Lula Washington Set To Receive Champion Award

By Darlene Donloe

Lula Washington, the founder and artistic director of her namesake Lula Washington Dance Theatre, has long cemented her status as a creative driving force.

Her efforts have not gone unnoticed.

This weekend, as part of the 2018 Dance/USA Annual Conference (the country’s broadest gathering of dance professionals) taking place in Los Angeles from June 6-9, Washington and her husband, Erwin, the company’s co-founder and executive director, will be recognized with the Dance/USA Champion Award for their impact on dance. 

The Champion Award is given to an organization, business, foundation, or individual in appreciation for their achievements, leadership, outstanding service, and dedicated efforts that have sustained and significantly advanced the dance field in the annual conference host city. 

Lula Washington Dance Theatre
Photo by Sol Washington

As part of the annual celebration, The Ford Theatres’ IGNITE @ the FORD! will host three renowned choreographers - Kyle Abraham, Rennie Harris, and David Roussève – to set works on Lula Washington’s Dance Theatre on June 8. The evening will also include choreographies by Washington and her daughter, Tamica Washington-Miller (associate director of Lula Washington Dance Theatre).

The Lula Washington Dance Theatre program for June 8 includes Kyle Abraham’s Hallowed (music by Bertha Gober and Cleo Kennedy), Rennie Harris’s Reign (music by James “JT” Wilconson), David Roussève’s Enough? (music by Aretha Franklin), Lula Washington’s Open Your Eyes, a suite to Earth Wind & Fire, and Tamica Washington-Miller’s There is Always Tomorrow (music by Marcus Lamar Miller).

A stalwart powerhouse in the dance community, Washington, who grew up in Watts, is not content to rest on her laurels.  No passive observer, for Washington, who founded the dance company in 1980, there’s always something new to learn and explore.

That’s because to hear her tell it - there is “something about dance”. For her, there is something internally and viscerally rewarding about truly moving an audience.

Lula Washington Dance Theatre
Photo by Sol Washington

She got the chance to “move” the movie-going audience when she was selected to choreograph the ritual movement and created body language for the indigenous people, Na'vi, in James Cameron's hit film, Avatar.  It’s an achievement she relishes because she was able to employ many of her own dancers in the film.

To Washington and her husband, Erwin Washington’s credit, the Lula Washington Dance Theatre has risen to become one of the most admired African-American contemporary dance companies in the West – known for powerful, high-energy dancing, unique choreography, and exceptional educational residencies.

The Company is comprised of young, athletic dancers, many of whom were groomed in Washington’s inner city dance studio. While she encourages her dancers to be excellent performers, an activist in her own right, she also emphasizes the importance of being leaders in their communities.

Believing in the universality of dance, over the years Washington, 68, has exerted a great deal of influence both domestically and internationally.

Her dance theater has expanded its global reach, performing in 150 U.S. cities, as well as tours in Germany, Russia, China, and Israel.

Lula Washington

I recently caught up with the lively and always engaging Washington to talk about her career, the dance theater and the company’s upcoming performance at the Ford Theater.

DD: Let's talk about what the audience will see on June 8.

LW:  The audience will see a range of choreography from five articulate choreographers, all of whom are African American. It’s a rare opportunity to see something like this.

DD: You and Erwin, the company’s co-founder and executive director, will be recognized this summer for your impact on dance in Los Angeles and beyond. You will receive the Dance/USA Champion Award at this year’s conference. What was your initial thought when you heard you were being recognized?

LW: I guess my initial thought was, ‘I didn’t believe it’ because we’re getting an award from an organization that I didn't think was paying attention to what we were doing or value what we were doing. Then I was assured that everyone chimed in and said why it was real. I didn't think they were focusing on companies of color.  We are looking forward to it. A champion award – it’s ok for me to say what I said.  Sometimes you stand by yourself when you’re saying something. You have to be willing to do that. Over the 38 years, we tried to make a difference in our community.  I was thinking who else in the community should get this. I couldn’t think of anyone, so I said, yes, us.

DD: Why did you feel that way?

LW: Because dance deals with all kinds of issues. But in the hierarchy of dance, it’s always ballet. Funding has always been ballet. When you look at companies too good to fail, it’s always ballet. Traditionally Dance USA has been about ballet. That has gotten the bulk of recognition although over the years they have included some minority companies. There are not a lot of minority companies that are part of Dance USA. They are trying to make a difference.

DD: What is it like to work with your husband?

LW: It’s special because he always likes to be in the background. I tell him to stop staying on the sideline. One hundred percent of the success is because of him. He’s excited as well. I couldn’t accept this award without him being part of it.

DD: Is it hard to work with a partner/hubby every day?

LW: We fight all the time because we're both vested in the organization. We fight about directions we should go in and what jobs we should take. It’s about one person trying to get their viewpoint across. We do performance art all the time. Some view it as yelling and screaming. This is our process. This is how it goes. He has always been here for this organization and a protector of the organization.  We go to development conferences together. Sometimes we take my road, sometimes his road and now, sometimes a third person – my daughter, Tamica.  We’re here for 38 years later.  We own our own building. It was $1.3 million. The building is paid for. Hard work and dedication has put us where we are.

DD: Have you actually thought about the impact you have made on dance in Los Angeles?

LW: I don’t pay attention to that. I don’t want to step back and look. I know what we’ve done for homeless kids who wanted to dance. I know about the donations we give and the free rehearsal space we give to emerging choreographers. Whenever I go to see something, I see 10 of the people we trained. I don't’ want to look back – I want to keep going forward.

DD: This performance is taking place in recognition of the 2018 Dance/USA Annual Conference, the country’s broadest gathering of dance professionals, from June 6-9 in Los Angeles.  How far in advance do you start preparing?

LW:  I start preparing in February because everybody’s schedule is different. Guest choreographer’s schedules are different. Some are in and out of town. You have to start early.  We workshop the stuff we’re going to do. Then we have to bring in guest artists. Sometimes we have to fly people in for rehearsals. The reliability of dancers here in Los Angeles is unreal. They could get a video at any moment. They could get $1200-$1300  compared to our little stipend.

DD: How do you set yourself apart in a conference that includes such a large group of dance professionals?

LW: By being who I am. I know my self-worth and value. It doesn’t matter to me. Bella Lewitzky told me when she saw some of my work, “Don’t pay attention to anyone else. Focus on your voice and your art.”  I’m respectful of everyone. We are all individuals.

DD: Talk about how you and your daughter, Tamica Washington-Miller, work together.  How does it play out?  Does she share your vision for the dance theater?

 
LW: We fight. She has her viewpoints. She joins the conversation. She doesn’t want to be rude or disrespectful, but I told her she has to stand up for her rights. She’s next generation so she has to have those opportunities. There is lots of yelling and screaming. But it’s creative yelling and screaming.

DD: How did/do you keep the dance theater’s doors open in Los Angeles?

LW:  Erwin [Washington] writes grants. He’s been very successful. We were able to pay our dancers through a grant so that we could help to subsidize them. The grant came from the California Arts Council.  Tamika has also made relationships with several high schools.  Our whole dance company got a chance to participate in Avatar to assist me on the set.

DD:  Which one of your dances do you consider your baby?

LW: No, I don’t get into that. I love them all the same.

DD: Dance is more than dancing.  What else can dance accomplish?

LW: Dance accomplishes the ability to present history and culture and stories about the community through movement. It’s spiritual and healing. You can look at a hand gesture and be brought to tears. Whole lives can be changed. You can only see it one time that way. The next time you see it – there is always something different.

DD: You have received numerous awards, including a National Endowment for the Arts choreography fellowship, the California Dance Educators Award of Excellence and a Woman of the Year Award from the California State Legislature.  Are awards important?  What do they mean?

LW:  Awards are important because it shows you have made achievements. You would like them to turn into real cash, though – so you can keep your organization going.

Lula Washington

DD: Why is dance important?

LW: Because it helps people to express their feelings and emotions. It helps the mind and creates a freedom and joy. If you don’t have movement, you’d never feel that. We all come into life moving. Our heart is moving. Dancing builds self-esteem. It’s a way of communicating.

DD: You started dancing at 22, which some thought was too old. What do you tell your older students?

LW: You’re never too old if that’s what you want to do. If you still want to – just start.

DD: How has your approach to dance changed since the beginning?

LW: It has changed because I want to be able to have more money to create and present works the way I want them to be seen. If I have a mountain in a piece, then I want a mountain on stage. All things cost money. It would be nice to have a waterfall on the stage. It would be nice to be able to have funds to create your ideal environment. You gotta have financial support so you can have sound, music, light, and computers.  It would be nice to create a dance with technology.

DD: When not dancing, what are you doing?

LW: There is no time to relax when you run a dance company. We might go to a movie or play or hear some music, but usually, we are unconsciously working. At home, we're talking about stuff we have to do.

DD: Tell me about the International Association of Blacks in Dance.

LW: We just celebrated our 30^th anniversary. The organization was started by Joan Myers Brown. She started it because she was tired of going places where people of color were never addressed. We wanted to learn from each other and share ideas. In January (2017) we had over 900 participants from as far away as Canada and New Zealand. We produced four nights of dance. I’m a founding member of the organization. I felt isolated here on the west coast. Every time we wrote a grant we didn’t get it. This kept happening. We needed to move forward.

DD: Did you have a Plan B in case dance didn’t work out?

LW:  No, because I always knew dance was going to work out. Now, I tell people to have a Plan A, B and C.   I worked at a hospital, I was an inhalation therapist. I hated that. And because I hated that, I honed my teaching skills. I’m glad I did.

The Ford Theatres presents Lula Washington Dance Theatre (LWDT) on Friday, June 8 at 8:30pm, as part of its IGNITE @ the FORD! series. Ford Theatres, 2580 Cahuenga Blvd E, Los Angeles; www.fordtheatres.org/calendar/lula-washington-dance-theatre