance/theater. McGregor and Safer created a unique, highly theatrical dance pieces crossing multiple boundaries by dedicated a week-long session in October of 2023, which culminated in a public work in progress showing of the new work at Hudson Hall on November17th to an audience of 125 patrons.

Taganyahu Swaby has studied Capoeira Angola, a dance form that has origins in Central and Western African and was developed in Brazil by captures African and indigenous Brazilians as a means of liberation from oppression. For the last two decades Swaby has traveled and lived between New York and Salvador training Capoeira Angola Society and continues to teach in the Hudson Valley and in Brooklyn. Swaby shared teachings through movement workshops, accompanied with traditional music in Hudson and Catskill, NY. On July 21st, 2023, Tagan presented a Capoeira workshop for all ages at the Hudson Area Library. On October 14, Taganyahu gave a lecture on the origins of Capoeira and its commitment to liberate the oppressed at CREATE Arts Council in Catskill, NY. A Capoeira Roda community gathering incorporated participants of his workshops at the Yaad Wellness Studio in Catskill, NY and a second Capoeira Roda in Hudson on Friday, August 11th, at the Hudson Riverfront Park. Local and Brooklyn community members who live the teachings of Capoeira were present.

Dance by the River! invited four dance companies to interact with audiences composed of patrons and non-patrons of the arts along the Hudson Riverfront. A-Y Dancers, Kyle Marshall Dance and Silas and Shawn were among the dance artists in Hudson. Each event hosted by DanceForce was featured as a DanceForce special evening, within the nine concerts presented by Waterfront Wednesdays. The artists were asked to perform in non-traditional theater/black box space, utilizing natural lighting from the sun, a limited stage attached to the gazebo and an enormous landscape of grass covered grounds. The Audience consisted of patrons of the arts, dance lovers of all ages, and people coming to the waterfront to enjoy a walk, eat at the picnic tables and utilize the water activities. People brought their lawn chairs and families brought their blankets and children to move freely before and after the performances. The expectation was that of surprise for the general public coming to the waterfront and of amazement for the caliber of dance artists now appearing at the Hudson Riverfront Park. On the first evening with Silas and Shawn, a music playlist followed the performance as the sun set. On the evenings with Kyle Marshall and A-Y Dancers, there were two different bands which extended the evening beyond the beautiful sunsets post Q & A with dance artists. One of the bands, Heard, is an Afro Jazz group featuring percussionists Zorkie Nelson and dancers from Ghana.

The post event conversations were enlightening. Questions were being asked about the return of the artists, and the hope that the Hudson Riverfront Park would continue to host visiting artists free to the public, making dance affordable to all.

The Dance by the River! Extension took place in Chatham, NY at a new venue called The Garage in Chatham. This extension was inspired by the response of presenting dance in Columbia County, but mostly with collaborators in Hudson. The directors of the Garage were interested in presenting dance for the first time during their second season, having presented a first season of jazz and classical music concerts. The specific request was for an African based music and dance company. The goal of this 4th leg of the project was to introduce dance to the Garage Series, this a new component for the audiences to experience. Again, attendance was free, but limited space for about sixty seats. Second was to introduce a music and dance presence different from classical, chamber and jazz music and the third was to involve a community component not limited to Columbia County. The program was shared with Jonah Bokaer Dance Company performing work from Merce Cunningham for the first half of the program.

Three community workshops were held to invite participants to learn two dances with the company. Two workshops were done in “pop Up” style. One workshop occurred an hour before the Kyle Marshall performance, allowing people who happened to be at the waterfront to watch and join in. This added to the excitement that more dance was happening as they stayed at the waterfront. A second workshop occurred at the Hudson Sankofa Festival and a third in Albany at a church hall. All workshops had good attendance and yielded new and longtime lovers of dance. Four community rehearsals followed, two in Albany with the percussionist and two in Hudson over a period of four weeks. For the Garage performance, there were 6 community dancers, two company dancers and four musicians. The weather was excellent, and all seats were filled.

As a result of the Garage success with Gballoi West African Drum and Dance from Ghana, two new projects have developed. One was inviting Gballoi to perform at the Annual Kwanzaa Community Celebration at Hudson Hall. The same community involvement format was used for a successful event. A second project request came from the director of the Garage, Thomas Bo. I am collaborating with him to present Zorkie Nelson, two of his ensemble members to work in collaboration with 3 jazz artists that the Garage has presented during their first season. Another request came to present a similar community involved program with Gballoi in Newburg, NY.

Making it Through! brought together performing and visual artists to tell their story of living and surviving during the 2020-2021 pandemic. Choreographers Jonah Bokaer, Sondra Loring, Donna Barrett, Jamie Stiller and Stephanie Monseu and visual artists/poetess Ifetayo Cobbins and Shanikwa Tomlinson shared their experiences in Making it Through!

Each choreographer held a series of public pop-up workshops/rehearsals, welcoming community participation and on-lookers of all ages from July to September. Visual Artists displayed their art at the performance tent and Shanikwa painted live during the performance. Photographer David McIntyre documented the collaborative process by attending rehearsals at Hudson 7th Street Public Square, top of Main Street, Parc Pocket Park and the Hudson waterfront. Production designer Jeremy Bullis held workshops with the dancers, creating costume accessories and “Covid” masks.

The public free performance was held on September 2nd at 5pm, at the Hudson Riverfront Park. Community partners were the City of Hudson providing all public spaces and the Hudson Eye Festival, which hosted several dance performances, art exhibitions and music throughout Hudson. The Hudson Eye Festival, produced by the Jonah Bokaer Foundation, provided staffing, tech support and had an outreach of thousands of followers. About 325 people attended the performance and 1290 were engaged through the various facets of the project including outdoor meetings and thirty-nine pop up rehearsals in two public Hudson Parks.

All the artists are native to Hudson or have become part of the creative art family in the Hudson Valley in recent years. The artists exhibited vitality, passion, and excellence in their fields. Artists represented members of the LGBTQ, heterosexual and BIPOC communities, with a variety of ethnicities that exemplify small town American life in Hudson. New partnerships, such as The Tenth, an independent Black Queer Magazine housed in Hudson, was excited to participate before unforeseen family issues took the lead staff member out of town. Coupled with the audiences of the diverse participating artists and their patrons, our “Making it Through” project presented informally through public rehearsals and performance to the served and underserved. Through news and social media, and the new partner base of the Hudson Eye Festival, over 8,000 were notified that Making it Through! Was happening.

Kuumba Dance and Drum proposes a 4-day residency in Hudson, NY with Kyle Marshall and Company from June 10-June 13, 2020. Kyle Marshall, the 2018 Bessie Award artist, will work to develop "Reign”, an evening length work shrouded in Christianity’s influence on the body, and American culture. Using text from Holy Bible as impetus, dancers Oluwadamilare Ayroinde, Bria Bacon, Miriam Gabriel, Kyle Marshall and Myssi Robinson along with sound designer Cal Fish, are in a process to understand how words and belief have the power to influence bodies, communities and nations. With this dance, Kyle seeks "to undo mainstream white supremist depictions of celestial beings, embody old and new ways of uplifting the spirit, and release guilt from our queer bodies.” Reign is interested in how a theater can become a sanctuary, an audience a congregation, as we create a space for reflection, truth and joy in an age of unbelief. The Hudson Residency will take place from June 10 to June 13, 2020. The Hudson Area Library will serve as a community partner to present a public movement workshop and discussion about Reign prior to the public performance on June 13, 2020.

Adam Weinert’s project began in September of 2018, with Augmented Reality Technology Workshops in collaboration with community partner Hudson Area Library. Three after school two-hour workshops taught 18 students dance movement and introduced technology in the form of a mobile app created specifically for this project. The app allows the public to view archival footage as well as documentation of the performances simply by opening the app on their mobile devices and pointing the device at specific locations on site. The Digital Dance tweens and teens worked with Adam on exploring movement and creating choreography and they created site specific video of their performances. The Hudson Library partnership was very receptive and appreciative of the project. Augmented Reality experience culminated in a two-hour community gathering. Library staff created a display for patrons that explained how to upload the app and go to the various locations. People did upload the app to their phones and were very interested in the process and in viewing the videos. The community stayed longer than the event was running and were really engaged not only in the dance performance of the kids led by Adam, but also in visiting the sites at which the augmented reality movement was created. 37 people were in attendance.

The Liberate the Earth! Dance Project was a collaboration between choreographer Lynn Neuman of Artichoke Dance Company, Ruth Adams of Art Omi, a beautiful sculpture park, and DanceForce member Elena Mosley of Kuumba Dance and Drum. Lynn Neuman was chosen from three artists who had participated in Art Omi’s Annual Dance Residency Program. Lynn’s commitment to taking a stand on environmental issues and expressing them through dance is a unique and compelling artist statement. After several planning meetings in NYC, Art Omi in Ghent, NY, and at Operation Unite Education and Cultural Arts Center in Hudson, NY, Liberate the Earth! Dance Project was off to a great start.

Kuumba Dance and Drum presented Topaz Arts in the “Dancing Green” project. Artistic Director and choreographer Paz Tanjuaquio used the green environment to connect the audience with dance. Paz presented “Mind Field”, which was created within a set piece that simulated abstract fields and orchards. Rather than perform on a traditional stage, Mind Field was performed creating a sensory experience for the audience to watch as well as move through different painted scenes. Although the research for the work was done in Japan and the Philippines, “Mind Field” explored the interrelated practices of agriculture and art that shapes our culture and our landscape; very appropriate for the main aspect pf Columbia County which is agriculture. The setting of the performance was changed from an inside space to the beautiful Hudson River Front Park, which offered much green scenery along the Hudson river. The building of the set was exciting in itself. Many people watched as Todd built the bones of the performance sculpture, then applied a beautiful abstract flowery-landscape canvas. The lighting, the next layer of the design, illuminated the beauty of the art work. Once the music filled the atmosphere and the dancers appeared, the audience was transported to a natural paradise.

Email blasts, social media, hand given post cards and press releases were featured in the local news papers. There were notable audience members attending for the first time, including the director of Art Omi, which holds an international dance residency each summer, and the co-director of the Hudson Opera House.

Kuumba Dance and Drum offered a 3 day African Masters Residency Program, as part of a follow-up / continuation of the 2011 residency examining contemporary expression of today’s African artists, African American artists and other artists considered outside the African Diaspora, with related dance and music styles.

The conference occurred from October 6 through December 28th, 2012. Several artists were invited back and new artists were included. Dance artists returning included: Youssouf Koumbassa, former artist of Ballet Djoliba, the National Ballet of Guinea; Azsmara Sherry combines Modern Dance with traditional Arab and Turkish dance, and Manque Sylla of Guinea. Regional artists included Zworkie and Felix Nelson, John Dixon, Anthony Molina, Donna Barrett and Kuumba Dance and Drum. Kuumba and the Hudson Opera House collaborated on two concerts 1) Kon Koura Guinea, lead by Mangue Sylla and 2) Transition Ensemble, which featured Aszmara. The Transition Ensemble, a fusion of Jazz with modern and traditional music of the Middle East, with Souren Baronian (Reeds) and Haig Manoukian (Oud), and Swiss singer and percussionist Cornelia Kraft, was well received at the Hudson Opera House.

With both music and dance performances, the audiences experienced a quality evening. A collaboration with Hudson Sister Cities lead to a photo exhibit of residents of Pallisa, Uganda by Susan Saltman and Carol Gans. The exhibit location of the Savoia Bar & Grill exposed many to the photographs and event schedules for the rest of the month were on hand. We were excited to receive support from returning to collaborate are the community partners, Columbia County Chambers of Commerce, Columbia County Tourism and the City of Hudson. Basilica Hudson provided a fabulous venue for the main concert of Kon Koura Guinea, with featured a dance fusion of Wild Roses Middle Eastern dance and Kuumba’s West African fusion. The weekend audiences represented regional areas including New York, Massachusetts, Connecticut with 500 in attendance.

The most exciting event of AMC II was the new partnership with the Trinity Institute Agency on Albany, NY. Trinity has a history of offering free services and programs to their community large. Director Harris Oberlander of Trinity was interested in introducing new art forms, particularly African music and dance. Hence, a third day of workshops was shared with the Albany community and were well attended. The Project Advisors were Maria Suttmeier, Superintendent, Hudson City Schools, Joseph Watson, Vice President/Curriculum Director, Columbia Greene Community College and David Colby, Director of the Chamber of Commerce. The impact of African music and dance on economic tourism was reflected in the business community through foot traffic, support of the arts and food sales, which solidified Tourism support for the second year. Project Directors are Elena Mosley, Artistic Director of Kuumba Dance and Drum/Executive Director of Operation Unite Education and Cultural Arts Center and Gary Schiro, Executive Director of Hudson Opera House, a multi Arts center in Hudson.

Kuumba Dance and Drum presented a 3 day African Masters Residency Program, examining the contemporary expression of today’s African artists, African American artists and other artists considered outside the African diaspora, with related dance and music styles. The conference presented patrons with a variety of choices, with both direct and indirect African influences, connecting traditional and contemporary expression.

The conference opened on October 8, with playwright/photographer Thalia Cunningham’s African photo exhibit, seen by over 900 people through October 30th, 2011 at the Hudson Opera House. Workshops were taught by extraordinary music and dance artists: Youssouf Koumbassa, former artist of Ballet Djoliba, the National Ballet of Guinea; Manque Sylla; the Kon Koura Dance Company Guinea, Harambe Dance Company, Aszmara representing the Middle East and Sonal Bhatt with traditional dance from India. Theater Motus from Montréal performed a “Baobab”, a West African fairytale incorporating dance, music, and puppetry for 730 students and faculty and a community evening performance at Taconic Hills School District. Len Cabral shared African Americans stories immediately after, dances of the Congo workshop with Diata Diata. It was an interesting process to watch people entranced by Diata Diata drumming and beauty of the dance participants, then the shift to a younger set settling in for the storyteller. Aszmara Sherry’s workshop was stopped only because she needed a break for her performance; dancers immediately asked for her to return. AMC Concert I was very exciting with Aszmara and Kon Koura Guinea. This AMC energy carried over to the outdoor AMC Concert II with Harambee Dance Company along the beautiful Hudson River. Hudson Opera House, one of our partners, held a weekend of activities on and around a floating Barge and AMC Concert II was a huge part of the event. On October 22nd, Sonal Bhatt’s Indian dance workshop drew a surprisingly family audience and most attending Kuumba events for the first time. The Highlight of AM Concert III was the visual and auditory connection of African music and dance with Sonal Bhatt, Wild Roses Belly Dance Troupe, Kuumba and Middle Eastern dancer Lila. The audience was engaged and participated in each aspect of the concert. This was a unique experience for both audience members and artists.