As a choreographer, I have the blessing of creating a world, on stage, that looks a little bit more as it should in real life. More harmony, more fluidity, and yes more integrated diversity. Alvin Ailey said the following, “art – can be a bridge to bringing people together, and then furthering that by literally presenting people of black and white together onstage.” Art has a way of disarming us. A way of challenging everyone. A way of presenting an old idea in a new frame. That is the power of art. Ailey also said that he wanted to “show my people how beautiful they are. I want to hold up the mirror to my audience that says this is the way people can be…..”. I would like it very much if rpm dance could be a foreshadowing of heaven in that regard. Everyone is welcome. Everyone is there with the common goal of realizing their best self and respecting everyone else on that journey. At the foot of the cross the ground is level. No one is higher, no one is lower, we are all on our knees before perfection. Not that we have already attained it, but we aspire to reflect a community that looks a lot like what heaven will look like. My heart is to elevate all artists, from the dancer to the choreographer. Along with that I hope, like Ailey, that people will see the beauty of all colors together, in motion.
Renee P. Mitchell
