Chicago Black Dance Legacy Project & 150 Media Stream Present COLOR IN MOTION An Activation and Installation

The Chicago Black Dance Legacy Project at The University of Chicago's Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts and 150 Media Stream present Color in Motion, a dance film featuring Deeply Rooted Dance Theater, on view through November 16, 2022 at 150 N Riverside Plaza, a commercial space that showcases the work of local and International Artists, bringing art to everyday life.

The exhibition will include an activation on October 14, 2022 from 7-9pm at 150 N Riverside Plaza, including a live performance element, and an artist talkback with film creators Princess Mhoon and Nicole Clarke-Springer, moderated by Emily Hooper Lansana, Senior Director of Community Arts at the Logan Center. Space is limited, RSVP here.

The film, choreographed by award-winning director & choreographer Princess Mhoon, with special guest choreography by Deeply Rooted Dance Theater's artistic director Nicole Clarke-Springer, is a physical exploration of color, capturing virtuosic dancers as they move through undulating hues and emotions.

This exhibition and activation are a part of 150 Media Stream's programming at 150 N Riverside Plaza. Curated by Yuge Zhou, this program presents multimedia art on a unique architectural screen located in the building's lobby. Consisting of 89 LED blades that ignite into light, color, and movement across a wingspan of 150 feet, this dynamic screen has previously been populated by the work of fiber artist Bisa Butler, dancers from The Joffrey Ballet, and more.

The Chicago Black Dance Legacy Project (CBDLP), developed through a partnership between Logan Center Community Arts at the University of Chicago and the Joyce Foundation's Culture Program, as well as leaders from each dance company, is a multi-year project that celebrates the historic impact of Chicago-based Black choreographers in the national dance community. This project highlights Deeply Rooted Dance Theater, a member of the CBDLP's first cohort, and aims to bring attention to the power of Black dance in Chicago and affirm its place in the city's rich history.

Important Details:

Exhibition on view weekdays from 12-1:30pm & 4:30-10pm and weekends from 1-7pm through November 16, 2022.

An activation, including a live performance accompanying the film, and an artist talkback, will occur on Friday, October 14, 2022, 7-9pm. RSVP here. Tix are free, but limited.

Location: 150 N Riverside Plaza, Chicago IL 60606

Visit www.150mediastream.com for more about the exhibition. For more information about the Chicago Black Dance Legacy Project, visit chicagoblackdancelegacy.org.

Princess Mhoon is a choreographer, director, producer, educator, and scholar recognized in 2015 by HUFFINGTON POST as one of 26 Female Choreographers "You Should Know" and Dance Magazine's 2006 "Top 25 to Watch." Mhoon is a second generation artist and entrepreneur who has set her sights on enhancing the artistic landscape of the Nation's Capital. In 2016 she was invited by First Lady Michelle Obama to participate in her Celebration of Black Women in Dance; she also served as a panelist for The White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for African Americans during Women's History Month and was acknowledged by the administration as Black Girl Change Maker. Mhoon is also a 2015 Helen Hayes Award Nominee for Best Choreography in a Musical, a Helen Hayes winner for Best Musical, and one of 37 International Artists invited to Lusaka, Zambia for solo performance and master classes at the 2015 Barefeet Theatre Festival for vulnerable youth sponsored by UNICEF. She is also a 2016 class member of Leadership Greater Washington (www.lgw.dc.org). With work commissioned by the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and the DC Jazz Festival, Princess Mhoon has been called "A visionary of her generation." She is the Founder and Director of the Princess Mhoon Dance Institute with locations in DC and Maryland. Mhoon has served on faculty at Howard University, where she received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Dance and a Master of Arts degree in Public History. Her research focuses on Dance History and the African-American experience in dance. In 2015, she was awarded the Owen Dodson DISTINGUISHED ALUMNI award from her Alma Mater. A native of Chicago, Illinois, she began her training with Alyo Children's Dance Theatre, Joseph Holmes Dance Studio, and Muntu Dance Theatre of Chicago. Mhoon Cooper has received numerous awards and scholarships for her excellence in dance, including recognition from the American Dance Festival, Dance Magazine, Howard University, Career Transitions for Dancers, and the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. She has performed and toured with the world renowned Ronald K. Brown/Evidence Dance Company, Rennie Harris Puremovement, The Chuck Davis African American Dance Ensemble, Nathan Trice Rituals, and Deeply Rooted Productions. She is the founder of DANCING FEET, an integrated arts program that includes classes and workshops for schools and outreach institutions. She is currently the director of the Chicago Black Dance Legacy Project.

Nicole Clarke-Springer began formal training under the guidance of Claudette Soltis (Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo and Joliet Ballet Society) and the Indianapolis Ballet Theatre under Dace Diodonis. She received her B.S. in arts administration-dance from Butler University in Indianapolis, where she was honored as Butler Ballet's Outstanding Performer. Shortly after graduating from Butler, Clarke-Springer found her dance home within the Deeply Rooted Dance Theater family-first as an apprentice and later as a company member. As a member of DRDT, she had the opportunity to perform with Roberta Flack in Kevin Iega Jeff's Flack, as well as Jennifer Holiday in the world renowned Penumbra Theatre's Black Nativity. She briefly left the company in 2007 to serve as adjunct professor in Western Kentucky University's Dance Department. While there, she was asked to join the Clifton Brown Dance Company, performing on its tour to Istanbul, Turkey. The same year, Clarke-Springer returned to the Deeply family as program director of its Summer Dance Intensive. During this time, she began deepening her choreographic voice, creating and later setting works including Nine, Dounia, and Femme for the main and second companies. She also served as assistant choreographer to Kevin Iega Jeff for Congo Square Theatre's Nativity for two years. In 2013, Clarke-Springer joined Kevin Iega Jeff and Gary Abbott as the newest member of the Deeply Rooted Artistic Team and was named Deeply Rooted Dance Theater's Emerging Choreographer for the program "Generations." Among the critical responses to her work Hadiya were these thoughts from Lynn Colburn Shapiro, See Chicago Dance: "a poignant memorial tribute...filled with...ritualistic gestures [that] carry a ceremonial theme...a living eulogy not only for the slain Hadiya Pendleton, but for all children who have lost their lives to violence." In August 2015, she traveled with Deeply Rooted to participate in JOMBA! Dance Festival hosted by Flatfoot Dance Company, where she set her ballet Until Lambs Become Lions on the host company. In 2016, Clarke-Springer choreographed the opening number for the nationally syndicated Steve Harvey ShowHalloween Celebration. She teaches and choreographs throughout the country and has been on faculty as an adjunct professor at Chicago State University and Western Kentucky University and is currently on staff at Northwestern University. Crediting Deeply Rooted's mission, Clarke-Springer works to create an environment where artists participate in a process that is not only spiritually affirming but requires open and honest dialogue that leads to self-reflection, constructive feedback, and accountability to the work required. She was appointed Artistic Director of Deeply Rooted Dance Theater in September 2019.

Chicago's Deeply Rooted Dance Theater is rooted in the traditions of American and African-American dance, storytelling, and universal themes that spark a visceral experience and ignite an emotional response in diverse audiences worldwide. DRDT collaborates with nationally renowned choreographers, across the spectrum of modern, ballet, and African dance, to reflect contemporary voices.

Designed as a home for the creative life of the University of Chicago campus and the city of Chicago, the Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts is a partner, resource, and catalyst for developing deeper cultural networks and richer creative projects citywide and beyond. Celebrating its tenth anniversary in 2022 and 2023, the Logan Center is a place where boundaries dissolve and artistic work is amplified through a web of collaborative partners. More than just a building, it is an innovative hub for arts education for UChicago students and Chicagoland students and families, a platform to showcase today's most innovative creators across all media, and a locus for impactful and collaborative artistic innovations with partners in nearby South Side communities and across Chicago.

Chicago has long been a significant hub of African American arts and culture. Chicago's Black community has played a defining role in dance history, from imbuing traditional forms with new vibrancy to establishing entirely new forms of urban dance. While Chicago's Black dance companies are as diverse as the city itself-from dancers to dance styles-they are all united by the African American heritage on which their work is centered. The Chicago Black Dance Legacy Project, developed through a partnership between Logan Center Community Arts, the Office of Civic Engagement's Community Programs Accelerator, and leaders from each dance company, is a multi-year project that celebrates the historic impact of Chicago-based Black choreographers in the national dance community, and strengthens the impact and reach of Black dance for generations to come. A founding grant from the Joyce Foundation's Culture Program and support from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation helped launch this groundbreaking project. Selected specifically for the history and impact of their work, Chicago Black Dance Legacy Project partners include legacy, next-generation, and arts education dance companies. The eight companies selected for the first cohort are: Ayodele Drum & Dance, The Chicago Multicultural Dance Company, Deeply Rooted Dance, Forward Momentum Chicago, Joel Hall Dancers & Center, Muntu Dance Theatre, NAJWA Dance Corps, Red Clay Dance Company. A new cohort will be announced soon.

Yuge Zhou is a Chinese-born, Chicago-based video artist and curator. As an artist, Zhou's work addresses connections, isolation, and longing across urban and natural environments. She has exhibited nationally and internationally in prominent art and public venues. Her dance film "Love Letters" is currently shown as part of Art on theMART's fall program, a nightly public art projection onto the facade of the Merchandise Mart, Chicago. Recent awards include Juried Award in the installation category at ArtPrize 2021, Artist Fellowship Award in Media Arts from the Illinois Arts Council and Honorary Mention in the 2020 Prix Ars Electronica in Linz, Austria. As a curator, she directs the 3300-square-foot 150 Media Stream. In this capacity, she has worked with over forty media artists and cultural institutions to create innovative programming each month that engages a cross-section of diverse communities.

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