ThoughtGallery.org > Reading the Body: Poetry, Dance & Recovery

Reading the Body: Poetry, Dance & Recovery

Join Bellevue Literary Review and The Paige Fraser Foundation for an exploration of Recovery through dance and poetry. Four acclaimed dancers will create original works based on BLR poetry, set to music commissioned for this special event. A panel discussion will follow.

Featuring the poetry of Talia Bloch, Nicholas Yingling, Monique Ferrell, and Anthony Aguero

DANCERS
Paige Fraser graduated from the Ailey/Fordham BFA program and danced with Ailey II, Visceral Dance Chicago, and Deeply Rooted Dance Theater. Her commercial dance credits include works with Beyonce and Chanel Iman. She is the Chief Artistic Officer and Program Director/Dance of The Paige Fraser Foundation, which aims to create a safe space for dancers with or without disabilities. She is currently the Dance Captain/Swing for The Lion King on Broadway.

Samantha Figgens began her training at Duke Ellington School of the Arts, Dance Theatre of Harlem and received her BFA at SUNY Purchase Conservatory of Dance. Upon graduating, Ms. Figgins became a member of Complexions Contemporary Ballet and is currently in her 9th season with Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater.

Jerron Herman is a disabled dancer and writer who creates works to facilitate welcoming. His awards include a 2020 Disability Futures Fellowship by the Ford Foundation and Mellon Foundation, the Grants to Artists Award from the Foundation for Contemporary Arts and a Jerome Hill Artist Fellowship from the Jerome Foundation, both in 2021.

Joey Kipp was born in Brazil and raised in California. He has worked with Heather Kravas, Vic Haven, Zeena Parkins, Cynthia Madansky, luciana achugar, Heidi Latsky, Pioneers Go East, Ani Taj, Steven Hoggett, David Byrne, Yasmine Lee, Bill T. Jones, & Janet Wong. He most recently choreographed The Threepenny Opera at NYU Tisch and will be in residency this summer at BAM for a piece based on the works of James Baldwin.

COMPOSER
Darryl J. Hoffman is a Bronx native who has composed works for Parsons Dance, Kansas City Ballet, Visceral Dance Chicago, Danceworks Chicago, Minnesota Dance Theatre, Philadanco, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago & Ballet X. He was the director of music for Regional Dance America’s 2020 choreographic virtual intensive and serves as the program director of Music at the Paige Fraser Foundation.

NARRATOR
Lynnette R. Freeman is a Jamaican/Black-American actor, narrator/voice-over artist, full spectrum birth doula, teaching artist, and dialect coach. An MFA graduate of Brown University/Trinity-Rep, her voice can be heard narrating Charmaine’s Wilkerson’s bestselling book Black Cake. Lynnette is a member of Actors Equity Association and SAG/AFTRA.

ASL INTERPRETER
Aisha Simpson is a nationally certified interpreter who has been involved with the deaf community for the past 15 years. She enjoys interpreting arts events, including concerts, dance and theatrical performances. Aisha has been on interpreting teams both behind the scenes and onstage for various Broadway and off-Broadway productions.

ADDITIONAL PANELISTS
Jessica Chen is a dancer, choreographer and Artistic Director of J CHEN PROJECT, with credits including Restart Stages at Lincoln Center, New York Fashion Week at MoMA, and the Kennedy Center. Currently involved in various productions, including AAPI Heroes, R&H Cinderella, and more.

Milica Zgaljic-Ramirez is a licensed creative arts therapist, licensed mental health counselor and the Director of Creative Arts Therapy at Bellevue Hospital. For more than 30 years at the city’s flagship safety net hospital, Milica has championed initiatives to de-stigmatize mental illness and expanded access to therapeutic arts through staff wellness programming and educational events across the public health system.

Danielle Ofri is editor-in-chief of the Bellevue Literary Review. Her day job is a doctor at Bellevue Hospital and clinical professor of medicine at NYU, but she studied at the Alvin Ailey School during high school and at the Martha Graham School during her medical training. Her newest book is When We Do Harm, A Doctor Confronts Medical Error.











When: Thu., Jun. 15, 2023 at 7:00 pm - 8:00 pm

Join Bellevue Literary Review and The Paige Fraser Foundation for an exploration of Recovery through dance and poetry. Four acclaimed dancers will create original works based on BLR poetry, set to music commissioned for this special event. A panel discussion will follow.

Featuring the poetry of Talia Bloch, Nicholas Yingling, Monique Ferrell, and Anthony Aguero

DANCERS
Paige Fraser graduated from the Ailey/Fordham BFA program and danced with Ailey II, Visceral Dance Chicago, and Deeply Rooted Dance Theater. Her commercial dance credits include works with Beyonce and Chanel Iman. She is the Chief Artistic Officer and Program Director/Dance of The Paige Fraser Foundation, which aims to create a safe space for dancers with or without disabilities. She is currently the Dance Captain/Swing for The Lion King on Broadway.

Samantha Figgens began her training at Duke Ellington School of the Arts, Dance Theatre of Harlem and received her BFA at SUNY Purchase Conservatory of Dance. Upon graduating, Ms. Figgins became a member of Complexions Contemporary Ballet and is currently in her 9th season with Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater.

Jerron Herman is a disabled dancer and writer who creates works to facilitate welcoming. His awards include a 2020 Disability Futures Fellowship by the Ford Foundation and Mellon Foundation, the Grants to Artists Award from the Foundation for Contemporary Arts and a Jerome Hill Artist Fellowship from the Jerome Foundation, both in 2021.

Joey Kipp was born in Brazil and raised in California. He has worked with Heather Kravas, Vic Haven, Zeena Parkins, Cynthia Madansky, luciana achugar, Heidi Latsky, Pioneers Go East, Ani Taj, Steven Hoggett, David Byrne, Yasmine Lee, Bill T. Jones, & Janet Wong. He most recently choreographed The Threepenny Opera at NYU Tisch and will be in residency this summer at BAM for a piece based on the works of James Baldwin.

COMPOSER
Darryl J. Hoffman is a Bronx native who has composed works for Parsons Dance, Kansas City Ballet, Visceral Dance Chicago, Danceworks Chicago, Minnesota Dance Theatre, Philadanco, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago & Ballet X. He was the director of music for Regional Dance America’s 2020 choreographic virtual intensive and serves as the program director of Music at the Paige Fraser Foundation.

NARRATOR
Lynnette R. Freeman is a Jamaican/Black-American actor, narrator/voice-over artist, full spectrum birth doula, teaching artist, and dialect coach. An MFA graduate of Brown University/Trinity-Rep, her voice can be heard narrating Charmaine’s Wilkerson’s bestselling book Black Cake. Lynnette is a member of Actors Equity Association and SAG/AFTRA.

ASL INTERPRETER
Aisha Simpson is a nationally certified interpreter who has been involved with the deaf community for the past 15 years. She enjoys interpreting arts events, including concerts, dance and theatrical performances. Aisha has been on interpreting teams both behind the scenes and onstage for various Broadway and off-Broadway productions.

ADDITIONAL PANELISTS
Jessica Chen is a dancer, choreographer and Artistic Director of J CHEN PROJECT, with credits including Restart Stages at Lincoln Center, New York Fashion Week at MoMA, and the Kennedy Center. Currently involved in various productions, including AAPI Heroes, R&H Cinderella, and more.

Milica Zgaljic-Ramirez is a licensed creative arts therapist, licensed mental health counselor and the Director of Creative Arts Therapy at Bellevue Hospital. For more than 30 years at the city’s flagship safety net hospital, Milica has championed initiatives to de-stigmatize mental illness and expanded access to therapeutic arts through staff wellness programming and educational events across the public health system.

Danielle Ofri is editor-in-chief of the Bellevue Literary Review. Her day job is a doctor at Bellevue Hospital and clinical professor of medicine at NYU, but she studied at the Alvin Ailey School during high school and at the Martha Graham School during her medical training. Her newest book is When We Do Harm, A Doctor Confronts Medical Error.

Buy tickets/get more info now