Tanesha Payne first received into dance on a dare.
They had been about 13 years previous and enrolled on the Center Faculty for the Arts in Jacksonville, Fla.
“We did mini-trials of various artwork kinds,” they mentioned. “My essential one was theater, however I had tried dance, I had tried visible arts, all of the others. After which, when it got here time to go to ninth grade, my theater mates dared me to audition for the dance division, and I used to be like, OK! Let’s go! I went to the audition — I didn’t have a lot expertise previous to that — and I’m a pure mover, so I used to be capable of do it, and I’ve been hooked ever since.”
Payne, 38, is pushed by a need to share their ardour for dance. And so, once they moved to San Antonio with their husband and two kids in 2016 and found how scant the fashionable dance choices are, they determined to work to alter that.
“I discovered myself commuting to Houston and Austin frequently simply to get my dance repair,” mentioned Payne. “And so, I’m like, OK. We have to do one thing about this.”
As a part of that mission, they based sumRset Motion in 2023 after ending their grasp’s diploma in choreography.
“The purpose for getting my MFA was to be a school professor for some kind of job safety throughout the artwork kind,” they mentioned. “However one thing form of switched whereas I used to be at school, and my husband and I mentioned it, and I used to be like, give me 5 years to chase this dream. Simply networking and speaking to folks, we most likely did about 15 performances final yr. So it’s been fairly a extremely quick curler coaster.”
The title of the corporate is a play on their maiden title, Sumerset, in addition to a nod to the corporate’s repertoire.
“A few of the dances that we do are set and a few usually are not,” they mentioned. “We lean closely into the apply of improvisation. So, in rehearsals, we spend an excellent portion studying the right way to learn one another’s our bodies and the right way to breathe collectively and simply sense each other. It’s like a jazz musician — upon getting the principles, you’ll be able to break the principles. And as soon as you realize who you’re taking part in with, it simply flows.”
The power to improv additionally makes it simpler for the corporate to just accept efficiency invites with out a number of lead time. That helps enhance visibility for each the corporate and the artwork kind.
“I feel the extra entry folks should it — the extra that, each time they flip round, there’s dance — it’ll develop into acquainted,” they mentioned. “As a result of there’s that, ‘I went to a present, I’m not likely certain what I noticed, I’m not comfy, I don’t wish to come again.’ So we wish to create these areas the place we are able to make San Antonio acquainted and comfy with it.”
Along with choreographing for and dancing with sumRset, Payne maintains a busy schedule as a educating artist. Additionally they work with highschool dance groups, choreographing for them and serving to them put together for competitions. They frequently choreograph for musical theater productions round city, one thing they first did to unbelievable impact for The Public Theater of San Antonio’s 2022 staging of “As soon as on This Island.” And they’re a putting presence in “The Quilt: A Residing Historical past of African American Music,” the award-winning 2023 academic movie produced by Musical Bridges Across the World.
Because of all that work, they’ve develop into a sought-after collaborator for arts teams throughout city.
Daniel Anastasio, inventive director and pianist for the Agarita chamber ensemble, labored intently with them to form a efficiency by the musicians and sumRset for a rapt home in January.
Anastasio is “a thousand p.c” open to collaborating with Payne once more.
“Tanesha already reached out to me about the potential for both doing a repeat of this live performance someday or creating one thing new collectively,” he mentioned. “If one thing is working and it’s producing artwork and also you’re getting good suggestions, it’s a disgrace to not pursue that to the nth diploma.”
Theater artist Morgan Clyde first labored with Payne in “We Sail On in Darkness,” a thought-provoking 2023 bodily theater piece exploring the tales of assorted mystics. Clyde designed the costumes and Payne choreographed, a collaborative course of that labored fantastically.
“At this level, they’re a kind of folks I’ll search out alternatives to work with,” mentioned Clyde.
Due to that, she gave Payne their first onstage musical theater position as one of many drag queen angels in Marvel Theatre’s manufacturing of “Kinky Boots.” Clyde directed the present and mentioned that along with casting for expertise, the manufacturing crew regarded for people who find themselves nice to work with.
“It’s so good to be engaged on a course of the place everyone is simply joyful coming in, and Tanesha’s on the prime of the record,” she mentioned. “They’ve received this vivid, beaming smile on their face each single day.
“There may be pleasure in what’s being carried out, there’s pleasure within the collaborative course of itself, there’s pleasure within the social side of every thing, and you may see pleasure for his or her life, too, once they discuss their husband.”
As a lot as Payne loves creating work for folk to look at, in addition they need San Antonians who may not consider themselves as dancers to provide it a strive. To assist with that, they lead an grownup up to date class open to just about anyone.
“I’ve created the house the place folks can present up at any stage and simply be and it’s not intimidating,” they mentioned.
The lessons run in four-week cycles, throughout which the scholars work by way of the identical actions, slowly mastering them.
“It’s actually attention-grabbing to look at individuals who are available in as non-dancers after which to see them so assured in that fourth week,” they mentioned. “It’s so magical.”
They hope that all the work that they’re placing in pays off with a bigger dance presence within the metropolis.
“I simply wish to make a little bit dent and get some progress going,” they mentioned. “I heard San Antonio is a tricky metropolis to crack for dance and motion. So I’m nonetheless attempting to determine that out.
“It helps that I like it.”
