Dancers: Alexandria Davis, Chadwick Gaspard, Imani Bryant, Tiffany Whitson Choreography: Alexandria Davis Film & Directed by Genevieve Curtis

"Hetaera" - Dance Film Choreographed, filmed, and edited by Alexandria Davis This experimental screendance serves as "an homage to self-determination and feminine liberation," reimagining the hetaera as a powerful, erotic force rather than a judged mythical figure. The blaxploitation-inspired work explores themes connected to the Haitian Loa Erzulie through three distinct personas: the Crying Woman (grief and vulnerability), the Pink Goddess (luxury and sensuality), and the Horse (spiritual possession and transformation). The film opens with diamonds spilling over glass, morphing into close-ups of an afro adorned with rhinestones and glitter tears. The narrative unfolds through carefully choreographed vignettes: the Pink Goddess preparing watermelon cocktails amid crystals and incense, the Horse performing movements inspired by Ivorian Zaouli dance and Dunham technique abstractions, and the Crying Woman processing emotional release. Sampling music by Poppy Ajudha and Herbie Hancock, the work examines how "art is creation" where "we give birth to our thoughts, dreams, and agendas." The three women exist in various dimensions of reality, ultimately converging in a final tableau where the Horse and Pink Goddess support the Crying Woman through healing. The film positions dance as both a manifestation of fear and a path to recovery, demonstrating feminine power through unapologetic sensuality and spiritual transformation.

Choreographed and performed by Alexandria Davis Created in response to the overturning of Roe v. Wade, this solo examines the woman's body as a site of reproductive surveillance and control. The work opens with Davis positioned like a debutante awaiting critique, evoking the vulnerability of a pelvic examination. The film features two primary personas: a contemporary Southern Baptist woman malfunctioning as she fights for autonomy within conservative restrictions, and the Sister Suffragette character navigating historical and present-day reproductive rights battles. Davis employs movement vocabulary from Dunham Technique and Vogue, creating dialogue between spiritual possession and ballroom liberation. Sampling Duke Ellington's "Sister Suffragette" and MikeQ's "The Ha Dub Rewerk'd," the work explores "care as technology"—examining how isolation and control impact human development. The fragmented choreography reflects broken narratives of womanhood while proposing embodied resistance. Through solo movement, Davis investigates how women's bodies become battlegrounds for political control, questioning basic human computing when reproductive autonomy is compromised. The work ultimately positions dance as essential technology for maintaining connection and agency when traditional support systems fail. alexandriadavis.org

"Venerable Tenancy" - Dance Film Choreographed and performed by Alexandria Davis A "Moving Monologue" danced by a dystopian nomad wandering between timelines of her consciousness and cultural inheritance. Created using the fifth phase of Davis's "Dancing Back to Self" practice, the film investigates consciousness as electrical currents and fragmented memories transcending space-time. Through improvised movement and stream-of-consciousness narration, the work embodies survival, belonging, and resilience. The work positions dance as spiritual resistance, examining how marginalized bodies create meaning within exploitative systems. the movement shifts as the voice becomes more vulnerable and defiant, embodying contradictions of the divine feminine navigating contemporary oppression while honoring ancestral liberation struggles. Through this Moving Monologue format, Davis explores whether human reactions stem from static, neurosis, or unnamed forces that transcend traditional concepts of good and evil.

Aun' Suh, was praying woman. She was birthed in Gadsden Wharf, just east of the copper river. Her chillun sundered from her bosom acquiesced Aun' Suh to the dedication of her mind and body to the spirit of the Lord. Tethering herself to the backwoods and its church Aun' Suh became no stranger to the holy communion of soul and soil, employing her time and energy to cultivate spaces tilled by a spiritual foundation girded in unwavering faith that dem chillun kum ba yah attuhw'ile. Music: Prologue - Aaron Diehl Kneebone Bend - The McIntosh County Shouters Pharoh's Host Got Lost - The McIntoshcounty Shouters

Choreographed, filmed, and edited by Alexandria Davis (September 2020) This contemporary dance film explores the historical and enduring duality of Black womanhood through movement, examining the circumstances that drove Sojourner Truth's powerful 1851 declaration. The work investigates how women navigate the impossible balance between strength and submission, sexuality and conservatism, maternal instinct and self-preservation. Drawing parallels between Truth's era and 2020, the film confronts how women have been stripped of dreams of partnership and love-centered motherhood, forced instead into survival mode where "my body, my choice" becomes both battle cry and burden. Through choreographed sequences, dancers embody the tension between society's contradictory demands: be strong but not threatening, nurturing but not depleted, respected but not unlikeable. The film's central question echoes Truth's defiant inquiry - when society denies your full humanity, how do you claim your worth? Movement becomes a metaphor for the ongoing struggle between desire, pleasure, and fulfillment as women "chassé through this earth" seeking alignment while battling internalized misogyny and societal expectations. The work ultimately presents womanhood as an act of resistance - transforming from "mindless strutting to the milking parlor" into conscious choreography of dignity, self-determination, and divine feminine fellowship.

"The Difference Between This Place and the Next" - Site-Specific Solo Performance Created and performed by Alexandria Davis (2020) Filmed during COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns, this solo work serves as "a call to spatial awareness and the continuity of all things seen, felt, and unnoticed." The performance explores themes of dwelling in "light and love" through Davis's "Dancing Back to Self" methodology, examining dance as "animation of the spirit" and "transformative manifestation of time, space, and energy." Shot in isolation during stay-at-home orders, the work investigates questions of presence, transcendence, and authentic embodiment. Davis films herself dancing in the backyard of her Ann Arbor apartment, exploring the tension between confinement and liberation, asking, "How do you know that you dwell in light and love?" The performance incorporates elements of earth, light(the sun), water, and wind as metaphysical anchors. The solo addresses pandemic-specific themes of separation and spatial restriction while maintaining Davis's commitment to mind-body-spirit integration. Through improvised movement sequences, the work examines "the crossroads of self-preservation and transcendence," inviting viewers into "a movement practice of enlightenment, embodiment, and exploration." The piece ultimately poses the question: "Will you dance through life with me?" positioning dance as both a survival mechanism and a spiritual practice during a global crisis. The Difference Between This Place and The Next is a video by Alexandria Davis exploring spirituality and ritual through the framework of Einstein's Theory of Relativity. To witness the unseen, we must go beyond the mind-body. Naming it will only further define the boxes that impact its infinite possibilities. Alexandria presents the video as an invitation for its audience to explore beyond the physical world and delve into the unknown in the same way we connect with our highest selves. The video contains a sample of the instrumental track 'Mama Saturn' by Tanerélle.

Choreographed, filmed, and edited by Alexandria Davis (September 2020) Inspired by a Super Mario Bros-style mural discovered during a walk in Battle Creek, MI, this one-day dance film explores a woman's subconscious as she daydreams about dimensional freedom. Shot on a Google Pixel 3A against the vibrant street art backdrop, the work examines dualities through movement: heels vs. sneakers, exhibition vs. conservation, masked vs. unmasked, bound vs. free. Part of Davis's emerging "Monuments in Motion" series, the film critiques how African American figures are frozen in limiting historical narratives. Drawing parallels to Battle Creek's Harriet Tubman monument—which depicts her as enslaved rather than as an embodiment of freedom—the work questions how Black women navigate between "enslaved sophistication and the privileged space of freedom." The film weaves together themes of hair politics, beauty standards, and identity performance, referencing Madam C.J. Walker's straightening comb, colorism, and the paradox that Black models are often asked to shave their heads to be considered beautiful. Through choreographed sequences, the dancer moves between dimensions of "crazy, sexy, and cool," challenging the fixed representations that monuments impose while exploring the fluid possibilities of self-definition and liberation. The work ultimately asks: How do we move beyond the static narratives carved in stone to embody our full, complex humanity? Music: Boom Street by Muneestuh D-ieyo