Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Kimberly Miguel Mullen. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Kimberly , looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Learning the craft is often a unique journey from every creative – we’d love to hear about your journey and if knowing what you know now, you would have done anything differently to speed up the learning process.

Sacred Oricha dance (and all cultural dance form in general) is a high art form and should be revered on the same level that Ballet and/or Contemporary dance forms. It’s perplexing to me, the hierarchy of dance recognition in this country and how little acknowledgement cultural dance forms receive in regards to their difficulty and complexity. Cultural dance forms are rich and vast – there are genres within genres and to master any one of the dances is a lifetime study.

As an Oricha soloist, you not only need to learn the dance steps that coordinate to specific rhythms but you need effectively embody the characteristic of the Oricha and execute this all within a limited structure of improvisation and rhythm and song transitions. Each Oricha dance tells the story of their life so there are so many components that need to come together at the same time in order for it to be considered good and that requires years upon years of immersion and apprenticeships with Master teachers.

An educated audience bases the success of a performance on authenticity and accuracy; how well the performer can authentically transmit the energy of the Oricha while demonstrating technical accuracy of the steps. There is a tremendous amount of pressure on the performer to appease both the religious and artistic communities.

It’s took me 30-years to progress through the ranks from student, to performer, to teacher and still, no matter how many years of experience I have, I can still relate to that beginner dancer in me from when I first started learning. I am still challenged and there is always something new to learn – they push me in ways that help me grow not only as a dance technician but as a person. It’s a humble and vulnerable process. The deeper you go, the more you uncover how much there is to discover.

Now a days, students have access to video tutorials which I think is the biggest game changer in a dancers ability to learn at a faster rate. My early teachers wouldn’t allow note taking let alone filming and recording. I often think about how different my career would have been had I had access to the video tutorial platform that I am now able to provide my own students. With greater access and more diverse channels for study, students have an opportunity to excel at the dances at a faster rate than I did and I am proud of contributing to the legacy of preservation that enables more people to benefit from these rich and healing dances.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Dance is my tool for connection. My belief is that dance reflects life, so I travel to dance with the world. After many years of immersion in the movement cultures of the U.S., Brazil and the Caribbean, I can wholeheartedly encourage learning about the world through the lens of dance. The joy, healing, and abundance that I have witnessed dance bring to people transcends any boundaries of race, gender, class or language.

Movement is the most profound way that people connect to themselves, each other, and nature. It’s often where creative life force is found, and where life found is found and where spirit is defined. My love for dance is rooted in my research and travels to the origins, and grounded in my gratitude for the Master teachers who have taught me and shared with me their knowledge through apprenticeships. The practice of learning and teaching is a refinement process accessible to anyone; when we travel with this intention we can celebrate the differences of our humanity as we grow. May we are share in the dance of life together.

Love, kmm

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

PRESERVATION. As a dance ethnologist my work centers around the preservation of cultural dance forms; specifically African diaspora ritual dances preserved in the Caribbean (Cuba) & Brazil and the various religious and secular contexts in which the dance practices thrive.

As a foreigner and someone who has gained exposure to these dance cultures through 30-years of cultural immersion, apprenticeships and research, I see myself as an educational bridge that shares the universal power of these dances to heal, unite, and empower people. I carry the honor, respect, and responsibility of my academic and dance teachers – as well as my spiritual family who have given me their permission to share the knowledge they have shared with me.

How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?

EDUCATION. Dancers should strive to narrow the educational gap between the dance technique (ie. the dance steps) and the historical and cultural knowledge of the dances. The same effort you put into learning the steps, you must put into research, reading, writing, singing, drumming, and traveling to the county to immerse yourself in the daily life of the people. It’s more than an art form, it’s a way of life. A lifetime study.

Dancers have to be able to speak intellectually about the dances in an educated and informed way so that you uplift the culture so that you don’t perpetuate racist and derogatory stereotypes. There is potential for great damage having access to these powerful dances and yet have very little knowledge of their history and the people whose culture they represent so I want to encourage dancers to be well rounded in their learning approach.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://kmmdancestudio.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/kmm_virtual_dance_studio
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kmmullen
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kimberly-miguel-mullen-5b661730
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@kmmdance

Image Credits
Kevin Focht & Melissa Maurer