We recently connected with Yvonne Gutierrez and have shared our conversation below.

Yvonne, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on?

What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on? Tell us the backstory so we understand circumstances/context and why it’s meaningful to you.

When thinking about the most meaningful project, this speaks directly to my personal teaching goal. Teaching dance is and will continue to be my most meaningful project. It is a work that comes deeply rooted guided by my ancestors. No matter where I am, teaching is an emerging work in reciprocity with myself and the students in the space. My experience in my early years living in a Cuban home and in the dance studio were a catalyst for a constant connection with my afrolatin blackness. It’s what has lead my entire career with a deep recall of family, cultural expression of my direct and diaspora rooted self. In my path there has always been a therapeutic need to create space for gathering and unifying various types of people through dance of all ages; inclusive of participants as well as observers. A calling to teach with a cultural connection.

To quote Dance Teacher Magazine, “Yvonne Gutierrez, heralded flamenco, salsa and Spanish dance artist and educator, has built her reputation as an ambassador for creative connection in the arts.” My practice for teaching dance has always been to foster standards of inclusion and outreach, spreading awareness and accessibility throughout communities. I am proud to say, I have seen the long term results of my work and I am fortunate to witness many success stories in my students. Spreading awareness as well as inspiration throughout my career is priceless. Whether in a workshop, class, family event, church, presentation, showing or recital, all students receive the connection and its impact is the goal.

Currently, teaching a salsa class as part of a heath and wellness initiative for employees, I see the result already serving as a source of therapy. Whether they are stressed as most of us are, grieving, recovering from an injury, doing something they’ve wanted to do since they were young, exercising, trying to commitment to something or even just for fun, it is such a gratifying exchange. My emerging curriculum approach is unique every time because it focus on the individual person. Teaching dance workshops that I have titled “the Yvonne Gutierrez Olé y Mas Experience” has a positive impact on the students and many results all depending on the connection between us. When the energy in the room is infectious, it touches each student to succeed in class and as a teacher I get to witness the beauty first hand. I have inclusive classes with all types of students from multi-generational groups to senior citizens, students at risk, deaf students, students with special needs all using the same emerging approach. These are priceless enriching experiences that always keep my learning as much as the students.

Being able to witness their success stories are priceless, especially now since I’ve been in this business well over 30 years. Many times I’ve had no idea of the effect my personal approach had on students and even their parents, until years later. Fortunately, there are many grateful students who have contacted me to share stories about how my teaching impacted their lives. From dancers in their professional careers on Broadway, touring, in dance companies, dance groups, performing arts directors, dance assists, teachers, or even unrelated fields such as therapist, actors, lawyers, teachers, singers, engineers and nurse managers to name a few, I am blessed and grateful to see the products of my meaningful project.

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?

Afro-Latina of Cuban Heritage – Salsa on 2 Technique/Spanish Dance/Flamenco

“Yvonne Gutierrez, heralded flamenco, salsa and Spanish dance artist and educator, has built her reputation as an ambassador for creative connection in the arts.”

-Dance Teacher Magazine

A NY native teacher/choreographer/mentor of Cuban descent with an emerging dance curriculum approach celebrates the joy of music and movement. She is quoted saying, “Dance is about connections – how we connect to the music, the musicians and to each other”. She reaches many communities with her work as a choreographic mentor for NYS Choreographers Initiative 2023, a member of the Jury for the 2023 Flamenco Certamen USA in addition to her award as a veteran teacher recognized for excellence in teaching by the distinguished Dance Teacher Award in 2022. As a member of National Association for the Education of Young Children she continues learning/networking helping to inspire and create experiences for all, focusing on the future generations. She is a core founding member of the Black Flamenco Network (BFN – FUAAD). A featured performer and panelist for the showing of the film, Gurumbé: Canciones de tu Memoria Negra at the 1st AfroMundo Festival in Albuquerque led to her spotlight in the book “New Mexico Fiestas: A History of Music, Dance & Fandango” by Ray John de Aragón.

Ms. Gutierrez started her teaching trajectory appointed by the late Tina Ramirez, founder of Ballet Hispánico over 35 years ago. Highlights include: LaGuardia Performing Arts High School, Kips Bay Boys and Girls Club, Ballet Hispanico, Martha Graham Teens, Concepts Dance Academy, NY Dance Parade, Cache Dance Studios, Henry Street Settlement, Joffrey Ballet, New School University, Purelements, Marymount Manhattan College and Flamenco Latino. Her teaching is predominantly based in NY from Lincoln Center Restart Stages to CUNY workshops and community master classes. Special focus on mentoring studio owners to create experiences and develop unique teaching residencies such as Pathways to Graduation Tenzer. In this collaboration with the art teacher Leah Kronenfeld for immigrant students during this dance experience we created an infectious as well as reciprocal cultural exchange and sharing that helped increase retention. The Yvonne Gutierrez Olé y Mas experience has been happening for many years. There have been students of all ages an abilities (limited mobility and sight, to deaf) engaged in all inclusive unique experiences. Multi-generation classes are a huge highlight.

The young performers in my experience, are usually seen in community events throughout New York’s 5 boroughs sharing their artistry as dancers or teaching assistants with an olé or a dance connection with the audience. Flamenco and salsa are the special techniques offered.

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

Everyone has their journey! But you have to remember no one does it alone. Giving credit and recognition goes a long way. This is not only for the students you teach but also for the establishments you give your aritstry too and helped to build their community. Remember and be grateful to those artists/teachers/choreographers/directors who have postiviely impacted your life or your organization. The amount of work that is involved in teaching is more than just fun. Acknowledgement and gratitude goes a long way. This also includes using an artists work, curriculum, choreography, lesson plans, imagine name, video, costume ideas without permission or credit, especially if they no longer work or dance for you. If an individual or organization wants a persons artistic project they should pay for it.

My resilience comes from my creative abilities and focus, not only in my teaching but in my choreographic and community-based work, which features what my friend Kevin LaMarr Jones also a core member of the Black Flamenco Network calls a “dance reunion,” rather than dance fusion, of various dance genres of African influence. The artistic goal is to remove the biases that are encountered in both dance and the larger society in order to cast a vision for, promote, and create a world that is re-balanced, decolonized, and ethnically equitable. As an artist, the aim has always been to communicate with, through, and beyond cultural perspectives in order to express our shared human experience and to demonstrate that this dance experience is accessible, diverse, rich, contemporary, and ever-evolving.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

The most rewarding aspect being an artist is the ability it gives you to use your voice. Using your voice for change, inspiration and personal growth. Being able to work with others and inspire through movement, even if it’s a small part of their journey is a major achievement. Pushes the boundaries of the dance studio classrooms, tuning into a students’ unique capability and constantly questioning conventional notions of who belongs in dance spaces has proved to be quite rewarding. Continuing to build an enhance the student–instructor two-way street relationships nourishes all involved. This makes it possible to connect dance with students’ external experiences. Throughout my trajectory in dance, dance for me reflects a vibrant unique experience that spans from how I started my studies to how I have also been able to reach disadvantaged student populations throughout my career. Although challenging the success of bringing awareness on how therapeutic dance is coupled with my voice and reason for creating space have been a major reward.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.YvonneGutierrez.orgg
• Instagram: Ygutierrezy and YvonnesHerencia
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/yvonne.gutierrezy
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@ygutierrezy

Image Credits

some of the photo taken by: Orisa Gutierrez