Shadow's Child And The Power Of Partnerships

By Martha Dodson

Two dance companies, the U.S.’s Urban Bush Women and the National Song & Dance Company of Mozambique collaborated on Shadow’s Child. (Photo credit: Mike Van Sleen)

This is a story about the power of art. There are plenty of other stories about the power of art. What makes this one different is that the work of art at the heart of this story demonstrated its power long before its movements, music, words, images and themes were experienced by audiences. This is a story about how talented people explored and developed and nurtured and willed a production into being, then set it off to work its special magic on students and families and other community members that were fortunate enough to witness it.

During the 2002/03 season, Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation gave funding to six presenters in the region to support the tour of "Shadow’s Child," an exciting collaboration between the dance companies, Urban Bush Women and the National Song and Dance Company of Mozambique, with music by Michael Wimberly, costumes by Leon Bevans, sets and puppets by Debby Lee Cohen, and lighting designed by Beverly Emmons. The funding was made possible by a grant to the Foundation from the Regional Touring Program of the National Endowment for the Arts that the Foundation receives through the National Endowment for the Arts Regional Touring Program.

"Shadow’s Child" was a feast for the senses, as the piece featured traditional music and dance of Mozambique with stunning visuals from the creative team. The work was centered on a young girl named Xiomara from Mozambique whose family moves to the southern region of the United States. Xiomara is homesick for Mozambique but at the same time, she wants to make friends and be accepted. She gets teased for being different, and when her doll is thrown into the forest, she sets off to search for it as it grows dark. On her journey, she befriends a girl named Blue, who is an outcast because she suffers from Porphyria, a disease that keeps her from being out in the sun. As they play together, they encounter mystical night creatures from the world of Xiomara’s ancestors. As the friends part company and leave the forest, Blue trips and falls. When she fails to show up at home, Xiomara helps the townspeople to find her, and emerges as a hero. In the production, Xiomara’s feelings of loneliness and her sense of isolation are etched upon a tableau that showcases the spirit world and ancestral themes from her native land. Through contemporary dance, traditional dance and percussion music from Mozambique, masks and body puppets, Xiomara overcomes prejudice and loneliness to find her way in America. The story behind this production was just as interesting.

Shadow’s Child features the traditional music and dance of Mozambique along with stunning visual elements. (Photo credit: Mike Van Sleen)

"Shadow’s Child" was born out of a collaboration between Urban Bush Women and the National Song and Dance Company of Mozambique, facilitated by the New Jersey Performing Arts Center’s (NJPAC) Global Exchange Program, funded by the Ford Foundation, which is curated and produced by Baraka Sele. Initially, choreographers Jawole Willa Jo Zollar from Urban Bush Women and David Abilio Mondlane from the National Song and Dance Company of Mozambique met during a presentation in 1999 at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center in Newark, where both companies were on the program in separate performances. Afterwards, both choreographers became more closely acquainted and explored the similarities in their work. The following year, NJPAC brought them back to Newark where they collaborated on a piece that their companies performed together. Their interest in collaborating aligned well with Baraka Sele’s approach to global programming. It was a prescient moment, as it led to further exploration, collaboration and a partnership that resulted in the creation of "Shadow’s Child."

Already, there were people working on projects that paired artists from the United States with artists from Africa. Africa Exchange, a program funded by the Ford Foundation that Baraka Sele started while working for 651 Arts in Brooklyn, NY, was established to foster cross-cultural dialogue and "structured interchange opportunities," such as artist residencies, programs and presentations, between contemporary African artists and artists and communities throughout the United States. These artist "pairings" were matched with presenters that functioned as "primary partners," working in collaboration with 651 Arts to design and monitor project activities for their own venues and communities. NJPAC became the Primary Partner for the Urban Bush Women/ National Song & Dance Company of Mozambique collaboration. Africa Exchange provided funding so that both choreographers had the opportunity to spend time in each other’s country, researching and studying dance in its cultural context, offering master classes, and working on a joint project that became "Shadow’s Child."

Along the way, wonderful things started to happen from the relationship between these two companies. The Lincoln Center Institute (LCI), based in New York City, which develops experiential studies focused on works of art in the disciplines of dance, music, theater, visual arts and architecture, became a key producing partner in "Shadow’s Child." Beverly Emmons, then-artistic director of the Institute and also a theatrical lighting designer, noted that the choice of "Shadow’s Child" was a bit unusual for them. LCI had worked with Urban Bush Women before and appreciated the company’s ability to resonate with students, particularly those at a young age. What was new was a commissioned project involving artists from Africa and the United States, and a multidisciplinary work that included dance, music and visual material. As the Institute was celebrating its 25th anniversary, they wanted to undertake a special project.

Shadow’s Child’s original collaboration spawned many additional collaborations between artists, presenters and community groups. (Photo credit: Mike Van Sleen)

Ms. Emmons became more involved, as it turned out. She traveled to Maputo, Mozambique in 2000 on a site visit with ten people, including composers, dancers and sculptors, to assist the National Song and Dance Company of Mozambique with their technical requirements for touring productions in the U.S. They discovered that Theatre Africa’s facilities (where the National Song and Dance Company performed) needed lighting equipment, a floor and drapes before it could function as a performing arts venue. ETC, a company from Wisconsin, donated a complete package of stage lighting and Ric Rogers, an electrician from New York’s Apollo Theatre, went over to set up the equipment. Ms. Emmons arranged for a new floor and drapes. Although these activities were not directly related to "Shadow’s Child," the donations enabled the artistic partners of the project to contribute to the artistic life in Mozambique by creating the first fully-equipped theatre in the country.

Back in the United States, IMG Artists (representing Urban Bush Women) was gearing up to market the production. Nancy Gabriel, of IMG Artists, stated that there were several reasons why "Shadow’s Child" was of great interest to presenters. She noted that Urban Bush Women was a company with a well-established history with presenters that were drawn to the company, not only because of the high quality of their work, but also because of the company’s interest in and experience with community engagement. IMG Artists had a long-standing history with Urban Bush Women, having represented them since the 1990s. Ms. Gabriel had developed a cadre of presenter clients that were familiar with Urban Bush Women’s work and their community residency activities.

"Shadow’s Child" as a production had the right blend of talented artists and unique features that to attracted key presenter partners as co-commissioners. They included the Lincoln Center Institute and the Lincoln Center Festival in New York, Penn State University in State College, Pennsylvania, the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC, NJPAC in Newark, Hancher Auditorium at the University of Iowa, the Dance Center at Columbia College in Chicago, and Jacob’s Pillow in Lee, Massachusetts. Their involvement in the project added to the success of the production and resulted inenabled Ms. Gabriel’s ability to develop a contiguous tour for "Shadow’s Child."

Presenters in the mid-Atlantic region were interested in "Shadow’s Child" because of the high quality of its artistry. The project featured an impressive creative team in a collaboration that brought together dance, music, puppetry, theatrical lighting and other visual elements. Michael Wimberly was a performer, composer and creator of the musical montage for the production. Together with Urban Bush Women’s Associate Artistic Director and percussionist, Kwame A. Ross, he brought his expertise in African drumming and percussion instruments and his extensive experience in collaborations with musicians, dance companies, theater companies, and world music ensembles, both in performance and on film, to the production. Debby Lee Cohen designed the puppets and the sets for the production. Her background included work with other choreographers, multimedia artists, and film and television producers. Beverly Emmons designed the lighting for the production. She brought her extensive experience in working with Broadway, off-Broadway and regional theater, dance and opera productions to "Shadow’s Child" as well.

When the Foundation received an application to its ArtsCONNECT Program requesting funding for the mid-Atlantic tour of "Shadow’s Child," panelists were impressed that the presenters participating in the application had clearly considered how this project would be received in their communities when planning the activities associated with this touring project. Of special interest was the community work that would take place.

The ArtsCONNECT Program was designed to support multi-state tours of performing artists through in the mid-Atlantic region. Through the Program, groups of presenters come together to arrange tours by specific artists.initiate block-booking conversations around a specific artist and tour. The Program challenges participating presenters to think creatively aboutfind creative ways for artists to engage the artist through interactions in their interact with communities that go beyond the usual public performances and post-concert receptions. Presenters are required to schedule at least one educational activity as part of the engagement, which could be a workshop, master class or lecture/demonstration that features the artist. If presenters are based on college or university campuses, the Foundation urges them to make both performances and residency activities open to the broader public.

As the presenters work with the artist or booking representative to shape the engagements, planning for the ArtsCONNECT Program application continues as well. As partners in the touring project, the presenters are encouraged to share ideas with one another about the best ways to work with the artists in their communities. More experienced presenters in the group may find themselves assisting their less-experienced partners in making decisions about educational activities, or marketing strategies, or sorting through the technical requirements and rider information. At times, a presenter may have the resources to develop a study guide or other educational materials for use in schools that can be shared with the other presenters in the group. Ultimately, the goal is for a partnership of presenters involved in the touring project to receive funding for artist fees, establish contacts with other like-minded presenters in the region, and share information and ideas that will make the engagements offer a meaningful experience with the artist for communities on the tour. The National Endowment for the Arts works with the Foundation and the other five regional arts organizations to distribute agency funding in support of presentations that reach underserved populations throughout the country.

For Lafayette College presenter, Ellis Finger, the application process, and "Shadow’s Child," offered many benefits. Lafayette College, which is based in Easton, Pennsylvania, presents performances at the Williams Center on campus. Audiences there have become familiar with the eclectic range of programming that forms the schedule for every season, including dance in its many forms, jazz, classical and world music, and theater. Mr. Finger took the lead on the ArtsCONNECT application, which entailed communicating with each of the participating presenters and IMG Artists, gathering information on the engagements being planned at each site, crafting a cogent narrative about the tour, and shepherding the process through the Foundation’s application steps.

Mr. Finger related that he was drawn to "Shadow’s Child" because the project involved a cultural exchange between artists from two countries. The opportunity to present a dance work with live music and a narrative component was unique, and the designers that were part of the creative team, added a visual dimension to the project. Mr. Finger stated that he was happiest when working with like-minded colleagues, so the process of communicating and planning with other presenters suited him. They shared ideas about the community work whichwork that helped some of the presenters that were less familiar with this aspect of presenting. The engagement at Lafayette College was designed with input from the Departments of Africaner Studies, World Music, Religion, and Anthropology. The musicians from Mozambique gave a clinic and the dancers provided workshops that were community-based.

The Lincoln Center Festival presented the world premiere of "Shadow’s Child" to positive reviews. Later in the season, the Lincoln Center Institute put the production on tour for seven weeks in New York City. The Institute, by working with teachers and teaching artists, plans analyses of particular works of art and designs participatory activities for 300,000 students from Kindergarten through college age that enable participants to explore the artist’s choices and their aesthetic response to the work. They prepare elaborate materials on the featured artworks and send them to schools. In this case, the materials included information on Mozambique and the artists involved in the production.

The fact that "Shadow’s Child" was already touring while the mid-Atlantic presenters were preparing their own engagements was of benefit as well. Amy Despain Dupain Vashaw at Penn State University in State College, Pennsylvania noted that they had been looking for a dance project that was family-oriented, when they first heard about "Shadow’s Child." She went to see the New York premiere of the piece at Lincoln Center and was impressed that the artists made time to meet with her afterwards to discuss the project, despite having just completed a strenuous engagement. What struck her most of all was the artists’ belief in art as a catalyst for social change.

Ms. Vashaw said that they decided to use the catalytic quality of art as the central theme in organizing their activities for the engagement. The artists gave a workshop on campus for students enrolled in a course on African American Women. In addition, the artists were invited to meet with students studying to become teachers, where they discussed how to use the arts in teaching. Their presentation for students in a Curriculum and Instruction course dovetailed nicely with the class focus on challenging cultural assumptions, so the artists could demonstrate how those assumptions could affect classroom presentation. The themes of the piece, celebrating diversity and finding your own place in the world, resonated with the education majors on campus and audience members in the theater at Penn State.

The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, DC presented four performances of "Shadow’s Child" through their Imagination Celebration series for families and youth audiences in their distinguished Theater Lab venue. The series offered affordable ticket prices and was marketed to audiences that might have been experiencing modern dance and world music for the first time. During the three-day engagement, members of Urban Bush Women also visited schools in Washington, DC through the Kennedy Center’s Visiting Artists Program, offering lecture/ demonstration sessions to students. The Kennedy Center prepared extensive educational materials to accompany the school visits.

A direct result of the "Shadow’s Child" residency at the Performing Arts Series at Harrisburg Area Community College in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, according to presenter, Teri Guerrisi, was the opportunity to forge partnerships between the Series and three community organizations, the Women’s Center for Creative Expression, the Artful Learning Program of the Harrisburg School District, and Jumpstreet Arts Development Center. Ms. Guerrisi mentioned that she first considered booking Urban Bush Women when her dance patrons requested them. She was interested in the "Shadow’s Child" production because it would appeal to younger people and it had elements of dance, live music, puppetry, and other visual features that would work well in her venue. Ms. Guerrisi further noted that this project offered her the chance to diversify her programming and to explore partnerships with community-based organizations in Harrisburg.

One aspect of this extraordinary residency in Harrisburg illustrated the power of Urban Bush Women’s community work. The Women’s Center for Creative Expression in Harrisburg hosted Francine Sheffield, a dancer from the company, in a day-longdaylong residency with eight young at-risk women. During the day, they went through a series of theater and dance exercises to break the ice. Later, they shared poems, vignettes and personal skits that they had prepared around the theme "what it was like to be a black woman," and Francine critiqued their work. At the conclusion of the day, the women involved in the residency said that Francine helped them to open up, and explore their personal power in their work. They had developed such a strong connection to Francine and Urban Bush Women that they begged Ms, Guerrisi to bring them back.

The Staller Center at Stony Brook University in Stony Brook, New York, found that a two-day residency with the artists two weeks prior to the performance helped to build excitement about the presentation. Amanda Meyers from the University reported that they learned much from this experience. She noted that the partnership with other presenters through the ArtsCONNECT Program grant helped them to learn what other presenters were doing for community outreach. Through the "Shadow’s Child" project, the Staller Center staff learned how much they could challenge their existing audience to experience something new, and what they needed to do to find and attract new people to their venue that had never been there before.

The Foundation’s grant allowed the Staller Center to expand the engagement to include the two-day residency and to develop strong marketing materials for the presentation. They worked with the campus Center for Excellence in Education, the Center for Learning and Teaching, the Department of Theatre Arts, the Department of African Studies, the Department of Women’s Studies and Student Polity to help plan the artist workshops. They invited the Arts & Education Committee from the Eastern Suffolk BOCES to meet at the Staller Center during the residency, and scheduled two workshops off campus for economically disadvantaged children in the Wyandanch School District in Suffolk County. The Staller Center staff created an educational outreach brochure and mailed it to all 69 school districts in the County, urging teachers and students to attend the workshops and performances. Discounted tickets were offered to students and the dance workshops were offered free of charge. Through the "Shadow’s Child" project, the Staller Center was able to find new partners in various departments and groups on campus, to plan educational activities with county school districts, and to open up its doors to new audience members.

"Shadow’s Child" offered so much to so many people involved in its creation, touring and presentation. It was an idea that formed as the result of a relationship forged through the guidance of a presenter. It was a production that was born from the magical alchemy of a talented creative team. It was the result of the patient work of artists and co-commissioning presenters that nurtured it through its formative stages. It was the brilliant production that found a life after its premiere thanks to the diligent efforts of an agent. It was the story of the quest, the journey, and the insight into a young girl’s experiences as she left her homeland in Africa and made her way in the southern United States — a story whose themes resonated with audiences in Pennsylvania, New York and Washington, DC. It was a moment of empowerment that demonstrated the power of art.

[Many people contributed to this article, including Beverly Emmons, Ellis Finger, Nancy Gabriel, Teri Guerrisi, and Amy Vashaw. In addition, information on the production was gleaned from an article by Jon Cummings in the May/June 2003 issue of Inside Arts and the 651 Arts Africa Exchange and Urban Bush Women websites. Additional information on the tour was selected from the Foundation’s ArtsCONNECT Program grantee applications and final report forms.]

For more information about the Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation, visit
http://www.midatlanticarts.org

National Endowment for the Arts
Contact the Web Manager.