Ogemdi Ude

MAJOR is a dance theater project exploring the physicality, history, sociopolitical nature, and interiority of majorette dance, a form that originated in the American South within Historically Black Colleges and Universities in the 1960s. These Black femme teams accompanied by marching bands created a movement style that requires master showmanship with allegiance to count, undulation, groove, and sensual yet strong performativity. In MAJOR, six Black femmes embrace majorette form—a fundamental relic of Black girlhood—to pursue the intimate journey of returning to their younger bodies they thought lost. The performance is set to a music score that integrates Southern rap, horns, drumlines, and melodic R&B and soul by musician and composer Lambkin. The Chord Archive—a physical and digital documentation of the creative process and personal historical accounts from former majorette dancers—will be showcased in the lobby alongside the performances. A fierce investigation of physical memory, sexuality, sensuality, and community, MAJOR is a nuanced love letter to the folks who taught the team how to be proudly Black and proudly femme. (program approx. 90 mins. no intermission)

IMAGE CAPTION
Left to right: song aziza tucker, Junyla Silmon, Jailyn Phillips-Wiley, Chanel Stone, Kayla Farrish, and Selah Hampton in MAJOR, photo: Maria Baranova.