About
This is a Success is the second performance work created for jumatatu m. poe and Jermone Donte Beacham’s Let ‘im Move You series. This work explores notions of African-American exceptionalism as expressed through middle class, Black American values reiterated within the J-Sette form. It explores the performers’ respective relationships to Blackness, gender and queerness through movement and living experiences. Performers jumatatu and William Robinson have had a working relationship since 2010, and their team dynamic is also at the forefront of the formal explorations of this work.
Production History
2018 – Presented with Let ‘im Move You: A Study. Part of American Realness at HollinsDance MFA at Hollins University, Roanoke, VA.
2018 – Presented with Let ‘im Move You: A Study and Let ‘im Move You: Installation. Part of American Realness festival at Abrons Arts Center, NYC.
2017 – Presented with Let ‘im Move You: A Study and Let ‘im Move You: Installation. Part of Danielle Goldman’s platform in the Endless Shout exhibition at the Institute of Contemporary Art, Philadelphia.
2016 – Presented in Queer New York International Art Festival, NYC.
2016 – Presented with Let ‘im Move You: A Study. Highways Performance Space, Santa Monica, CA.
2016 – Presented in Movement Research Festival Spring 2016, NYC.
2016 – Presented in La MaMa Moves! Dance Festival, NYC.
2016 – Presented in Rhythm and Race, a show of assorted works produced by idiosynCrazy productions. Mascher Space Co-op, Philadelphia.
Project Credits
artistic direction by jumatatu m. poe
choreography by jumatatu m. poe, with additional material from Jermone Donte Beacham
performance by jumatatu m. poe and William Robinson
sound design by jumatatu m. poe with music by James Blake and Dondria
DJed by Zen Jefferson
video design, text and vocal composition by jumatatu m. poe
lighting design by Juan “Coel” Rodriguez
tour management by Marýa Wethers
Creation Budget
Press
“On Artists and Audiences at American Realness.”
New York Times. Brian Seibert. 2018.
“Black Success, Black Joy, and Black Excellence Within the Theatrical Architecture of Whiteness – jumatatu m. poe & Donte Beacham: Let ‘im Move You… (2018).”
Cult Plastic: Dance And Culture In The Plastic Age. Anh Vo. 2018.
“Plieé Meets Twerk in a Performance of Black Queer Joy.”
HYPERALLERGIC. Meredith Sellers. 2017.
“Jumatatu Poe Keeping People in the Know.”
New York Amsterdam News. Charmaine Patricia Warren. 2016.
“Togethering”. Hand Written Notes
Movement Research Festival Writings. Tara Aisha Willis. 2016.
Funding Credits
Let ‘im Move You: This Is a Success has been made possible through a residency at the 18th Street Arts Center in Santa Monica with support from a Pew Center for Arts & Heritage Fellowship in the Arts.
About the series Let ‘im Move You
Let ‘im Move You is a series born from the artistic relationship between artists jumatatu m. poe and Jermone “Donte” Beacham. The series centralizes J-Sette performance form and culture to address the artists’ search for satisfaction and subversion within J-Sette’s team-oriented call-and-response structure. While the artists see performance as an opportunity to communicate across various cultural distinctions, they see their work as chiefly in conversation with other Black queer alien artists.
