Collective Thread provides a voice and a platform for artistic self-impression to those women identifying artists of underrepresented ethnic groups within the medium of dance. ***PLEASE NOTE: MADC uses the term “women” to encompass all those that self-identify as women including cisgender, transgender, nonbinary, or gender non-conforming. We honor and respect all identities.*** The goal of Collective Thread is to instill artists with the necessary tools to take on leadership roles in an effort to increase diversity, inclusion, and gender equality in the dance field.

 

MADC’s Collective Thread Dance Festival & Residency is made possible in part with funding from the West Harlem Development Corporation (WHDC) Community Benefits Grant; New York State Council on the Arts; by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council; the Lower Manhattan Cultural Center (LMCC) Creative Engagement Grant; and the Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone (UMEZ) Arts Engagement Grant.

Thoughts of You

Choreographed by: Leah Tubbs, Solenn Etienne, Mireille Lorenzo, Shakerah McDowell, & Lauren Mueller

Performed by: Solenn Etienne, Mireille Lorenzo, Shakerah McDowell, & Lauren Mueller

Music: Ahn Trio

 

Website: www.modartsdance.com

Instagram: @ModArts_Dance

Facebook: MODArts Dance Collective

 

Leah Tubbs (she, her, hers), a Birmingham, Alabama native & Harlem resident, studied dance at Alabama School of Fine Arts (ASFA) and the University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa. She has performed with various dance companies in Alabama, Ohio, California, Texas, and New York. MODArts Dance Collective (MADC), established in 2011 by Leah and Shaun Tubbs, holds space for Black, Indigenous, & People of Color (BIPOC) through its choreographic work, festivals, concerts, residencies, & workshops. The mission of MADC is to utilize movement as the catalyst to increase IDEA (inclusion, diversity, equity, & access) as a form of resistance & liberation for Black & Brown people nationwide. 

The Invocation/Pleading

Choreographed by: Ashlyn Williams (she, her, hers)

Performed by: Destiny Delancey, Vanessa Fry, Jasmine Joyner, Joanna Divine-Kitenge, Raquelle Koonkoon, Chu Chi Samuel, & Katherine Stephen 

Music: Journey by Hans Zimmer, Lorne Balfe and Drum Warfare by David Fesliyan

Vocals: Tired by Ashlyn Williams

 

Instagram: @ppacsocial @ashlynlanguageart

 

Ashlyn Christina, a native of Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, is a dancer, teaching artist, choreographer, filmmaker, and arts administrator. She studied Ballet, Modern, Tap, African, and Jazz throughout her schooling, later graduating with honors with a degree in Business Administration, and Dance at Hunter College, focusing on Ballet, Horton, Graham technique, and African Diasporic styles. She’s choreographed award-winning works for competitions such as Battle in the Apple and That’s Entertainment. Ashlyn's performance repertoire includes company work with Eden Center for the Performing Arts (2019-2023), Soul Dance Co. (2020-2023) and repertory through internship with Ronald K. Brown and EVIDENCE (2022). She's performing on various stages such as Symphony Space, the Kaye Playhouse and the Battery Park Dance Festival in NYC.  In 2020, Ashlyn founded the Purpose Performing Arts Collective, where she serves as Artistic Director, choreographing for both stage and film.  Her notable works include ‘When All Is Said and Done’ (2021), ‘A New Thing’ (2023), and ‘A Light unto my Path’ (2024). Ashlyn aims to inspire others through her art, emphasizing authenticity and perseverance and re-claiming one’s artistic voice through movement. 

You Can’t Break My Soul!

Choreographed by: Kaleigh Ogunniyi (she, her, hers)

Performed by: Kaleigh Ogunniyi & Mariah-Renee Pratt

Music: BREAK MY SOUL by Beyoncé

 

Kaleigh Ogunniyi is a 10-year aspiring dancer from Rockland County, NY. She has been dancing since the age of 3 at the Edge School of the Arts (ESOTA). She has performed in 7 evening length dance recitals, appeared in dance films and music videos, and has performed in community events throughout Queens, Brooklyn, and Manhattan with her dance school. She choreographed and performed in her first dance duet in March 2024 for her school's talent show. Kaleigh looks forward to more opportunities to dance so that she can express herself and have fun!  

氓Shackle

Choreographed by: He Linli (she, her, hers) with collaborator Ouyang Shilong

Performed by: He Linli & Zheng Siyao

Music: Circle 

 

Instagram: @amy_hll97

 

He Linli, Born in Beijing in December 1997, Studied at Minzu University of China for BFA and studied at The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts  for MFA, majored in Dance Pedagogy. Currently teaching at Wuhan University of Communication for Chinese Folk Dance, Contemporary Dance, Ballet and Dance repertoire courses, etc. Has been exposed to Dance Choreography since 2018, likes using props in dance, and hopes to use dance to illustrate stories related to feminism.

It Really Is A WonderFULL Life

Choreographed by: Audrey Hubbard Madison (she, her, hers)

Performed by: Michele Ashley; Cynthia Cummings; Jackie Davis- Manigault; Angela Eargle- Bell; Sheila Kennedy; Bernadette Lewis; Angela Lomax; Karen McClain Marvin; Beverly Moore; Marie Rosenberg; Terry Walden; & Audrey Hubbard Madison 

Music: A Beautiful Day by India Arie; Golden by Jill Scott

 

Website: ​​https://www.mojazzdance.com/

Instagram: @mojazzdance

Facebook: MoJazz Dance

 

MoJazz Dance is a Brooklyn, NY based company, comprised of African American, Caribbean American, Latin American women of a certain age, currently 50 – 75+ years young. This ensemble communicates with heart and spirituality, with dances that celebrate, honor, inspire and empower women of color.

Founder and artistic director Audrey Hubbard Madison was born and raised in Brooklyn. Audrey was an original member of the Charles Moore Dance Theater and has toured the Caribbean as well as the United States. Performance highlights include Dance Africa, Dance Black America, Jacobs Pillow, Symphony Space, Lincoln Center Outdoors and Theater of Riverside Church. 

Crafting a Body/ Hacerse un Cuerpo

Choreographed & Performed by: Yarumi González (she, her, hers)

Original creation by Yarumi González 

Audiovisual production by Jesús Reyes

Sound design by Jesús Reyes and Yarumi González 

Sound post-production and mixing by Víctor Hugo Rivera 

Field sound recording by Víctor Hugo Rivera 

Photography by Sofía Saavedra 

Production by Yarumi González, Arquímedes Blanco, and Yolimar Medina

Ritual performed by: Yolimar Medina, Ketsy Medina, Liset Ariyuri Medina, Lesly Pérez, Johana Vivas, Sofía Saavedra, Arquímedes Blanco, & Rafael Jiménez

Video: Jesús Reyes and Yarumi González

 

Website: https://www.monkeyhouselovesme.com/yarumi-gonzaacutelez.html

Instagram: @yarueliza

 

Special thanks to: Vanessa González, Identidades Nómadas, Franco Ufre, Arquímedes Blanco "Chocolate" and the community garden "El Kilombo," a space recovered by the community of Parroquia Altagracia-Caracas, and Kasa Cultural La Minka. The Dance Complex. Monkeyhouse. aMaSSiT Program.

 

Originally from Caracas, Venezuela and currently based in Boston, Yarumi González defines herself as a creator and researcher in the fields of movement, ritual, dance, theater, and grassroots organization. Since childhood, she has been deeply moved by art and social struggles.

 

She conceives of art as a multifaceted field that extends beyond mere aesthetic enjoyment; it mirrors intricate social and power dynamics. In this sense, she has worked extensively with rural and urban communities, blending art with community outreach.

 

She studied Arts at the Universidad Central de Venezuela and later pursued contemporary dance at the Universidad Nacional Experimental de las Artes in Caracas. She has trained and collaborated with renowned dance, theater, visual arts, and circus masters from Venezuela and Latin America, including Gregorio Magdaleno, Juan Carlos De Petre, Lidija Franklin, Sofía Saavedra, Inés Rojas, Jericó Montilla, Luis Roblejo. She is currently dancing with the company Danza Orgánica led by Mar Parrilla, and with Power of Skirts, led by Isaura Oliveira.

 

me to me: an exploration of love and freedom

Choreographed & Performed by: Jacquelyn Batten (she, they)

Sound: Kiana Bargeman 

Lighting Concept Violet Tafari

Music: the root - D'Angelo

Vocals: diary entry - Jacquelyn Batten

 

Instagram: @choosewisely__ @soullection 

 

Personal acknowledgements: Thank you to Leah Tubbs & MODArts Dance Collective, and to my family and village for lifting me up.

 

Jacquelyn Batten (she/they) is a Bed-Stuy based movement artist and choreographer, with NC roots. Jacquelyn’s work centers around Black movement, social theory and spirituality, using these ideas as tools to further understand herself and the world around her. They create and share dance as (soul)lection, a movement entity made for healing, sharing, teaching, listening, and learning. Beyond her own projects, Jacquelyn works as an arts administrator, is an active member of the Legendary Kiki House of Marciano, and is a freelance performer working with other choreographers and collaborators to bring their work to life.

Eka - One Mind

Choreographed & Performed by: Samadrita Bhattacharyya and Meghma Banerjee (she, her, hers)

Music: Eka - One Mind (original song composed and choreographed by SOI, arranged and performed by Satyaprakash Mishra and team in Mumbai)

Vocals: Dhanasree tillana by Swaati TirunaaL

 

Instagram: @souls.ofindia

Facebook: Souls of India

 

Souls of India is a Boston based Indian Creative Arts Collaboration company co-founded by Meghma Banerjee and Samadrita Bhattacharyya. Our main goal is to serve the community through unique and creative dance pieces telling legendary stories of rich Indian mythology, novels of Indian poets and playwrights through musicals/dance dramas, and recreating iconic stories using Indian classical dance forms namely Kathak and Bharatanatyam, Rabindranritya, and Bengali contemporary dance forms with interesting background score and footwork. As Souls of India, Samadrita and Meghma have been performing since 2021 as invited artists in different in different organizations like Indian association of Greater Boston, CRY for America, Prabasi of New England, Massachusetts Maritime Academy, and also as selected artists at dance festivals like Dance for World Community Festival 2024, Nachmo Boston chapter 2025, MOD Arts Collective at NYC 2025, Intergrant Dance festival at NYC, Yuva Festival 2025 at Houston. We have hosted and performed at our independent sold-out ticketed concert Aikya-The Union in 2024 with live musicians from across the nation and directing and producing our fundraiser event "Sayyam- Journey of the seekers" in Cary Hall, Lexington, MA on Aug 10, 2025.

 

Circles, Section 8

Choreographed by: Leah Tubbs, Ellicia Clayton, Solenn Etienne, Doria Marchena, Mireille Lorenzo, Shakerah McDowell, & Lauren Mueller

Performed by: Ellicia Clayton, Solenn Etienne, Doria Marchena, Mireille Lorenzo, Shakerah McDowell, & Lauren Mueller

Music: Bobby McFerrin

 

Website: www.modartsdance.com

Instagram: @ModArts_Dance

Facebook: MODArts Dance Collective

 

Leah Tubbs, a Birmingham, Alabama native & Harlem resident, studied dance at Alabama School of Fine Arts (ASFA) and the University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa. She has performed with various dance companies in Alabama, Ohio, California, Texas, and New York. MODArts Dance Collective (MADC), established in 2011 by Leah and Shaun Tubbs, holds space for Black, Indigenous, & People of Color (BIPOC) through its choreographic work, festivals, concerts, residencies, & workshops. The mission of MADC is to utilize movement as the catalyst to increase IDEA (inclusion, diversity, equity, & access) as a form of resistance & liberation for Black & Brown people nationwide. 

Introduction & Recognition of the 2025 CREATE | SHARE | INSPIRE Legacy Award Recipient: Dianne McIntyre

Dianne McIntyre is considered a pioneer for her groundbreaking work as a choreographer, dancer, teacher, curator and director. She celebrates 53 years as a dance-maker and founder of her first company of dancers and musicians, Sounds in Motion. The company toured throughout

the U.S. and abroad and the Harlem-based Sounds in Motion studio was for many years, a central hub of creative activity with classes, studio performances, rehearsals, and a gathering place for the “culture crowd” to explode with ideas. She has choreographed for her own and

other dance companies including Dance Theatre of Harlem, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Philadanco Cleo Parker Robinson Dance, Dayton Contemporary Dance Company, Dancing Wheels, and GroundWorks Dance Theater; several Broadway and Off-Broadway shows, three operas, around 35 regional theatre productions, a London West End musical, feature films, television productions, stage movement for recording artists and, so far, created five original full-length dance dramas.  McIntyre has had choreography and teaching residencies in countless universities and continues associations with American Dance Festival, Bates Dance Festival and Jacob’s Pillow where she has been the co-director with Risa Steinberg of the Hicks Choreography Fellowship Program. Her current work “In the Same Tongue” is currently touring supported by a grant from New England Foundation for the Arts/National Dance Project. Highlighted concert works: “Life’s Force”, “Take-Off from a Forced Landing”, based on her mother’s stories as an aviator; and “Their Eyes Were Watching God”, based on the Zora Neale Hurston novel. In 1991 after extensive research, she recreated dance pioneer Helen Tamiris’ epic 1937 work “How Long, Brethren?”  For the screen: “Beloved”, “Langston Hughes: The Dream Keeper”, “Miss Evers’ Boys” (Emmy award nomination).

 

Inspired to create work derived from real life narratives, McIntyre has conceptualized and directed her own “dance-driven dramas” that have appeared in both dance and theatre venues. Notable works are “Open the Door, Virginia!” from 1950s civil rights activism, and “I Could

Stop on a Dime and Get Ten Cents Change: A Ballroom Drama” based on her father’s life stories.

 

Awards include: A 2022 Dance Magazine Award Honoree, a 2023 Martha Hill Lifetime Achievement Awardee, 2020 United States Artists Doris Duke Fellowship, and 2016 Doris Duke Artist Award recipient. Other honors: John S. Guggenheim Fellowship, three Bessie Awards,

two AUDELCOs, one Helen Hayes award, National Black Theatre Teer Pioneer Award, Def Dance Jam Community Butterfly Award, Harlem Arts Alliance Award, The International Acclaim Legendary Artist Award from IABD. She has also received Honorary Doctor of Fine

Arts Degrees from SUNY Purchase and Cleveland State University.

 

McIntyre has worked in collaboration with master music innovators: Olu Dara, Lester Bowie, Max Roach, Sharon Freeman, Butch Morris, Amina Claudine Myers, Cecil Taylor, Don Pullen, Kysia Bostic, Onaje Allan Gumbs, Abbey Lincoln, Hannibal Lokumbe, Ahmed Abdullah and many others. Along with her mentors, her fellow dancers and collaborative composers, McIntyre acknowledges the influence of directors and playwrights with whom she has worked: Bartlett Sher, Marion McClinton, Regina Taylor, Des McAnuff, Jonathan Demme, Douglas Turner Ward,August Wilson, OyamO, Ntozake Shange, Avery Brooks, Rita Dove, Joe Sargent, Rick Davis, Woodie King, Jr., Irene Lewis, Oz Scott and Ricardo Khan.

 

A dance alum of the Ohio State University her mentors include Elaine Gibbs Redmond, Gus Solomons jr, Louise Roberts, Vera Blaine, Helen Alkire and Richard Davis.

​

You can click here to access the full interview with Dianne McIntyre.

www.diannemcintyre.com

Gratitude and Thanks

MADC would like to thank our 2024/25 donors: Sharon Banks, Paul Brill & Alicia Stivala Brill, Lauren DeGeorge, Sherema Fleming, Karen & Brian Lowy, Tanya Patton, Adriana Ray, William-Michael Cooper Rivera, & Harriette Smiley. MADC is grateful to be receiving funding this season from the International Association of Blacks in Dance (IABD) COHI | MOVE Gamma Collective Cohort with the Mellon Foundation (2024-26), West Harlem Development Corporation (WHDC), the New York State Council on the Arts, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council, the Lower Manhattan Cultural Center Creative Engagement Grant, and the Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Arts Engagement Grant. We are thankful to be receiving subsidized studio rates as a company-in-residence at Hi-ARTS.

 

Support

MODArts Dance Collective, Inc. (MADC) is always grateful to receive contributions to continue to expand and amplify the reach of holding space for BIPOC artists & communities through its choreographic work, festivals, concerts, residencies, & workshops. MADC is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization and all donations are tax deductible; EIN: 87-2210130. Please consider contributing to MADC here.