Fresh Meat Productions’ new online video series is free, accessible, body-positive, diverse … and best of all, it’s FUN!
During the current era of shelter-in-place, the internet has exploded with new instructional videos offering to “get you moving” or “find inner peace” or “up your workout.”
But not all of us want a kettle ball workout. What about those of us aching to feel creative AND embodied? What about those of looking for something a little, well … queerer?
Enter #stayFRESHatHOME—an outstanding new online video series offered by Fresh Meat Productions San Francisco’s much-loved trans arts organization (best known for their annual FRESH MEAT FESTIVAL and resident dance company Sean Dorsey Dance).
To date, the series offers 11 different videos—each led by a different trans, gender-nonconforming, or queer artist. All videos are free to watch, and closed-captioned for deaf and hard-of-hearing audiences.
#stayFRESHatHOME is beautifully body-positive, and offers a range of activities for those who want to stand, be seated, use their wheelchair or scooter, or lay down.
And … did we mention the series is also super queer, super sassy, and FUN? The videos are a delight to watch and experience—empowering, joyful, and life-affirming.
Season One of #stayFRESHatHOME
Season One offers these free videos:
* Beginner bachata dance by world champion queer bachata duo Jahaira & Angelica;
* A 20-minute guided meditation for trans, gender non-binary, and beyond communities by Fresh “Lev” White—a loving and compassionate activist, coach, and educator;
* Intro To Singing by Black transgender multi-media artist and activist TAJAH J aka Akira Jackson;
* Jazz Dance taught in ASL (American Sign Language) by acclaimed Deaf choreographer Antoine Hunter;
* Seated movement taught by SF’s own beloved Drag Queen artist/hostess Churro Nomi;
* 5 minutes of breath, poetry, and grounding for BIPOC trans and queer folks by award-winning Black/trans/queer poet J Mase III;
* A lesson on making dances in small spaces by Marc Brew, Artistic Director of AXIS Dance Company;
* Stretch and condition with dancer Will Woodward, a longtime member of both Sean Dorsey Dance and SF burlesque group Baloney;
* Lighting tips for using Zoom by videographer, photographer/activist Gwen Park;
* Sing along/move along with NEVE Mazique, a disabled multigender femme fop mixed race Black African choreographer/dancer, composer/singer, and performance artist;
* A full-body dance warmup by Seattle-born dancer, choreographer, actor, curator, director, and activist Randy Ford;
* (Coming soon: Moving Toward Self-Love with activist, choreographer, dancer, and writer Mark Travis Rivera;
* BONUS! A great hour-long #stayFRESHatHOME music mix on SoundCloud by the talented DJ Frida Ibarra, a queer trans-Chicana composer and DJ.
The #stayFRESHatHOME series is curated by Fresh Meat Productions’ Artistic Director Sean Dorsey, and edited/captioned by Access and Social Media Coordinator StormMiguel Florez and Production Coordinator Eric Garcia (with a super cute video intro by Gwen Park, and tech guidance for artists by Annalise Ophelian).
“We are offering #stayFRESHatHOME as an act of love,” says Dorsey. “Our communities already had such limited access to supportive creative expression and body-positive embodiment. And we were already navigating multiple layers of stress, trauma, and oppression. Then COVID-19 hit. BIPOC trans, queer and/including disabled folks are leading the resistance against white supremacy and state violence even as BIPOC and/including disabled folks are the most impacted by COVID and the national backlash.”
Dorsey adds, “This series is offered as a balm, as medicine, as love, as resistance. Being in our bodies IS resistance. Experiencing JOY and HEALING is a central part of our collective liberation.”
We asked several featured #stayFRESHatHOME artists a few questions:
San Francisco Bay Times: How are you thinking about wellness at this time?
Mark Travis Rivera: My wellness during this time of racial uprising and a global pandemic has shifted; I just feel fortunate enough to have a support system and my creative outlets to get me through my days.
Will Woodward: I think that wellness is holistic and all-inclusive. I have to check-in with my mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual “houses” regularly to keep my wellness meter full. It’s been both easier and harder to do this objectively over these last several months, but finding the breath is always a good start.
Fresh “Lev” White: I meditate each morning for 10–30 minutes, and will take 5–10 minutes throughout the day when possible. I’m practicing turning off my phone for 30–120 minutes each day. My phone automatically goes into DND mode from
9 pm–9 am every day. This allows me to control when I check it. Drinking plenty of water, and taking in fresh nutrient-rich foods as much as possible. Wellness also requires getting enough sleep. I don’t schedule anything until 9 am when possible so I can have my morning to myself.
Marc Brew: I think about wellness holistically, trying to find the balance of supporting others’ wellness of body, mind, and spirit—and giving permission for my own self-care and needs.
San Francisco Bay Times: What do you think of the #stayFRESHatHOME series?
Will Woodward: I love the #stayFRESHatHOME series! Community is a big component of wellness, and this series has managed to successfully bring our communities to our homes in a safe and fun way.
TAJAH J aka Akira Jackson: #stayFRESHatHOME allows Trans and Queer artists of color the opportunity to stay connected with the community at large!
Mark Travis Rivera: I feel super honored to have been asked to participate in #stayFRESHatHOME, and I was excited to do a movement exploration rooted in affirmations and self-love. I think we all need more self-love and affirmations in our lives. The diversity of those who are part of the series is also remarkable and to be celebrated … especially during a time when we are being asked to consider who is missing from around the table.
Marc Brew: #stayFRESHatHOME feels welcoming, accessible, and inclusive, and supports our diverse community.
Fresh “Lev” White: While some folks were freaking out about not having access to in-person events, Fresh Meat leaped full speed into bringing their much-loved experience into our homes—Brilliant!! Brilliant, generous, and healing! Bravo!
San Francisco Bay Times: What is the role of the artist in our collective liberation?
TAJAH J aka Akira Jackson: To bring attention to the issues on the ground concerning anti-Blackness, anti-feminism, xenophobia, homophobia and transphobia—in order to bring justice for all!
Fresh “Lev” White: The role of the artist is to live fully into their vision and spark the light within each of us, which demands liberation from anything that keeps us from being our full and loving selves!
Marc Brew: Artists are adaptable and we are resilient. Together we will move.
Mark Travis Rivera: To bare our souls, to tell our truths, and to be a possibility model for others to be able to get free by doing the same thing.
Sean Dorsey: Artists have always been at the forefront of social justice and cultural transformation … as storytellers, healers, carriers of knowledge and joy and wisdom, guardians of community stories, and prophets of what is possible.
Check out Season One of #stayFRESHatHOME at www.freshmeatproductions.org
… and watch for the premiere of Season Two of #stayFRESHatHOME in January 2021!
For More Information
Fresh Meat Productions
http://freshmeatproductions.org/
FRESH MEAT FESTIVAL
http://freshmeatproductions.org/fresh-meat-festival/
Sean Dorsey Dance
http://seandorseydance.com/
AXIS Dance Company
https://www.axisdance.org/
Baloney
https://www.sfbaloney.com/
Published on October 21, 2020
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