B L A C K C H O R E O G R A P H E R S
F E S T I V A L: H E R E & N O W
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BCF is Celebrating 20 Years!!!
AWARDED ~BEST OF THE BAY
- SF BAY GUARDIAN 2009
RECOGNIZED BY THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA
FOR PRESERVING THE LEGACY OF BLACK DANCE
IN THE BAY AREA, 2019 & 2025
SF Classical Voice review of BCF 20th anniversary
"Black Choreographers Festival Reveals a Vibrant Tapestry of Dance..."
- Melissa Hudson Bell Read more
SF Chronicle review of BCF 20th anniversary
"This is looking like community coming out to support, so you know our hearts are full right now,” Laura Elaine Ellis said from the Dance Mission Theater stage on Saturday, Feb. 22,..."
-Rachel Howard Read more
SF Chronicle article features BCF for events to see in 2025
"Every milestone naturally brings reflection, but the Black Choreographers Festival's 20th anniversary slated for February is powered by something far more profound than nostalgia." -Rachel Howard Read more
20th Anniversary Events
Spirit of Sankofa: Bridging the Legacies of BCM and BCF Featuring: Archival Exhibit, Panel, & Performance (past event) Read more
Black Choreographers Festival: Here & Now
Celebrating 20 years!!!
BCF @ MSP
Saturday - May 3, 2025
Celebrate Bay Area Dance Week Event
FREE classes are OPEN to ALL
Location: 1275 Minnesota St, SF
Click on the class title to register through the BADW website!
Contemporary Movement PLAYshop w/ Dazaun Soleyn
1:30 - 2:15p
Experience a contemporary class that welcomes movers of all levels. Through a gentle warm up, improvisation, and choreography, we’ll playfully explore contemporary movement. Please bring tennis shoes.
Hip Hop Grooves PLAYshop w/ Dazaun Soleyn
2:30 - 3:15p
Join us for some feel-good Hip Hop grooves. No matter your experience level, you’re welcome to pull up and dance with us. We’ll move through a warm-up and a combo that will make space for you to express your own groove. Please bring tennis shoes.
Dazaun Soleyn (he/she/they), with an intention to create art that aims to illuminate the human soul, has presented work in the Bay Area since 2013. He received a BFA in Modern Dance Performance and Choreography from the University of South Florida and continued his dance education at the Alonzo King LINES Ballet Training Program. His teaching credits include the Alonzo King LINES Ballet Training Program, University of South Florida, Cal-State University East Bay, Alonzo King LINES Ballet BFA Program, Cleveland State University, Gibney Dance Center, America Ballet School, Dance Mission Theater, and ODC Commons. Recently, Dazaun graduated from California College of the Arts with a Masters in Architecture (MArch). Dazaun is an adjunct professor at the University of San Francisco, faculty at Shawl Anderson Dance Center, a Gyrotonic Instructor, Reiki Master and Apprentice Herbalists. His mediums include dance, architecture, sculpture and interactive installations. dazaunsoleyn.org
BCF @ MSP
Archival Exhibit • Panel • Performances
Enjoy a special evening of Art, Dynamic Discussion, and Vibrant Performances!
Saturday - May 10, 2025
Location: Minnesota Street Project Galleries, 1275 Minnesota Street, SF
5:30pm – Doors Open w/ Reception and Exhibit Viewing, 2nd Floor, SF Arts Ed Gallery
Spirit of Sankofa: Bridging the Legacies of BCM & BCF, an artful Archival Exhibit
An exquisite archival installation that depicts the narrative of two iconic SF Bay Area Festivals: Black Choreographers Moving Toward the 21 st Century (BCM), founded by Dr. Halifu Osumare and presented from 1989 – 1995, and Black Choreographers Festival: Here & Now (BCF) co-founded by laura elaine ellis and Kendra Kimbrough Barnes, premiered in 2005, celebrating 20 years of presenting BCF! Designed & Curated by Visual Artists: Pete Belkin and Tiersa Nureyev.
6pm – 2nd Floor, SF Arts Ed Gallery
Dynamic Discussion moderated by Dr. Halifu Osumare
The Dunham-Beckford Bay Area African-Haitian Dance Legacy
Featuring a powerhouse panel:
Dr. Yvonne Daniels, Deborah B. Vaughan, Dr. Colette Eloi, Elya Moore
Representing several generations of the Dunham-Beckford legacy, panelists will share memories and discuss the impact of the iconic Dancer-Anthropologist Katherine Dunham and Ms. Ruth Beckford, known as the Mother of Black Dance, and the
invaluable influence of the Dunham-Beckford legacy on Bay Area African-diasporic dance.
8pm – 1 st Floor, MSP Atrium Gallery
Site-specific performances featuring choreographers:
Byb Chanel Bibene
tara george
Patricia West + Aja Randall
natalya shoaf
Dazaun Soleyn
Experience this special performance event as choreographers transform proscenium pieces into one unique movement journey that connects all of their works, activating the MSP gallery space, creating an intimate and poignant evening of storytelling through text, movement, and music.
Cake & Chat event and more opportunity to view the exhibit, directly following the performances.
Tickets: $20 suggested donation
Seating is limited – purchase tickets in advance!
No one turned away for lack of funds
BCF @ MSP made possible through community partnership
with SFArtsEd Project Gallery and MSP.
BCF 20 th Anniversary Season made possible by funding support
from SF Arts Commission and Zellerbach Family Foundation.
The Black Choreographers Festival: Here and Now – is made possible by the on-going support of the San Francisco Arts Commission, City of Oakland Cultural Arts Funding Program, the Zellerbach Family Foundation, community partners Dance Mission Theater and Dimensions Dance Theater.
Copyright 2025 BCF HERE&NOW