Annual Black dance fest and conference sways into ATL
Atlanta native Omar Ingram wanted to bring his passion for dance to his hometown.
In 2022, he was program director for the International Association of Blacks in Dance — a nonprofit organization that spotlights and preserves dance by Black and African people — and wanted organizers to host their signature event in Atlanta. They decided to have it in Memphis in 2024 and in Pittsburgh last year.
He knew having its flagship program in Atlanta, a culturally diverse Southern city, could reimagine the organization’s future, reminding attendees of its dance’s influence on history and creating community.
“We’re wanted to bring a conference about Black people, dance and artists to the civil rights city, looking for ways to expand our blueprint, and go where the conference would be seen,” Ingram said.
Ingram, who became executive director in March, is bringing the International Association of Blacks in Dance’s 36th annual conference and festival to Atlanta for the first time through Sunday.
The five-day event, titled “From Soul to Sole: The Black Family Reunion,” gathers dancers, performers, choreographers and educators to celebrate the history, diversity and contributors of Black dance.
Some performances and programs are open to the public. The website lists the schedules, admission and registration costs.
Participants can attend panel discussions, film screenings, master classes, emerging artists showcases, youth scholarship and dance company auditions at Rialto Center for the Arts, Spelman College and Atlanta-based dance studio Moving in the Spirit. Fifty dance companies from 40 cities are performing throughout the festival.
Asante Sana — the conference’s gala recognizing Black dance pioneers — takes place at Hyatt Regency Atlanta on Saturday. Spelman College dance department founder Mozel Spriggs, stepping company Step Afrika!, choreographer Gary Harrison and dance advocate Stephanie Hughley are the honorees.
Ingram expects 1,300 people to attend the conference and festival. He said hosting overlapping events creates community and inclusion.
“It’s a jam-packed gathering of the minds. We run five to six concurrent programs over that week, because everybody needs something to be able to do. It gives people the opportunity to engage and interact in the best way possible without feeling siloed,” Ingram said.
“It really is a time, and we’re waking up ready to move, create every morning at 7 a.m. and ending every night at 2 a.m. It’s a bit of a feat, but it’s a festival where everybody can come together, gather, dialogue, reshape, revise and rethink.”
In 1991, the International Association of Blacks in Dance was founded in Dayton, Ohio, to preserve and recognize various forms of dance rooted in African ancestry. The organization hosted events in Philadelphia, Denver, Dallas, Los Angeles and Dayton.
Memphis was the first Southern city where the conference was held.
The International Association of Blacks in Dance normally produces the conference and festival in the third week of January. As part of its reboot, organizers decided to push the conference to February to accommodate dance companies and ensembles’ schedules during Black History Month.
Ingram, who graduated with a degree in musical theatre from Howard University in 2012, joined as stage manager the following year. He’s also held positions at The Public Theater in New York and Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company in D.C.
He said it’s a coincidence the conference and festival arrive in Atlanta a week before Alvin Ailey Dance Company’s annual residency at Fox Theatre.
“It’s a fun way for us to kick off Black History Month in a way we normally don’t. We call it ‘Black Working Month’ because our companies are touring or have showcases in their distinct communities,” Ingram said.
The conference arrives at a moment when the current federal administration continues to force cultural institutions to remove programs celebrating diversity and cutting arts funding. Ingram, the organization’s first male executive director, said the festival celebrates Black body movement as forms of creativity and resistance.
“Dance is a communications tool and safe space for people. Black history is being erased and removed from public display, so it acknowledges the value of what Black art is, who Black artists are, and what is created so that our stories live,” he said.
“Our goal is to make sure people are able to feel more grounded in who they are, connected to other Black people who share different walks of life, and build a deeper understanding of what it means to be a human being.”
Ingram hopes attendees will appreciate dance as local and public art after the conference.
“They should expose themselves to more than just Alvin Ailey or Dance Theatre of Harlem. They can embrace and support their community art, but we have to figure out everyone’s access point, find where art speaks to and for them.”
The International Association of Blacks in Dance 36th Annual Conference and Festival. Through Sunday. Prices vary based on events and badge type. Hyatt Regency Atlanta, 265 Peachtree Street NE, Atlanta. conference.iabdassociation.org
About the Author
Christopher A. Daniel is a Black Culture reporter for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He is an Atlanta-based, award-winning journalist, cultural critic and ethnomusicologist. He previously taught courses at Morehouse College, Clark Atlanta University and Georgia State University.