Not Another Political Playground Y’all (NAPPY)

presented by N.A.P.P.Y. Dance Collective and The GRAND

NAPPY is an invitation to imagine new futures for contemporary dance—one that better represents the artistic climate in Mohkinstsis and builds a community around Black artistry. The GRAND hosts NAPPY Dance Collective’s debut season in Alberta’s performing arts landscape as artists Cindy Ansah and Tiara Matusin stage two new dance works made in collaboration with cultural instigators Christahh Ahh, Jared Tobias Herring and Mpoe Mogale.

On opening night, a curated community-oriented market will be held at 05:00PM providing a space for interaction between local residents and Black-owned businesses that are moving the culture forward in Mohkinstsis. Audiences will be welcomed by a pre-show concert at 06:00PM on closing night where local performing artists will be spotlighted amid an array of visual arts pieces, further celebrating contemporary Black creativity.

ARTIST BIOGRAPHIES

Cindy Ansah is a dance artist, writer, actress and filmmaker playing, creating and collaborating in Mohkínstsis (Calgary). Recently completing her BFA in Dance from the University of Calgary and rounding out her undergraduate career with a minor in English, Cindy has had the opportunity to engage as a dynamic member of the dance community in Mohkinstsis, fulfilling her role as a Dance Artist with local companies such as Calgary Core Contemporaries, Casa De Naz, and Woezo Africa Music & Dance Theatre Inc., while partaking in site-specific dance research as an assistant to Dr. Melanie Kloetzel and more recently broadening her sensibilities in somatic dance practice with Marie France Forcier. Cindy’s recent choreography and film works have been presented in the IGNITE! Festival for Emerging Artists, Fluid Fest, DSW’s Quick + Dirty Festival, DanceWorks Moving Online Film Showcase and the MOVING BODY Festival. Her literary ambitions have enabled her written body of work to be featured in The Dance Current, Springboard Performance, Alberta Dance Alliance and the 4th iteration of Configurations in Motion: Performance Curation and Communities of Colour. In her newly adopted roles as Co-founder and Artistic Director of the emerging all-Black contemporary dance company, NAPPY Dance Collective, Cindy aims to create a fluidity between art and activism by devoting her creative capacities to empowering Black artistry and Black collectivity in all its breadth, depth and nuance.

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Mohkínstsis/Calgary-based dance artist and emerging choreographer, Tiara Matusin, is currently on a journey of rekindling her interest in performance art. Beginning her post secondary career in 2017 at University of Calgary as a Biological Science major, she quickly rediscovered her enduring love for creativity and enrolled in the BA Dance program the following year. Tiara sought to blend her skills in science and dance to develop her artistic expression. She additionally extends her artistic practice to visual arts; including, fashion styling, photography, and videography. Her overlapping skills lent themselves to her choreographic debut in Fluid Festival’s, 5 Minutes to Change the World Cabaret, where she collaborated on the dance film “Asphalt”. Tiara’s ability to think critically allows her to analyze movement uniquely, going beyond the depths of composition. Tiara believes in an environment of growth, culture, and excellence to meet personal and creative goals and she hopes to implement such a model to her collaborative voyage with NAPPY Dance.

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Mpoe Mogale (they/them) reigns from Lebowakgomo, South Africa and splits their time between amiskwaciywâskahikan and moh’kínst’sis, in the colonial state of Canada. They hold a Bachelor of Arts (Hons) in Political Science, and a wealth of expertise in community-based research, facilitation, and arts administration.

Mpoe’s primary artmaking form is dance, with a curiosity in the place of Blackness in spaces that deny it, as explored through several projects including "What (Black) Life Requires" (produced by Mile Zero Dance and Azimuth Theatre). Mpoe’s current artistic imaginations have centered the brilliant, mundane, and joyous aspects that foreground the lives of Black folks.

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Born in Calgary, Christahh became captivated by the art of dance at a young age. She has studied a variety of dance styles and is the recipient of scholarships from the Edmonton School of Ballet. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the Dance Program at the University of Calgary with a focus on choreography and performance where she choreographed Indomitable Spirit (2016) and Essence of Humanity (2015). In addition Christahh has created

Christahh has had the privilege of working with a number of artists including music videos and concerts with Hayden McHugh (2021, 2020), Yung Dre, opening for Juice Wrld (2019) Big Sean and Fetty Wap (2017), Sabrina Naz at the Obsidian Awards (2016), Deanne Walsh in Ciclo De La Vida (2016), as well as dancing in Suite of Dreams (2014) originally choreographed by Hannah Stillwell. In the summer of 2015, she was an intern with OYO (Ombetja Yehinga Organisation) dance troupe in Windhoek, Namibia where she contributed in the creation of Ania. She has completed two years of the professional training program at Decidedly Jazz Danceworks and dances with a local hip-hop crew, The Tomorrows. Christahh is also the Director and Founder of Dance YYC Community Outreach and Engagement Initiative (www.danceyyc.ca), an online platform providing free organized promotion for the Calgary dance community. Some accomplishments with this initiative includes the development of the Dance YYC Showcase, a fundraiser, developed the Dance YYC Mobile app and participated on the panel for 'Discover: Life as a Dancer' at the Banff Centre for Arts & Creativity.

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Calgary-born, Guyanese-Canadian Jared Tobias Herring is a dancer, musician, vocalist, and writer. Jared’s family roots run deep in Calgary’s music scene, spanning genres from reggae and dancehall to jazz to blues and rockabilly. Jared’s original arrangements and songwriting have landed him notoriety amongst Calgary’s music scene. He has played in bands such as Advances for Sled Island and released two Trap and RnB albums with Bow Valley Wolf Pack.

After discovering Calgary’s dance community through Dance Montage in 2007, Herring began training at U of C, where he also received an English degree. Since then, he has studied house dance in NYC and breakdancing in Seoul, and has worked with local contemporary choreographers. From 2013-2016, Herring was president of the U of C Hip Hop & Funk Styles club, focused on teaching dance and hosting competitions. He trained and performed at the Banff Centre for the Arts in 2019 as a dancer for Kunji Ikeda, artistic director and founder of Cloud Sway dance company. Recently Herring has focused his energies in the area of film. Currently Jared continues to explore a variety of artistic avenues whilst managing Shiki Menya.