'Boundaries Between Bodies' Explores The Effects of Mass Incarceration Through Dance
Artists and educators Reggie Daniels and Amie Dowling will present and discuss the dance films Well Contested Sites (2013) and Separate Sentence (2016), exploring the systemic underpinnings and effects of mass incarceration at an upcoming event at Hampshire College. The event is open to the public and takes place on Friday, February 23 at 4 p.m. in Franklin Patterson Hall’s Main Lecture Hall.
During their multi-day residency in the Pioneer Valley, Daniels and Dowling will facilitate workshops and present projects on political struggle, where artists are working side-by-side for a transformation that addresses the legacies of racism, segregation, disenfranchisement, and mass incarceration. They will visit the Elm Street Think Tank at the Franklin County Jail and various classes at Hampshire College and Amherst College.
In addition to the public event on Friday, on Saturday, February 24, the artists will lead a Community Engaged Performance and Activism Workshop from 3-5 p.m. at the School for Contemporary Dance and Thought in Northampton. Space is limited and registration is required; the event is free for Five College affiliates, with a small fee for other participants. On Monday, February 26, they will lead another workshop open to Five College students (space is limited and registration required: email srivers@amherst.edu) at Amherst College, from 12.30-1:50 in Webster Hall Studio 1.
Dowling creates dance and theater for the stage, for film and in community settings. For the past 16 years, her work has considered the politics and representation of mass incarceration. Daniels is currently a doctoral candidate in the Organization and Leadership Program in School of Education at the University of San Francisco. His research focuses on in-custody violence prevention program efficacy and culturally responsive pedagogy. More detailed bios below.
Public Events:
Boundaries Between Bodies: Public Presentation & Film Screening
Friday, February 23rd at 4pm
FPH East Lecture Hall, Hampshire College, Amherst, MA
Check out FB Event here.
Community Engaged Performance & Activism Workshop
Saturday, February 24th from 3:00-5:00pm
School for Contemporary Dance and Thought, Northampton, MA
Check out FB event here. Register for the workshop here.
The workshop is free for Five Colleges students/staff/faculty.
More about the residency artists:
Reggie Daniels, a core member of the artistic team of the dance/theater films Separate Sentence and Well Contested Sites, and co-author/choreographer and performer of ManAlive; from the edge of incarceration to the flight of imagination. He completed his master's degree in May 2014 at the University of San Francisco in the School of Management and is currently a doctoral candidate in the Organization and Leadership Program in School of Education at USF. His research focuses on, in-custody violence prevention program efficacy and culturally responsive pedagogy. As a lead facilitator of the Knowledge Sessions, a post-release peer-facilitated artistic and process group- he hopes his story of transformation will empower others to find peace through creative expression. His passion is working to interrupt oppressive systems and to bring social justice to his community.
Amie Dowling creates dance and theater for the stage, for film and in community settings. For the past 16 years, her work has considered the politics and representation of mass incarceration. Well Contested Sites, a collaboration with Bay Area artists, some of who were previously incarcerated, won the International Screendance film prize. The next film, Separate Sentence, looks at the intersection of gentrification and the generational impact of incarceration, and is currently being screened and has received best film awards nationally and internationally. The work has been presented at venues such as Busboys & Poets (Washington D.C.), Lincoln Center (NYC), Regards Hybrides (Canada), Cinéma Jean-Eustache (France), Passangen Art Gallery (Sweden), and the Juming Museum (Taiwan). Amie is an artist in residence in the San Francisco Jails and San Quentin Prison, where she is a member of the Artistic Ensemble. Prior to moving West, Amie received her MFA from Smith College and was a guest artist in the Five College Dance Department. Currently she is an Associate Professor in the Performing Arts Department at the University of San Francisco.
This residency partners are several programs at Hampshire College including Ethics and the Common Good, Art Gallery, Theater Program, Dance Program, School of Humanities, Arts and Culture, in partnership with the Amherst College Theater and Dance Program, the UMass Public History Program, the ElmStreet ThinkTank at the Franklin County Jail, the School for Contemporary Dance and Thought, and the Five Colleges, Inc.
Amie Dowling creates dance and theater for the stage, for film and in community settings. For the past 16 years, her work has considered the politics and representation of mass incarceration. Well Contested Sites, a collaboration with Bay Area artists, some of who were previously incarcerated, won the International Screendance film prize. The next film, Separate Sentence, looks at the intersection of gentrification and the generational impact of incarceration, and is currently being screened and has received best film awards nationally and internationally. The work has been presented at venues such as Busboys & Poets (Washington D.C.), Lincoln Center (NYC), Regards Hybrides (Canada), Cinéma Jean-Eustache (France), Passangen Art Gallery (Sweden), and the Juming Museum (Taiwan). Amie is an artist in residence in the San Francisco Jails and San Quentin Prison, where she is a member of the Artistic Ensemble. Prior to moving West, Amie received her MFA from Smith College and was a guest artist in the Five College Dance Department. Currently she is an Associate Professor in the Performing Arts Department at the University of San Francisco.
This residency partners are several programs at Hampshire College including Ethics and the Common Good, Art Gallery, Theater Program, Dance Program, School of Humanities, Arts and Culture, in partnership with the Amherst College Theater and Dance Program, the UMass Public History Program, the ElmStreet ThinkTank at the Franklin County Jail, the School for Contemporary Dance and Thought, and the Five Colleges, Inc.
Photo Credits:
Header Image: Still from the film 'Separate Sentence,' image by Heath Orchard
Thumbnail Image: From the Artistic Ensemble at San Quentin, photograph by Peter Merts
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