Steph Davis — ACTivate Residency (February 2-6, 2022) documented in a film by Terrence F. Hayes.

Shared through the ACTivate Residency at BCA, marimbist and composer Steph Davis investigates the role of art in the struggle for Black liberation. Their collaborative team of musicians and dancers create a mixture of improvised and composed music and dance inspired by old Negro melodies and several African-American expressive characteristics noted by Zora Neale Hurston: Drama, the Will to Adorn, Angularity, Originality, and Imitation. Immersed in the revolutionary spirit of Black music and dance, performers and audiences might imagine creative ways to revolutionize our society; from one of widespread oppression to one of racial, gender, and economic justice.

 

Participants

• Steph Davis, Artistic Director/Producer/Marimbist
• Daniel Pooley, Audio Engineer/Percussionist
• Emma-Rose Bauman, Flute
• Che Buford, Violin
• Christian Gonzalez, Dance
• Ashley Johnson, Dance
• Sarah Nichols, Cello
• Walter Yee, Bass Clarinet