ANNOUNCING THE WINNERS OF THE 2023 CHOREOGRAPHER + COMPOSER RESIDENCIES AT JAMAICA CENTER FOR ARTS & LEARNING
New York, NY - Panels of choreographers and dance professionals met virtually in November 2022 to select an eclectic group of New York City-based choreographers and composers. The grant provides each artist with a three-month residency in a dedicated dance space at Jamaica Center for Arts & Learning (JCAL) plus a $2000 stipend. Residencies will start in April 2023 and run till the end of the year.
Two collaborative teams of choreographers and composers and two choreographers will create and develop new work at JCAL later in 2023.
2023 REDTAIL ARTIST RESIDENCIES RECIPIENTS:
Fana Fraser, choreographer & Zane Rodulfo, composer
Helen Simoneau, choreographer
sarAika movement collective (Aika Takeshima & Sara Pizzi) , choreographers
Jiemin Yang, choreographer & James Acampora, composer
Fana Fraser is an interdisciplinary artist and director. She is a BAM 2022 Jack Nusbaum Artist in Residence; 2022 Petronio Residency Center RETREAT & RESTORE awardee; 2021-22 Jerome Hill Artist Fellow in Dance; and 2021-22 Performance AIRspace Resident at Abrons Arts Center. A 2021 Caribbean/The Future Space resident artist, Fana was shortlisted for the 2020 BCLF Elizabeth Nunez Caribbean-American Writers’ Prize. She is a full-spectrum doula from a Reproductive Justice lens. She served as Rehearsal Director for Ailey II from 2016-20 and as a co-director/consultant for Pepatián from 2018-21. Her work has been presented at Abrons Arts Center, BAAD!, Brooklyn Museum, Gibney, ISSUE Project Room, Knockdown Center, Movement Research at the Judson Church, region(es), Wassaic Project, La MaMa Moves!, BAX, Emerging Artists Theatre's "Best of New Works Series", Dixon Place, WestFest, the CURRENT SESSIONS at The Wild Project, the Dance & Performance Institute, and Trinidad Theatre Workshop. She has performed with Camille A. Brown & Dancers, The Metropolitan Opera, Sidra Bell Dance New York, The Francesca Harper Project, Andrea Miller for Hermès, Ailey II, and Ryan McNamara.
Born and raised in Trinidad and Tobago, Zane Rodulfo has been intrigued by the sound of music since infancy. He began studying and performing music at the early age of 4. He holds an MM in Jazz Studies from New York University and a BM in Jazz Performance and Ethnomusicology from the Oberlin Conservatory Of Music. Zane has opened for great musicians such as Stevie Wonder. He performs at various festivals and venues where he has shared the stage with award-winning musicians such as Nicholas Payton, Brian Lynch, the legendary Barry Harris, Wess Anderson, and many others. He has performed at illustrious venues such as Jazz at Lincoln Center and the Blue Note and toured internationally with Canadian indie-pop sensation MorMor. Zane has partnered with and been commissioned by organizations such as the Guggenheim Museum, The Harlem Arts Alliance & the Brooklyn Arts Council. His composition Around The Circle plays at the Guggenheim Museum as part of their Vasily Kandinsky exhibit through September 2022. A polymedia artist, Zane focuses on publicly-engaging work which addresses decolonization, the intersection of traditional and contemporary music & ideas of transcendence. He performs and composes with electro-acoustic instruments, video, and found/re-purposed instruments.
Helen Simoneau is a choreographer and teacher. She has been commissioned by The Juilliard School, Charlotte Ballet, Oregon Ballet Theatre, the Ailey School, BalletX, the American Dance Festival, and colleges, dance companies, and festivals throughout the US and Canada. She was recently a Choreography Fellow at New York City Center and received a 2021 Guggenheim Fellowship. She has also been a resident artist at Baryshnikov Arts Center, NYU/Tisch, and a fellow of The NYU Center for Ballet and the Arts, Ailey’s New Directions Choreography Lab, and the Bogliasco Foundation. She was awarded first place for Choreography at the 13th Internationales Solo-Tanz-Theater Festival in Stuttgart, Germany, for her solo “the gentleness was in her hands.” Simoneau is originally from Luceville, a small village near Rimouski in Eastern Québec.
sarAika movement collective is a contemporary dance collective with a distinct taste for interdisciplinary collaboration. Founded in 2021 by Aika Takeshima & Sara Pizzi - they unified their skills and knowledge as dancers, choreographers, activists, immigrants, and part of the LGBTQIA+ community, gathering a shared goal to create art about and for humans pursuing this value of authenticity to bond their community advocating for a diverse, equitable, and inclusive environment. Their art is a form of activism documenting key issues and personal insights to highlight minority groups and underrepresented communities and create a safe space for reflection.
Jiemin Yang is a Chinese-American dancer, choreographer, filmmaker, and graphic designer based in Queens. He holds a MA from London Contemporary Dance School and a BS from Macaulay Honors College. He has received commissions from Queens Council on the Arts ’20-22, Making Moves Dance Festival ’19 hosted by Jamaica Performing Arts Center (JPAC), and Emerging Choreographer Series ’17 hosted by Mare Nostrum Elements and LaGuardia Performing Arts Center. He has also presented his works at venues including Queens Botanical Garden, Ailey Citigroup Theatre, The Mark O’Donnell Theatre, and Auditório do Parque da Devesa in Portugal. His dance film Wo/我 has won awards at Queens World Film Festival ’22 and DisOrient Asian American Film Festival of Oregon ’22. He has been recognized as Artist of Exceptional Merit ’22 by Asian American Arts Alliance. He has been a resident artist of the CUNY Dance Initiative at Queens College/Kupferberg Center for the Arts.
James Acampora is an American musician, composer, and artist based in Long Island. He holds a BA in musical performance from Purchase University. For over ten years, he has trained with professional musicians such as Janos Starker, Sue Rubner, Dale Stuckenbruck, and Maureen Hynes. James has performed on the biggest stages in NYC, including Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, MSG, The Green Room, and Tilles Center. James is an active film and commercial composer working for Gramoscope Music, Funky Junky Records, and Audiomachine, specializing in orchestral arrangements. James is also a contractor and curator, helping organize concerts and events around NYC. James has contributed to projects sponsored by the Queens Council of the Arts, Huntington Arts Council, and BOCES arts in education.