#milteri

I'm feeling so much gratitude for the work I'm doing right now.

On Tuesday, I got the opportunity to co-direct & shoot with my producer/co-director buddy Pierre Jean Gonzalez on an immensely powerful piece that tackles gender & sexuality in Bomba.

For those unfamiliar, Bomba is a traditional dance style & music developed in Puerto Rico. Its strongest influences stem from West African dance & music via TransAtlantic Slavery.

The word, "Bomba," actually describes the rum barrels enslaved Africans repurposed into drums.

So here's the thing: there's been some pretty rigid gender constructs surrounding Bomba in the past.

Traditionally, “Bailadores” (male dancers) perform their “Piquetes” with their body and the “Bailadoras” (female dancers) perform with the body and / or skirt with the petticoat.

However, Milteri of Bombazo Dance Co. wanted to challenge to gender constructs behind this, after seeing a young masc-presenting person defy the gender norms by donning the traditional dress, and dancing their heart out to Bomba online.

And that brings us to Tuesday, where we all met up in the Bronx w/ masks & sanitizer to shoot some pretty powerful things.