We were lucky to catch up with Angelita Itzanami Andrade recently and have shared our conversation below.

Angelita Itzanami, appreciate you joining us today. What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on?

Angelita Itzanami, appreciate you joining us today. What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on?

The most meaningful project I have worked on has been SER. This is the first show I presented as an independent choreographer. SER was meaningful to me because it revealed a part of my soul, dedicated to Fabricio Torres and mi abuelito, Arturo Andrade.

My dear cousin, Fabricio “Picho” Torres, passed away February 5th, 2020. A humanly experience words cannot fully express: the depths of the mourning, the hurt, the thoughts, the regret, the pain, the grief and bodily groaning while being conscious and without neglecting the eternal love and joy that Picho continues to bring into our lives.

I became numb, it was too much to bear. My experience and existence being human, my humanness, came to the forefront of my thoughts; I began to wonder how people just live with all of these deep emotions and feelings after experiencing such tragedy. I am not the first to become numb to it all. I found myself in a state of simply existing and surviving in the mundane. How can I as a dancer release, express and embody the feelings that live within? How can I make this experience relate and connect to others?

I came to a point where I couldn’t numb it away, I needed a release and that’s when I decided to create SER. SER: to be or a state of being. A place where I could invite people into a space to explore the depths and release; a space I needed and imagined others did too. I invited the dancers to bring what they needed into the process. If they wanted to dance and not tap into the depth, they were welcome, and if they desired to explore the depths and feelings lingering within, they were welcome. The dancers from SER: Anna Jackson, Autumn Justice, Chaes Hatfield, Coreá Batey, Deanna Saunders, Faith Aldridge, Jahari Franklin, Leah Prince made this experience come to life so seamlessly and meaningful, I couldn’t have done it without them.

SER holds a very special place in my heart. It revealed a glimpse of my pain and love for Picho and mi abuelito. The personal understanding that my humanness mourns, but my eternal soul celebrates their peace. I am inspired by our humanness and continue to create from this place of revealing and rediscovering.

Angelita Itzanami, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I am Angelita Itzanami, a proud Mexican-American artist, born and raised in Woodstock, Georgia. The avenue in which I express my creativity and life experiences is through dance, movement and choreography. My mom tells everyone, I was born to dance. She has a film where she is holding a bed sheet over her belly when she was pregnant with me and you can see me moving and pushing around in her belly. My first introduction to a movement practice was Yoga at my preschool. There were no 3 year old Yoga classes at the time, so my mom decided to put me in a ballet class. I tried various other activities and especially tried to be a soccer player alongside my four brothers, but I would be doing arabesques and dancing on the field, so clearly I had a different calling.

I never imagined pursuing dance as a career, mainly because it was such a constant in my life and a deep passion for me. The desire to genuinely connect with others through dance and myself through movement is the core of my existence. Dance is more than “dance” for me; it’s connection, is revealing the soul, it’s awareness, it’s letting go of, it’s purpose, it’s embodying, it’s fun, free, communal and personal. To me, dance is a form of revealing life to yourself and others. My dream as a creative is for people to get a glimpse of what being human means for them. I believe, as dancers, we have a unique perspective and experience by exploring human athleticism while diving into the artistic. My desire is for non-dancers and dancers alike to feel something and understand themselves better when they see my work.

I am extremely grateful, humbled and honored of my bi-cultural experience and perspective as a Mexican-American. I take pride in my roots and my culture. Viva Mexico! Growing up, I felt disconnected from my colleagues or disconnected from my culture in the dance space. I didn’t have a representation of what being Mexican meant in my dance community. I dreamt of a studio where we could warm up to Bon Iver, Mana and Juan Gabriel or jam out to a Bad Bunny or Aventura! I appreciate and value my dance community in Atlanta while I also dream of more dance opportunities for Hispanic/Latinx students.

My experience as a Latina in Georgia has fueled my dream of opening a non-profit studio where all people will have a safe space to create, explore and have the opportunity to dance, with the focus but not limited to Latinx and BIPOC students. My first step in this direction is SOMOS. I am in the process of producing my second full length show with my startup company, SOMOS. Our mission is to produce authentic shows and performances and aim to bridge the gap between contemporary dance and the Latinx/hispanic and BIPOC community in Atlanta by providing workshops bringing opportunities to these students.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

Long term, my dream is to open a studio and start a non-profit organization to bridge the gap between Latinx/Hispanic students and dance opportunities. My mission is to provide access to dance education, a dance studio, an artistic outlet, performances and events. I currently work at a nonprofit organization, Los Niños Primero, teaching Ballet Folklorico de Mexico. This experience has ignited my passion and reaffirmed my dream of opening a non-profit studio to support students dreaming of learning dance and expressing themselves through movement. This is the driver for my creative endeavors, constantly motivating me to make connections, and take any opportunity I can to further develop myself as a dancer, choreographer, educator and business woman.

Do you think there is something that non-creatives might struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can shed some light?

Dance to me is more than class, technique or shows, dance is a part of our existence. For thousands of years, movement has been part of cultures rituals and beliefs, it has also been a form of entertainment and social gatherings. By simply bringing in the intention and awareness to move your body, you’re dancing! I invite you to take a chance on exploring intuitive movement, a practice of allowing your body to move freely and listen to what it needs in the moment. Or if intuitive movement is not your calling, maybe the next time you have an urge to dance at the wedding, the club or in the kitchen, let the dancing out!

Contact Info:

• Website: angelitaitzanami.com / somosdance.co
• Instagram: @angelita.itzanami / @somosdanceco
• Youtube: @angelita.itzanami
• Other: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kDvEAqDDguU&t=5s emails: – angelita.itzanami@gmail.com – info@somosdance.co

Image Credits
Christina Massad Darvensky Louis Larry Coleman Michael Amici Nikki Raitz Noel Austin