Humanities Guåhan is pleased to present to Guam the indigenous intertribal dance company Dancing Earth. Based in Santa Fe, New Mexico and San Francisco, California, Dancing Earth holds international recognition for its artistic innovation, creative and cultural consciousness, and focus on environmental justice through artistic and cultural movement. 

 

Led by Founding Artistic Director and Choreographer Rulan Tangen, Dancing Earth’s touring dance company for “Indigenous Dance: Re-story-ing Our Environment – Dancing Earth in Guam” is comprised of dancers Ciera Nalani Budge, Justin Giehm, Deollo Johnson, Anne Pesata, Lupita Salazar, and Esme Olivia Vaandrager.

 

Dancing Earth presented indigenous contemporary dance workshops and public performances, providing our island community an exciting opportunity to build capacity in efforts to preserve and promote indigenous Chamorro culture, our unique island environment, and cross cultural sharing and exchange. Dancing Earth’s performers led school dance workshops at Oceanview Middle School with students from Siñot Ray Lujan’s classes, Agueda I. Johnston Middle School with Dr. Benjie Santiago’s classes, and at Tiyan High School with students from Master of Chamorro Dance Eileen Meno’s classes, which included interactive small-group instruction, discussion and feedback from students and Dancing Earth performers, and the exchange of cultural dances. Dancing Earth’s Master Classes included performers from Natibu Dance Academy, BodyArts Dance Studio, Stargazers Dance Troupe, DanzJazz, other island dance groups and members of the community.

 

At free community performances and talks at the University of Guam Fine Arts Theater and the Guam Museum, Dancing Earth presented excerpts from their current touring production, “SEEDS: REGENERATION,” a re-story-ing of bodies, land, water and skies expressed through indigenous dance.

Dancing Earth presented the full performance of “SEEDS: REGENERATION” together with the Natibu Dance Academy, led by Dr. Benjie Santiago and comprised of Guam dancers Andre Acfalle, Clint Agustin, Edward Agustin, Adrienne Blas, Amanda Cruz, Johnae Jones, Jordan Jones, Jude Leon Guerrero Tristan Pinaula, Matthew Quinata, Carly Rosete, Sierra Santiago, and Aleiah Tenorio. 

 

Humanities Guahan is immensely grateful for the participation and support of such an important project, which seeks to inspire and engage residents to reflect on culture, movement, environmental awareness, and the power of artistic expression in exploring indigenous identity.