Coming into my own as a person and artist has been a journey in which I have gained true confidence. My junior year at Juilliard was an eye-opening, liberating and challenging year and I am so grateful for the growth I experienced in just a year’s time. During last year, I began to have crucial break out moments in both my personal and college life. I was going through a period in which I felt I was having an identity crisis. While navigating my way through this difficult stage of my life, I knew that I wanted to have a better understanding of myself and what my artistry really means to me but was unsure on how I’d achieve this.
Here is how I began to achieve that understanding.
For Juilliard’s New Dances Edition 2018, class of 2020 worked with choreographer Peter Chu who set a new creation on us. In this process, we also had the amazing opportunity to collaborate and perform to live music played by Juilliard jazz musicians. It was such a beautiful experience performing with musicians’ who were such an important part of the creation process. Peter had them set up on stage with us and even incorporated them into the choreography. The physical movement of this piece was groovy, fun, communal and a personal strength of mine as a mover. I really felt connected to this entire process and realized that this is who I was and am, a groovy girl.
Since then, that experience opened up a whole new world for me.
During my first couple of years at Juilliard, I mostly stayed to myself and didn’t hang out much with people outside of the dance division, but New Dances 2018 was my introduction to the building of connections with jazz musicians and their world. I started hanging out with jazz musicians more often both in and outside of Juilliard. They have so generously been introducing me to the jazz world including jazz clubs. I have formed an honest and genuine relationship with this culture. My entire being has been nurtured by jazz music and its community which is a warm embracing space that uplifts and gives hope to my spirit.
One special bond that I have a true appreciation for is with Mwenso and the Shakes, a jazz band based in NYC led by Michael Mwenso. Through mutual connections, Mwenso had seen videos of me dancing from my posts on Instagram. He respectfully reached out to me asking if I’d be willing to send him videos of me improvising to a song called Resolute off of the Shakes album entitled Emergence [The Process of Coming Into Being]. Mwenso thanked me for my open spirit and my willingness to share. He later contacted me for upcoming gigs to perform as a dancer alongside the band. Thus far, I have performed with the Shakes at venues such as Chelsea Music Hall, Eerie’s Blues and Jazz Festival, House of Yes, Marcus Garvey Park and National Sawdust. Being surrounded by this group made up of strong individuals/characters that are loving, expressive and bold who show a shared respect and appreciation towards jazz music and their heroes is a lovely and informative environment to be immersed in. Our passions and energies coexist, and I am so lucky that I have had several opportunities to share the stage with them because it is always vibrant! Performing with and being around this group of lovely artists is something that my soul needed. It has been my saving grace and a form of healing in my life and career.
Francesca Harper is a multifaceted performing artist and choreographer. A fierce black female figure who has become my biggest role model since 2018. I’ve had the honor of working with Francesca both in and outside of Juilliard. All of those experiences were truly enlightening and encouraging to my artistry. Through her teachings, I began to truly understand my power as an artist. The endless possibilities of growth by creating a healthy and humble relationship with myself and staying true to my humanism which is not separate from my work. Thank You, Francesca, you are one of the main reasons why I fell in love with dance again, a relationship I was once briefly disconnected from.
With these experiences, I’ve allowed myself to be ME without being afraid or hesitant. That goal was a dream of mine that was hindered and taken away from me by someone in my personal life by my allowing them to take away my voice and my power. Now, I graciously live and perform as NAYA LOVELL, a free spirit who is wild, free and living confidently in my womanhood as well as being an expressive and unapologetic mover.
Through this never-ending journey I have found much more clarity, security and confidence within my identity that I wish to sustain as I am soon making my way out of the Juilliard building. I am grateful to myself for never giving up even at times when I’ve felt hopeless. I thank all of the beautiful human beings I have crossed paths with this past year as you have been a necessary force that has fueled my soul.
Here’s to continuous research and a blossoming soul.
To be continued…