joyUS justUS is an evening length participatory Urban Latin Dance Theater experience that takes on joy as the ultimate expression of resistance. Whenever humans have survived immense hardship and injustice, prevailing with their humanity intact, the presence of joy­­ or, the knowingness and celebration of our true beauty and power­­ has always been at the root. “joyUS justUS” reclaims the dominant deficit ­based narrative of people of color in this country as being underprivileged, voiceless, powerless, and victimized, and flips it on its head by embodying stories of joy collected from communities of color in South Los Angeles. The stories shared in this work are personal truths about the power of hope, faith, and family, the strength of the villages that have raised our children and the wealth that lives in our collective histories of struggle and resistance.

filed under: lighting design (PREMIERE) & production/stage management

Artistic Director: Ana Maria Alvarez
Company: CONTRA-TIEMPO Urban Latin Dance Theater
Sound Design: d. Sabela grimes, Las Cafeteras, Samad Raheem Guerra, Kahlil Cummings, and Joshua Thomas
Costume Design: Charlese Antinoette
Set Design: Emily Orling
Lighting Design (Tour): Tuce Yasak
Dramaturg: Daniel Penilla