Performance: Earth Day Embodied Activism

I.D.A. is a dance, sound, and performance collective, composed of Isabel Umali (dance), Dustin Carlson (music), and Ashley Menestrina (dance). On the occasion of Earth Day on Apr 22, I.D.A., and four invited musicians and performers (Yeman Brown, Lathan Hardy, Satoshi Takeishi, and Kalia Vandever) will stage a sensorial experience focusing on healing, re-birth, human-to-human connection, as an opportunity to raise awareness about environmental justice.

Focusing on carbon emissions and governmental changes to stop global warming often feels out of our hands. Embodied Activism invites us, individually and collectively, to become more mindful of our actions, as this mindfulness can ripple out into how we participate at systemic and organizational levels in the climate awareness fight. The performance also calls us to recognize that those who are most affected and least supported by the fight against global warming are those who are most disenfranchised here in the USA and around the world.

The site-specific participatory performance will take place in the outdoor area of St. Ann & the Holy Trinity Church, 157 Montague St, Brooklyn, NY 11201. Social distancing and masks required.

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Isabel Umali is a New York City based dance artist. Isabel has worked with dance companies such as LeeSaar the Company, the Francesca Harper Project, Gallim Dance, et al. creating work, originating roles and touring nationally and internationally. Isabel performed for Punchdrunk’s internationally acclaimed show, Sleep No More (2015-2019), and has appeared in various commercials and music videos. As a creator, Isabel has collaborated with musicians and visual artists and her work has been shown in venues such as BRIC, The Shed, The Ace Hotel, Triskelion Arts, galleries, and festivals nationally and internationally. Isabel is now a craniosacral therapist and works to enmesh her rich dance training with the principles and techniques of somatic healing practices. She teaches classes online and in New York City.

Ashley Menestrina is a freelance artist performing her own work all over the world. Her first self-choreographed solo, Always a Creature has been performed at numerous venues in NYC. The Human Condition: Absent Presence premiered at The Martha Graham Theater in NYC in April 2018 and has been performed at festivals in Los Angeles, Turkey, Mexico City, Portugal, and Israel. Her most recent solo work, Combative Echoes, was created for and performed in Thessaloniki, Greece, and most recently performed at the 39th Annual Battery Dance Festival in NYC in August 2020. She is currently working on a new solo work titled, The Woman in the Wire Suit.

Yeman Brown (he/they) was born and raised in Tallahassee, Fl. Since 2013, Yeman has been working as a movement artist in Brooklyn, NY. His concert dance credits include works by Reggie Wilson, Stefanie Batten Bland, Kristin Sudeikis, and Ralph Lemon. Theatre credits include Jagged Little Pill (Broadway) and movement direction for “As Much as I Can” at The Public Theatre. Yeman has also been featured in music videos by Mumford & Sons, The Jonas Brothers, and Amanda Palmer. In addition to performance work, Yeman has led movement workshops around the world that encourage dancers and non-dancers alike to find joy in movement as a way of understanding our human experience.

Dustin Carlson is a Brooklyn based guitarist, composer and improvisor. His work spans across the realms of jazz, chamber music, rock, noise, and performance art. He has performed throughout the USA, Europe, Mexico and Canada. His band, Air Ceremony, featuring Matt Mitchel, Kate Gentile, Nathaniel Morgan, Eric Trudel, Danny Gouker and Adam Hopkins. released their debut record on Out of Your Head Records in November 2018. In October 2019 his piece for string duo, Tensegrities, was debuted at Antenna Cloud Farm as part of the Gabriela Lena Frank Academy for Creative Music. His collaboration with Isabel Umali, a recording and dance piece entitled Shakes/the Noise of Wings was performed at the FICDMX dance festival in Mexico City in August 2018 and Abrons Art Center in NYC in 2017. F$F, his long standing collaboration with trumpet player Brad Henkel released Forgotten Cities in June 2018, the music for that record was created while he was artist in residence at the Opekta Ateliers in Cologne Germany 2015. He has a solo record entitled Shakes/The Noise of Wings (VSR007 2016).

His collaborative projects include F$F (duo with Brad Henkel) and Secret People (trio with Kate Gentile and Nathaniel Morgan). He is the guitarist in the Webber/Morris Big Band which released their debut on Greenleaf Records in April. He also plays guitar in Horse Torso, and accompanies Flamenco singer Julia Patinella playing music from Spain and Latin America.

Kalia Vandever is a trombonist, composer, and educator living in Brooklyn, NY. She released her debut album, In Bloom in May, 2019 which features all of her original compositions written for quartet (trombone, piano, bass and drums). Her compositions, featured on In Bloom move "with an unhurried, sighing attitude" (New York Times) and document her breakout as a bandleader and composer. Kalia is also known for her solo project, featuring her work for trombone and effects. In addition to performing the project in NYC, she was invited to present the project as a Visiting Artist at the California Institute of the Arts in February, 2020. She has toured and performed internationally with her group, as well as a side-woman, performing with artists including Joel Ross, Maria Grand, Kat Lee, Darcy James Argue's Secret Society and others. While performing regularly as a bandleader and side-woman, Kalia is also an active composer and arranger. She has been commissioned to write works for groups and individuals including Tesla Quartet, The Westerlies, Katherine Kyu Hyeon Lim, Hats & Heels Duo, Kings County Brass and more.

Satoshi Takeishi—Whether behind a drum set, a hybrid percussion set or computer-based electronics, “connecting the contrasting elements beyond genre in quest of the essence" is what Japanese-born musician/improviser Satoshi Takeishi strives for in his performances. After attending Berklee College of Music, he lived in Colombia, South America and Miami, FL before arriving in NYC in 1991. He has performed and recorded in a vast variety of genres, executing in styles of jazz, rock, contemporary classical, avant garde, experimental electronic, and world music. Takeishi continues to move among a wide range of musical environments and constantly strives for an integration of his diverse musical experience and knowledge.

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St. Ann & the Holy Trinity Church is a house of worship and a community commons in Brooklyn Heights. The Forum @ St. Ann’s seeks to engage the wider community through civic discourse, music and the arts and welcome diverse audiences from New York City and beyond through thoughtful and timely programming. Organized by the staff and volunteers at St. Ann’s, the Forum has mounted a series of successful art exhibitions, film screenings, poetry and book readings, panel discussions, and recitals that have drawn significant interest and attendance. Forum programs have attracted a number of individuals and non-profit groups, from Brooklyn and beyond, with which St. Ann’s has partnered on presentations. Instagram: @stannsbrooklyn

KODA is a social practice nonprofit arts organization focusing on conceptual mid-career artists ingrained in social justice. KODA offers survey exhibitions as well as tailor-made and community-based artist residencies, through collaborations with socially engaged partners. The nonprofit serves the community with contemporary art events and outreach to strengthen arts education. In its overall mission to support the artistic and professional growth of artists, KODA acts as a laboratory for creative concepts, reflecting its core values of curiosity and collaboration. Instagram: @koda.lab

The Pop-Up Shop BK (Stylist/Program Partner) is co-founded by two independent women-owned brands (Not Your Mama's Vintage Closet and The WonderMart)—a collaborative retail and event space showcasing an eclectic mix of locally made goods, vintage and thrift, located in Crown Heights, Brooklyn. The owners Kai-Michelle and Perri believe community and connection should be at the heart of every successful business and strive to create a neighborhood shop where all identities and colors feel welcomed. Open weekly from Thursday to Sunday - you are invited to swing by and find the perfect gift for yourself or a loved one, attend one of their famed 'shop & sip' events or liven up your wardrobe with unique finds. Instagram: @thepopupshopbk

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Image Release

Participants attending the program agree they may be photographed, videotaped, and audiotaped during the event. Photographs, videos, and voice recordings are the sole property of KODA Arts Inc., which reserves the right to publish attendees’ likeness online and use it in promotional materials.