Makini

Based between traditional lands of Tutelo-Saponi speaking peoples and lands of Lenape peoples, I am a choreographer, performer, and video artist who grew up dancing around the living room and at parties with my siblings and cousins.

My early exposure to professionalized dance was through African dance and capoeira performances on California college campuses where my Pan- Africanist parents studied and worked, but I did not start “formal” dance training until college with Umfundalai, Kariamu Welsh’s contemporary African dance technique.

My work continues to be influenced by various sources, including foundations in those living rooms and parties, early technical training in contemporary African dance, continued study of contemporary dance and performance, movement trainings with dancer and anatomist Irene Dowd around anatomy and proprioception, sociological research of and technical training in J-sette performance with Jermone Donte Beacham. Through my artistic work, I strive to engage in and further dialogues with Black queer folks, create lovingly agitating performance work that recognizes History as only one option for the contextualization of the present, and continue to encourage artists to understand themselves as part of a larger community of workers who are imagining pathways toward economic ecosystems that prioritize care, interdependence, and delight.