Lula Washington Dance Theatre

Modern dance company based in Los Angeles

Lula Washington Dance Theatre is a contemporary modern dance company based in Los Angeles, California. Founded in 1980, the repertoire dance ensemble has performed across the United States and toured internationally.

History

After graduating from UCLA, Lula Washington established the Los Angeles Contemporary Dance Theatre in 1980. She and her husband, Erwin Washington, a journalist and playwright, founded the dance company to offer creative opportunities for minority artists in Los Angeles, particularly in South Central Los Angeles.

In the mid-1980s, the company morphed into the Lula Washington Dance Theatre (LWDT). A multiracial troupe of approximately one dozen professional dancers, LWDT tours nationally and internationally. LWDT performs primarily choreography by Lula Washington, Los Angeles’ best-known African American choreographer who received choreography credits for the movies Avatar and The Little Mermaid.

LWDT is a member of The International Association of Blacks in Dance and hosted the IABD annual conference in 1992, 2005, 2011, and 2018. LWDT is considered to be “one of the most admired African-American contemporary dance companies” in the Western United States.

In 2021, LWDT received its second-largest gift in company history, a nearly one million dollar grant payable over four years from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. The gift will fund building upgrades, dancers’ salaries, and administrative support.

Building

In 1988, the Lula Washington Contemporary Dance Foundation purchased an approximately 12,600 square-foot building on Crenshaw Boulevard in Los Angeles. The building serves as a community cultural center and houses four dance studios, instructional areas, and the LWDT school and administrative offices. In 1994, the Northridge Earthquake destroyed significant parts of the building, and LWDT received a $1.3 million gift—the largest in LWDT’s history—from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to rebuild its building.

School

Established in the 1983, the Lula Washington Dance School offers elementary and advanced classes in ballet, jazz, African, tap, and other dance styles. The school’s annual Kwanzaa celebration is a South Los Angeles tradition. The school’s motto is, “I Do Dance, Not Drugs.”

Notable performances and tours

LWDT has performed in more than 150 cities in the United States and around the world. Notable venues and tours include:

China (25-day tour to Hangzhou, Jiaxing, Kaifeng, Luohe, Wuhan, Xi'an, Xinyang, Xucheng, and Zhengzhou) (2011)
International Book Fair, LA artists showcase, Guadalajara, Mexico (2010)
Jacob’s Pillow, Becket, Massachusetts
John Anson Ford Amphitheatre, Zev Yaroslovsly Signature Series (with Complexions Ballet), Los Angeles (2013)
Joyce Theatre, New York, NY
Kennedy Center, Washington, DC
Lincoln Center Out of Doors, New York, NY
Montclair State University, New Jersey (2010)
New Jersey Performing Arts Center, Newark, NJ
Ordway Theater, Minneapolis, MN (2015)
Pioneer Center, Reno, Nevada

Repertoire

LWDT’s repertoire includes works that explore homelessness, 9/11, police brutality, the Civil Rights movement, and the Underground Railroad, and other topics. The following is a representative sample.

African Ukumbusho. Choreographer: Lula Washington.
Angelitos Negros. Choreographer: Donald McKayle
At First Sight (2013). Choreographer: Christopher Huggins. Music: Sigur Rós.
Check This Out (1997). Choreographer: Lula Washington.
Communion. Choreographer: Donald Byrd.
Death and Eros. Choreographer: Donald McKayle.
Enough? (2016). Choreographer: David Rousseve.
From the Heart (1984). Choreographer: Lula Washington.
Games. Choreographer: Donald McKayle.
Global Village. Choreographer: Lula Washington.
Hallowed (2018). Choreographer: Kyle Abraham
Hands Up, A Testimony (2020). Choreographer: Tommie Waheed Evans.
Harambe Suite. Choreographer: Lula Washington.
Let Their Voices Be Heard (1988). Choreographer: Lula Washington.
Little Rock Nine. Choreographer: Lula Washington.
Love Is... (2010). Choreographer: Christopher Huggins.
To Lula With Love / Warrior (2020). Choreographer: Christopher Huggins.
Magical Cusp (2017). Choreographer: Gaspard Louis.
Open Your Eyes. Choreographer: Lula Washington.
Peeps. Choreographer: Tamica Washington-Miller.
Rainbow Etudes. Choreographer: Donald McKayle.
Reign. Choreographer: Rennie Harris
Search for Humanism. Choreographer: Lula Washington.
Snowy Day. Choreographer: Tamica Washington-Miller.
Songs of the Disinherited. Choreographer: Donald McKayle.
Spontaneous Combustion. Choreographer: Lula Washington.
Temporary Spaces. Choreographer: Anthony Burrell
The Message. Choreographer: Lula Washington.
The Movement. Choreographer: Lula Washington.
There is Always Tomorrow. Choreographer: Tamica Washington-Miller.
Tribute to the Release of Nelson Mandela and the Youth of South Africa (South African Boot Dance) (2005). Choreographer: Lula Washington.
Turn the Page (2013). Choreographer: Lula Washington.
We Wore the Mask. Choreographer: Lula Washington.
www.connections.2010. Choreographer: Lula Washington. Music: Rolling Stones and Michael Jackson.
Zayo (2020). Choreographer: Esie Mensah.

Leadership

Lula Washington, co-founder and artistic director
Erwin Washington, co-founder and executive director
Tamica Washington-Miller, associate director
Marcus L. Miller, resident composer and percussionist

Dancers

Joniece Boykins (2012-)
Quron Clarks (2016-)
Danny Guerrero (2017-)
Kaitwan Jackson, Apprentice (2021-)
Ongelle Johnson (2018-)
Kozue Kasahara (2019-)
Vuong Nguyen, Apprentice (2019-)
Glenn Rodriguez, Apprentice
Kylie Shea, Special Guest
Diána Worby, Apprentice (2020-)

Former Dancers

Joshua Alexander
Jaela Anderson
Naila Ansari
Michael Battle
Mataji Booker
Bernard Brown
Dwayne Brown
Queala Clancy
Thomas Davis
Tehran Dixon
Khilea Douglass
Simone Ewell
Christopher Frazier
Ralph Glenmore
Krystal Hicks
Shameika Hines
Saidiya Imari
Khalelah Jones
Grace Marti
Micah Moch
Joel Muepo
Christopher Nolen
Dominique Oakley
Ra’JahNae Patterson
Destiny Polian
Mayumi Rhone
Mary Runkle
Lynette Shigg
Nabachwa Ssensalo
Jamal Story
Haniyyah Tahirah
Jeremiah Tatum
Ramon Thielen
Michael Tomlin III
Jack Virga-Hall
Tamica Washington-Miller
Robert Wherry
Janay Wiggins
April Wilkins

References

^ "Lula Washington Dance Theatre | Kennedy Center". The Kennedy Center. Retrieved 2025-01-10.
^ Levine, Debra (2010-01-31). "Lula Washington: A life changed by dance". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2025-01-10.
^ "How a $970,000 award represents hope and change for a Black L.A. dance company". Los Angeles Times. 2021-01-15. Retrieved 2025-01-10.
^ "Lula Washington - The International Association of Blacks in Dance". www.iabdassociation.org. Archived from the original on 2024-11-09. Retrieved 2025-01-10.
^ Press Release (December 21, 2017). Lula Washington Dance Theatre Makes Wallis Debut with Three Evenings Featuring Programs Celebrating the Legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Highlighting Three Decades of Programming. Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts. January 11 – 13, 2018. https://thewallis.org/storage/press_releases/thewallis/3845ac64932460a539edd97b4b25a5ae42713bc3.pdf
^ "Lula Washington Dance Theatre". southlaculture.org. Retrieved 2025-01-10.
^ "China, Meet Crenshaw: Lula Washington Dance Theatre Goes On Tour". HuffPost. 2011-06-13. Retrieved 2025-01-10.
^ "REVIEW: Lula Washington Dance Theatre (Ordway) – Twin Cities Arts Reader". twincitiesarts.com. 2015-10-31. Retrieved 2025-01-10.
"Conference and Festival | History and Timeline - The International Association of Blacks in Dance". www.iabdassociation.org. Archived from the original on 2024-11-09. Retrieved 2025-01-10.
^ "Lula Washington Dance Battles CRA". www.backstage.com. 2001-05-09. Retrieved 2025-01-10.
City of Los Angeles (March 8, 2005). Certificate of Occupancy: 3773 Crenshaw Boulevard, Los Angeles.
^ "Lula Washington – Lula Washington Dance Theatre". Retrieved 2025-01-10.
^ "Lula Washington Dance Theatre's 2023 Kwanzaa Celebrations - Support Black Theatre". www.supportblacktheatre.org. 2024-05-01. Retrieved 2025-01-10.
^ levine, debra (2011-05-29). "Lula Washington Dance Theatre superb in Zhengzhou | arts•meme". artsmeme.com. Retrieved 2025-01-10.
^ "Lula Washington Dance Theatre Meets Complexions Contemporary Ballet". pLAywriting in the city. 2013-08-21. Retrieved 2025-01-10.
^ Open Your Eyes: Lula Washington Dance Theatre | Artbound | PBS SoCal. 2024-05-29. Retrieved 2025-01-10 – via YouTube.
^ "Choreographers – Lula Washington Dance Theatre". Retrieved 2025-01-10.
"Dance Preview: LULA WASHINGTON DANCE THEATRE (Ford Amphitheatre)". www.stageandcinema.com.
^ "Program_ubuntukapwa". kayamanan. Retrieved 2025-01-10.
^ "Board of Directors – Lula Washington Dance Theatre". Retrieved 2025-01-10.
^ Dancers and Staff. Lula Washington Dance Theatre. https://www.lulawashington.org/company/dancers-and-staff/
^ Looseleaf, Victoria (December 29, 1997). Washington’s ‘Gospel Christmas Suite’ Struggles to Gain a Solid Footing. Los Angeles Times. https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1997-dec-29-ca-3087-story.html
Jamal Story. Gibney.
Jamal Story. Jamalstory.com
Jamal Story. The Dance History Project of Southern California.

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