Leeds-based artist, Bakani Pick-Up began working on Performing Gender in 2021 leading weekly dance sessions for House of Flava, a local group of queer, trans and intersex people of colour.

“As part of Yorkshire Dance’s ‘Performing Gender’, an international partnership project funded by Creative Europe, I co-led a dance session for House of Flava, an independent group of Queer, Trans, Intersex, Black and People of Colour. Performing Gender aimed to co-create new dance work exploring gender with communities.

I am a Black Queer Zimbabwean born, British resident. As a researcher and choreographer my practice over the last few years has been driven by how choreography positions itself as an act of care. I have always known that it is important for people to feel safe and looked after, but as I had never worked with non-dance artists before I didn’t realise how care pops up in different ways and for different people. The project has led to me reconsidering my practice.

A key question throughout the project was around autonomy. What does autonomy mean for all of us? How does autonomy show up for people who are from marginalised communities?

Arriving at the initial House of Flava sessions, I was apprehensive about how best to communicate with the participants in a way that allowed us to get the most out of the dance sessions. But I soon realised that this expectation was mine and mine alone.  What people got from the sessions was very different from what I wanted them to experience. Each participant arrived with their own expectations and needs.

Looking back at my journey in dance, autonomy hasn’t been at the forefront of my education. Dance has always been about one ‘expert’ delivering information and we the participants demonstrating our ability to follow instructions. Whilst this is a valid way of experiencing dance it is not the only way. A key term that I turn to is ‘authority’. Sometimes educators, myself included, position ourselves as an authority, the leader of said activity. But this doesn’t offer anyone else in the room the agency to refuse to participate in a task or to actively pursue their own curiosity.

How do I hold space? This is a question we should all ask ourselves as artists. The answers may vary, however there are some things we all need in common: safety, care and autonomy. It is wonderous how positive an experience can be when those three things are met. For House of Flava, we always had a safe space holder in the room. We ensured participants felt looked after, through travel contributions and food. We worked entirely with improvisation which allowed for maximum autonomy. Participants could do as much or as little as they wished. I observed the more positive the experience the more individuals used their autonomy to join group activities and to share the experience.

Originally, we hoped that members of House of Flava would join Yorkshire Dance’s Company of People to create and perform work. However, it quickly became clear that attendees did not come to perform or create, but for space to express themselves. Space which they are not granted in everyday life.

Working with fellow QTIBPOC I am humbled. We had this space, all to ourselves, to explore, draw, dance and touch. We all indulged in just being in a space where racial politics isn’t a concern. To be free of the white gaze and explore our own needs and creativity.

Sometimes the hardest thing to do is to listen and be aware of what people need. But this is something that is not entirely the work of the artist. A space must be created that allows attendees to have a voice, to be understood and acknowledged; this is what the Performing Gender project achieved. I hope that more spaces for marginalised communities, that are not about their marginalisation, may be created and protected.

Being a small part of Performing Gender has been a gift. It is art for the sake of physical, emotional and spiritual well-being. I feel privileged to hold space for any community, especially this community. Hold space we did and our lives, in trying times, were comforted through this experience.”

Performing Gender: Dancing in Your Shoes (2021-24) explored gender and LGBTIA+ identities through the co-creation of new dance works with artists and 8 communities across Europe. Funded by Creative Europe, the project involved 11 European partners with Yorkshire Dance representing the UK. Here in Leeds, Yorkshire Dance established Company of People, an intergenerational community performance company.

Image: Bakani Pick-Up with the House of Flava group, 2022 © Sophie Okonkwo