Bronx choreographer debuts ballet
BY JASON COHEN
Earlier this week,
Bronx resident and
Emmy-nominated choreographer
Jeremy Mc-
Queen debuted the world
premiere of a groundbreaking
new ballet and
feature length dance
fi lm entitled “Wild,”
which aired exclusively
on BronxNet.
The ballet was broken
up into four parts
with the fi rst part,
“Overture” shown on
BronxNet on Monday,
Nov. 9. It will then be
shown Thursday, Nov. 12
via www.blackirisproject.
org. The additional
parts of “Wild” will debut
in the winter, spring
and summer of 2021.
“Wild” is presented
under his Black Iris
Project (BIP), the only
ballet collaborative of
its kind in the country
dedicated to telling stories
about the Black experience
and to providing
a platform and safe
haven for Black artists.
Inspired by Maurice
Sendak’s classic children’s
novel “Where
the Wild Things Are,”
“Wild” explores systemic
racism and injustice
through the real-life
accounts of New York
BRONX TIMES REPORTER,46 NOVEMBER 13-19, 2020 BTR
City youth who have
grown up in juvenile detention
centers throughout
the city.
“Since its inception
in 2016, at the core of
BIP’s DNA, has been
our commitment to
telling Black narratives
through ballet,
using the art as a mirror
to refl ect the times
and consistently intertwine
themes of social
justice in everything
that we do,” McQueen
said. “As someone who
has worked to break
through many doors in
the world of dance, particularly
ballet, I feel it
is our duty as artists to
be a catalyst for those
that are unheard, unseen,
and undervalued
and I am committed to,
now more than ever, dismantling
those barriers
through my art.”
McQueen was recently
Jeremy McQueen
named a winner
of the 2020-2021 Soros
Justice Fellowship from
Open Society Foundations
and is the only choreographer
to receive
this fellowship since its
inception in 1997. He
hopes “Wild” will inspire
youth of color to
pursue the arts, movement
and music as well
as educate audiences
about how Black history
relates to the modern
Black journey.
“This fervent effort
stems from the need
to address issues currently
plaguing our nation
from civil unrest
to systemic oppression
to the societal ripple effects
of COVID-19. In order
for us to heal as a society,
we have to expose
the wounds that have
historically been overlooked.
With “Wild” specifi
cally, which I view as
a tough work centered
around healing, we
wanted to continue to
uplift diversifi ed voices
while breaking down
the ivory silos and pillars
so that we not only
have a seat at the table
and our work on the table,
but so that we ensure
that the voices of
the voiceless are heard
and amplifi ed.”
For more information
on “Wild,”
visit www.blackiris
project.org.
Shawn Lesniak, DaMond Garner and AJ Liber
Photos courtesy of Argenis Apolinario
AJ Libert Photos courtesy of Argenis Apolinario
Celebrate the
VIRTUAL EVENT
Thursday,
December 10,2020 7pm
To nominate, please call 917.272.4213 or
email dmattone@schnepsmedia.com
Deadline to nominate
November 9, 2020
link
/www.blackirisproj-ect.org
/www.blackirisproj-ect.org
/www.blackiris
/www.blackirisproj-ect.org
/www.blackiris
/www.blackiris
/project.org
link