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

Alright, Lorena thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on?

I am currently working to premiere the long-awaited, length-evening work of Sydnie L. Mosley Dances (SLMDances), a Black-led dance theater company. The show, titled PURPLE: A Ritual in nine spells will premiere on June 9th 2023. I feel honored to present the work because SLMDances was my first job after graduating college with a degree in Dance from Marymount Manhattan College in 2019. After 4 seasons with the company, out of which two were mostly online due to the pandemic, I am thrilled to take the stage alongside the multigenerational cast of 12.
PURPLE: A Ritual in Spells illuminates the power of deep sisterhood for social change through dance. It is based in oral & embodied herstories, centers sacred ritual, and honors collective decision-making. These values are not only staged but practiced in the weekly rehearsal process:
SLMDances, led by Artistic Director Sydnie Mosley, feels like a family, and practices radical care among the group members and our community. From the COVID safety protocols (weekly testing and mask wearing) that allow us to safely return to work, to the collective devising of the work, to community engagement work with Black and Brown elder populations. PURPLE: A Ritual in Nine Spells tells our stories. It is important to me to support artists whose stories have not been historically staged. This work draws from the imaginations of Black, Queer, Old, Disabled and Immigrant folks.
Being able to engage in a long-term production and seeing it come to life has been an honor. I cannot wait to perform it.

Lorena, 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 was born and raised in Mexico City, where I started my ballet training at the age of 3. In 2015, I Immigrated to the United States to earn my degree in Dance from Marymount Manhattan College. Since graduating, I have been working as a dancer and teaching artist under an Artist Visa. As a dancer, I have worked with Sydnie L. Mosley Dances (SLMDances), NK&D: A Movement Company, Mobilized Voices (MOBIV), Dance to the People, Reza Farkhondeh Studios, CoopDanza, Semillas Collective and JUNTOS Collective. I aim to collaborate with Artists that work in social change and ancestry practices. Being a Mexican immigrant informs a lot of my personal artistic work. It is through my artistry that I aim to discover more about my identity and role in the world. My work draws directly from my cultural identity and centers my experience as a Latin American Woman. I am currently developing my own choreographic work based on my essay, Mujeres Danzantes en Tu Camino (Dancing Women in Your Path) published in the Gibney IMAGINING Journal in 2021.
Additionally, I also work as a teaching artist for Alvin Ailey Arts in Education, Notes in Motion and Bay Ridge Ballet. Working with both K-12 and elder populations. It is a great joy of mine to be able to share my love for dance.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

As a Mexican immigrant, I have had to jump through several hoops to earn my place as a NYC artist. In 2020, I began my application for the O1 Artist Visa. Timing was not on my side, because as I was gathering the extensive list of documents and evidence that prove my ability to be a dancer, the pandemic hit. Like all dancers, all of my performance gigs were canceled, I lost my main source of income, and just like many other immigrants, I was unable to return home in fear of risking my immigration status. Unable to take any jobs outside of the dance world or collect any funds from the government due to said immigration status, I struggled to put together my application while staying above water. The experience illustrated the many hoops that immigrants have to go through to keep a legal status and how many resources it requires. I am still here because my community supported and uplifted me. I am very lucky to have a supportive family and a tight support group made up of friends who shared their extra resources in the form of donations, food and care.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

Being an artist is NOT easy. There is an expectation that because artists love what we do, we will always love EVERYTHING we do. That is not the case. There are many ups and downs to an artist’s career, from finding sustaining work to avoiding burn out, to navigating structural obstacles such as limited access to healthcare and retirement plans. HOWEVER, I do not see myself being me if I wasn’t a dance artist. I believe that my embodied artistic practice has allowed me to connect and learn from diverse communities I may have never crossed paths with, learn more about myself, reflect and activate how I can support myself and my communities and most importantly, allowed me to experience true joy. Being a dancer has brought me true happiness. I do not take for granted the privileges that have allowed me to be where I am. I am constantly working and organizing to make my experience more accessible to others.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.lorenajaramillodance.com/
• Instagram: @lorejrm

Image Credits
David Flores Rubio, Travis Coe, ShpcPhoto, Martin Nunes-Bonilla, Amir Hamja, DRB Photo, Effy Grey, Milie Nelson.