ABOUT THE PROGRAM
RENNIE HARRIS PUREMOVEMENT AMERICAN STREET DANCE THEATER
LOSING MY RELIGION (EXCERPT)
CHOREOGRAPHER, FOUNDER & ARTISTIC DIRECTOR
Rennie Harris
RENNIE HARRIS PUREMOVEMENT (RHPM)
Marguerite Waller, Rachel Snider, Angel Anderson, Miyeko Urvashi Rennie Harris, Taylor Madgett, Joshua Archibald, Tyreis Hunte
SOUND DESIGNER, COMPOSER & ENGINEER
Darrin M. Ross
PRODUCTION VIDEOGRAPHY & LIGHTING DESIGNER
James Clotfelter
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Rodney Hill
Losing My Religion is a new creation by Rennie Harris and is a retrospective inspired by Harris’ life journey, the human experience, and today’s current political and socioeconomic theater. Losing My Religion is an abstract work inspired by his personal journey and thoughts on the world’s collective dilemmas. From war to social, economic, and political injustices, humanity is forever caught in a perpetual loop of turmoil, grief, and despair. Harris challenges both what has come to be expected of street dance and Hip-hop culture and degenerative social normatives/beliefs with his reconstructionist philosophy and approach to artmaking. Set to a chilling soundscape created in collaboration with sound designer Darrin Ross, Losing My Religion incorporates a visual landscape montage of video, slides, and graphics by visual artist and lighting designer James Clotfelter, with whom Harris collaboratively creates and publicly debuts his own visual artwork -acrylic and collage.
Losing My Religion examines languages of protest, resilience, and power, while the choreography and forms invite audiences to imagine the ways in which they can use their bodies as resistance. Losing My Religion is a haunting narrative symbolic of an awakening, reminding us of our humanity.
Content Advisory: The performance of Losing My Religion contains strong language, vivid imagery, and mature themes, which makes it unsuitable for children ages ten and under.
CHOREOGRAPHER, FOUNDER, ARTISTIC DIRECTOR
RENNIE HARRIS has been called “the most respected — and the most brilliant — Hip-hop choreographer in America” by The New Yorker. Recently, The New York Times wrote of Harris’s work; Harris, the Hip-hop master who has become one of his generation’s most exacting and exciting choreographers- There are two sides to Harris’s Rhythmic Wizardry; both are impeccable. Born and raised in an African American community in North Philadelphia, Harris has taught at universities around the country since the age of15. Advocating for the significance of “street” origins in any dance style, Harris believes Hip-hop expresses universal themes that extend beyond racial, religious, and economic boundaries and , because of its pan-racial and global popularity, can help bridge these divisions. In addition, Harris toured with the first rap tour to cross the country entitled The Fresh Fest, starring Run DMC & Jam Master Jay, LL Cool J, Kurtis Blow, Fat Boys, Salt and Peppa, and many noted pioneers of rap.
Known for bringing social dances to the concert stage and coining the term Street Dance Theater, Harris has broken new ground as one of the first Hip-hop choreographers to set works on ballet-based companies such as Ballet Memphis, Colorado Ballet, Pennsylvania Ballet, Philadelphia Dance Company (Philadanco), Giordano Dance Chicago, Lula Washington Dance Theatre, Cleo Parker Robinson, Dallas Black Dance Theater, Dayton Contemporary Dance Company (DCDC) and Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater and more. He is the first street dancer commissioned to create an evening length work on Alvin Ailey American Theater and to serve as a resident artist at the Alvin Ailey school for dance. He’s received three Bessie Awards, five Black Theater Alvin Ailey Awards, the Herb Alpert Award, and was nominated for a Lawrence Olivier Award (UK). He’s also received a Life-Time Achievement Award in choreography (McCullum Theater 2019). Harris was also voted one of the most influential people in the last one hundred years of Philadelphia’s history (City Paper), he’s been compared to Basquiat, Alvin Ailey and Bob Fosse.
In addition, he’s received a Guggenheim Fellowship, PEW Fellowship, a USA Artist of the Year Fellowship, a Governors Artist of the Year Award, and is noted as the first street dancer to receive two honorary doctorate degrees from both Bates College (Lewiston, ME) and Columbia College (Chicago,IL). He’s served as cultural ambassadors for former President Ronald Reagan’s US Embassy Tour in 1986 and was invited to the White House by the Clinton Administration to share in the recognition of African American artists making a difference in the world (2001) and received a medal in choreography from the Kennedy Center. Rennie Harris Puremovement has performed for such dignitaries as the Queen of England and the Princess’ of Monaco and was chosen as one of four US companies to serve as Hip-hop cultural ambassadors for President Obama’s Dance Motion USA and toured throughout the Middle East to Israel, Jordan, Ramallah, Egypt, Palestine, Japan, China, Gambia, and Kazakstan and more. In 2020, Harris received the Doris Duke Artist Award. He was also awarded The Andrew W. Mellon Grant “Building A Legacy of Street Dance” (2022), as well as the Hermitage Greenfield Prize (2023) and the Samuel H. Scripps American Dance Festival Award (2023). Lorenzo “Rennie” Harris sits atop the Hip-hop heap and is its leading ambassador.
CAST OF DANCERS
MARGUERITE WALLER (Principal Dancer, Company Manager) is a dancer, choreographer, and teaching artist born and raised in Phoenix, Arizona. Heavily involved in the Hip-hop community, she pulls from various dance forms, such as Waacking, House, Locking, Breaking, Hip-hop, Postmodern Contemporary, and Tap in her performance work, choreography, and freestyle/battle practice. She is a graduate of Arizona State University, obtaining a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance, a Minor in Justice Studies, and two Certificates in Arts Entrepreneurship and Social Practice in Design and the Arts. In addition, Maggie is a Fulbright Summer Institute Participant, a recipient of the Joan Frazer Memorial Award for Judaism and the Arts, and a published writer. She recently became an FY24 Arts and Humanities Fellow through the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities. In Washington, DC Maggie was the Programs and Partnerships Coordinator at Dance Exchange. She currently lives in NYC, dancing and making. Maggie is deeply honored to be a Principal Dancer of Rennie Harris Puremovement, as well as Company Manager.
RACHEL SNIDER (“Hungry Ray”) Principal Dancer, Rehearsal Director; is a Chambersburg, PA native who relocated to Philadelphia in 2016. She began her dance training at age three, with ballet, modern, and dance competition. At age twelve, Rachel began studying Hip-hop with Jason Reed in REACH! Hip Hop in Carlisle, PA. She furthered her training with Moncell Durden and his company Keystone Dance Project, learning Hip-hop, Locking, House, Breaking, and discovered her true passion for movement. Moncell introduced Rachel to her mentor, Marcus Tucker, where she trained with The Hood Lockers for eight years where she was a core member of the company and Hood Nation. She is an alumnus at Jacob’s Pillow for Social Dances - Jazz to Hip Hop and has performed across college campuses. She has taught workshops at Ursinus College, York College, and assisted Marcus Tucker’s teaching residency at Eastern University. In Philadelphia, she teaches at Johnson’s Movemakers Philly, and Lisa Welsch’s First Position Dance Arts. Rachel has been a core member of Rennie Harris Puremovement since 2022.
ANGEL ANDERSON (Principal dancer) is a performing artist, scholar, and educator from the south suburbs of Chicago. Encompassing various dance forms rooted in Africanist traditions, her movement archive includes street and club dance forms, modern and contemporary sensibilities, neo traditional African dances, and traditional West African dances. Anderson is an alumna of the University of Illinois at UrbanaChampaign where she obtained her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance and Bachelor of Science in Psychology. Performing nationally as a principal dancer of RHPM, Angel has also assisted Harris in works such as “Dear Frankie” (Hubbard Street Dance Chicago) and “Jacobs Ladder “ (Dayton Contemporary Dance Company). Anderson has studied at Rennie Harris University and Ecole Des Sables via the Training Diaspora Africa program and is currently an MFA student of University of Colorado Boulder.
JOSHUA ARCHIBALD (“butterfly.god”) Principal dancer; Jamaican-born and Miamibased, Joshua is a multidisciplinary artist with a focus on spiritual and esoteric material. He draws inspiration from the religious teachings of his youth and the consequent spiritual journey of adulthood. He was a drummer for his church as well as
his high school jazz ensemble. During the later years of his education, he became an engineering student and simultaneously found interest in theatre. As a dance major he received most of his ballet and contemporary training at Miami-Dade College under Michelle Grant-Murray. In addition to his participation in the dance program, he independently trained in Hip-hop and other street styles with different crews and leaders in the community. Now, he is developing his own movement to lay the foundation for future works.
MIYEKO URVASHI RENNIE HARRIS Apprentice dancer; was born in Philadelphia, and began training in Austin, Texas, at the age of eight. She later returned to Philadelphia and began her pre-professional training at the Koresh School of Dance, training under Melissa Rector, Roni Koresh, and Eva Szabo, and performed with the Koresh Youth Ensemble for three years. Most recently, she performed with MauraTownsend Dance in the Los Angeles Dance Festival at the Luckman Theatre. Harris is in her second year of college at California State University Los Angeles. She is excited to be performing with RHPM and looks forward to this next chapter in her life.
TYREIS HUNTE (Associate dancer) is a Creole Amazônido world creator born the country of Guyana and was raised as a global artistic nomad. Tyreis is keen on the historic and contemporary contributions of street culture in global societies and the integrity of consuming/producing the contemporary black. They are a Davis World Scholar and alum of the United World College, Changshu China, receiving their Bachelor of Arts with distinction in Dance and Asian Studies with focus on Movement Therapy from St. Olaf College. This influenced their participation and work in joining the inaugural cohort of Rennie Harris University Hip-hop Certification Program and receiving certification in Men’s and Women’s Design from Istituto di Moda Burgo in Milan, Italy. Some of Hunte’s collaborators include Lloyd N D’Arts Production Company, Animation Dance Crew, Giada Negroni(DueDa), Arneshia Williams, Cudjoe Emmanuel, Heather Klopchin, and CompanyDance. They are currently a 2024 CAAAS research fellow and a Master of Fine Arts in Dance candidate at the University of Colorado Boulder. Tyreis is the raining Samba King Colorado.
TAYLOR MADGETT (“Tay-Tay”) Associate dancer; received her Master of Fine Arts in Dance with a certificate in Hip-hop studies from the University of Colorado Boulder in 2020 under the mentorship of Rennie Harris. She was born in Atlanta, Georgia and received her Bachelor of Arts in History from Emory University. Taylor specializes in Hip-hop, House, Afro and Twerk dance styles and recently co-founded the dance company, Raw Groove. Raw Groove is a dynamic duo consisting of Constance Harris and Taylor Madgett, created in 2021 during their time in graduate school. Raw Groove performs, choreographs, teaches and creates productions in the Denver metro, Aurora and Boulder areas. As a dancer, teacher, and scholar, Taylor blends these experiences to form her artist and human self.
DARRIN M. ROSS (Sound Designer, Composer, Musical Director, Engineer) has been producing and engineering songs since 1984 with Jam On Productions. He has recently completed the score for Suzan Lori Parks Top Dog/Underdog He is also the recipient of a 2001 New York Dance & Performance Award (BESSIE) for his music composition for “Rome & Jewels”. Mr. Ross has worked with and established
many artists in the industry such as PM Dawn, Newcleus, Aphillyation, Ram Squad, Tuff Crew, Doug E. Fresh, King Britt, ZHANE, Helen Bruner and more. In 1992, he formed I.Q. Records and is now directing his own production company, KIA-TIFF. Past collaborations with Rennie Harris include the 1990 Co-production of television segments for “Dance Party USA” and “One House Street”, scoring and composition efforts for works set on The Pennsylvania Ballet and The Memphis Ballet and various movies.
JAMES CLOTFELTER (Production Videography & Lighting Designer) is committed to the creation of collaborative and socially conscious work for the built environment, live performance, and public space. With over twenty years of design experience, James strives to situate design as an evolving narrative that is time-based, empathetic and distinctly relevant. James has an MFA Double Major in Transdisciplinary Design and Lighting Design from Parsons School of Design in NYC. In 2018, James designed the lighting for Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater’s Lazarus, by choreographer, Rennie Harris. Beyond his independent practice, James regularly collaborates with Derek Porter Studio the lighting group at Buro Happold Engineering and architects such as Snøhetta, Machado Silvetti, Fentress Architects, Gould Evans, Jeffrey Beers International and Nelson Byrd Woltz Landscape Architects and more.
ADMINISTRATIVE STAFF & DIRECTORS
RODNEY HILL Executive Director; For more than a decade, Hill has blazed the stages in venues, nationally and abroad. He has been featured in videos for Boys II Men, Will Smith, and Musiq Soulchild, and more. He has also performed on TV shows such as R&B Divas: Los Angeles, Late Night with Conan O’Brien, Soul Train, NBC’s NFL Under the Helmet, and BET’s Teen Summit. He has toured and performed with Rennie Harris Puremovement, R&B singer Brave Williams, Julian King, R&B group AAries, Mad Skillz, rapper Eve, R&B legend Teddy Pendergrass, Janet Jackson’s Dj Aktive, R&B singer Shanice Wilson, Mary J. Blige, 50 Cent, and Philly’s own The Roots. Hill has performed and taught at universities and dance studios locally, nationally, and internationally in London, Santiago (Chile), Toronto, Bermuda, Monaco. Bogotá; Democratic Republic of Congo, East Asia, Egypt, England, Israel, and Palestine. In 2020, Hill graduated from Wilson College in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, with an MFA in choreography. Hill’s inspiration for dance comes from his community and family. In January 2022, Hill was sworn in as Councilman for Sharon Hill, Pennsylvania.
*A SPECIAL THANKS TO
Joan Myers Brown and the Philadelphia Dance Company. The Theater and Dance Department at the University of Colorado @Boulder, Pew Charitable Trust, Dance Advance, Penn Pat, Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, Ford Foundation, Guggenheim, Dance USA, The Alan M. Kriegsman Residency, The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, National Dance Project, National Performance Network, NEFA for over thirty years of unwavering support.
RENNIE HARRIS PUREMOVEMENT STAFF & DIRECTORS DIRECTORY
Rennie Harris, Founder/Choreographer | rennieharris@rhpm.org
Rodney Hill, Executive Directorr | rodneyhill@rhpm.org
Marguerite Waller, Company Manager | rhpm.adm@gmail.com
Rachel Snider, Rehearsal Director | rachelsnider98@gmail.com
Angelina P. Labate, RH Archival Directorr | angelinaasda@gmail.com
Fernanda Romero, Rennie Harris University M. Directorr | rhumanaging@gmail.com
CONTACT INFORMATION
Rodney S. Hill Executive Director, Telephone: 267 236 4097 email: rodneyhill@ RHPM.org Website: www.RHPM.org Facebook: www.FACEBOOK.com/ RennieHarrisPuremovment Twitter: Twitter.com/RHPM For more information about Rennie Harris Puremovement American Street Dance Theater: www.RHPM.org
Lívia Mattos
Trio
APR 18 + 19
ART OF PERFORMANCE
The Art of Performance program is supported in part by Art of Performance Endowment, Arthur F. and Ulla R. Searing Endowment, Dorothy Jenkins Ringling Museum Endowment, Ed and Elaine Keating Endowment, Ellin Family Art of Our Time Endowment, Leon and Margaret Ellin Fund, Mandell and Madeleine Berman Foundation Endowment, Selby Foundation Endowment, Stanley and Gloria Goldman Endowment, Michael & Kathy Bush, Warren R. & Marie E. Colbert, The Huisking Foundation, and Judith and Stephen Shank.
LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT The Ringling respectfully acknowledges that we are located on the traditional Homelands and the ancestral territories of the Seminole Tribe of Florida and the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida, as well as the ancient tribes of the Calusa, Uzita and Tocobaga. We also acknowledge the local freedomseeking community called Angola, and the people later known as Black Seminoles. We honor the resiliency of Indigenous communities, and we extend our gratitude as we live and work on their Homelands. We pay our respect to the Elders, both past and present, who have stewarded these lands and waters through generations since time immemorial.
