‘The Wild Gather,’ is a multi-day event in the Choreographing Justice Series dedicated to honoring the living lineage of Hip Hop dance and breakdancing. ‘The Wild Gather’ hopes to empower those in attendance by inspiring their movement; as a part of the Choreographing Justice Series it aims to use dance as a method of activism over the course of various events. ‘The Wild Gather’ will serve as a tribute to the iconic history of Hip Hop, in addition to celebrating the 50th anniversary of the genre.
Created in Fall of 2023, the Choreographing Justice Series is a collaborative project by Assistant Professor of the Practice Danielle Russo and Assistant Professor Juan Manuel Aldape Muñoz. Visiting dance lecturer Olive Prince has played an extensive role in the creation of ‘The Wild Gather’ as well, contributing to the creative process alongside Dr. Aldape Muñoz, Russo, and the students of PMA.
At its core, the Choreographing Justice series is meant to show how dance can be used as both a tool of expression and activism. Freedom of expression is Cornell’s mission for the 2023-2024 academic year, and ‘The Wild Gather’ continues this theme, using workshops with the intention of creating spaces where inclusion, respect, and community can coalesce into a welcoming environment. With a project as large as ‘The Wild Gather,’ there is an emphasis placed on the community building and collaboration that goes into bringing a vision to life. Joint efforts by the department of Performing and Media Arts with the Cornell Hip Hop Collection, the international Dance Films Association and Dance Studies Association, Ithaca High School’s Creatives of Color, and legendary B-Girl Ana ‘Rokafella’ Garcia, have made ‘The Wild Gather’ possible.
With lauded members of the Hip Hop community like B-Girl Rokafella taking part in ‘The Wild Gather,’ this 3-day event is full of fun, surprising experiences that participants will have to experience for themselves. The order of events is as follows:
On Thursday, November 30 from 7:30pm – 9:30pm,
‘SHARE IN/SHARE OUT: END-OF-SEMESTER PMA DANCE SHOWCASE’ will be held in the Class of 56 Dance Studio Theatre.
On Friday, December 1, back-to-back events will be held! From 7:30pm to 8:30pm, ‘ALL STYLE/FREE STYLE CYPHER,’ featuring Breaking and MC’ing by Legendary B-Girl Ana ‘Rokafella’ Garcia and DJ’ing by DJ ha-MEEN, will be held in the Class of 56 Flex Theatre. Shortly after, from 8:30pm to 9:30pm, an Artist Talk will be held by Ana ‘Rokafella’ Garcia in Conversation with Ben Ortiz, Curator of the Cornell Hip Hop Collection at the Class of 56 Flex Theatre.
To finalize ‘The Wild Gather,’ Saturday, December 2 will have three events happening between the hours of 3:00pm to 9:30pm.
From 3:00pm to 5:00pm, ‘SHARE IN/SHARE OUT: END-OF-SEMESTER PMA DANCE SHOWCASE’ will be held in the Class of 56 Dance Studio Theatre
Then, from 7:30pm to 8:30pm ‘HIP HOP DANCE ON SCREEN & FILM,’ which will be co-presented by Dance Films Association will take place in the Film Forum.
To close out ‘The Wild Gather’, from 8:30pm to 9:30pm ‘LESBIAN DANCE THEORY PARTY,’ co-presented by Dance Studies Association, will be held in the Class of 56 Flex Theatre.
An exercise in freedom of expression, ‘The Wild Gather,’ will help solidify a sense of community, social justice, and self-authorship to members of the community who choose to participate.
This series has been made possible through the generosity of Cheryl Whaley and Eric Aboaf.
Free and open to the public.
Free ticket available at https://pma.cornell.edu/tickets
Listen to a PMA Podcast "Episode 50: The Wild Gather."
Watch THE WILD GATHER trailer
This event is part of “Freedom of Expression.”
Read more about the Choreographing Justice Series.
Amy Mojica ‘26 is a communications assistant in the Department of Performing and Media Arts.
