Bare Feet With Mickela Mallozzi

Mickela Mallozzi: I'm a dancer, and I'm a traveler, and wherever I go, I experience the world one dance at a time.

I'm Mickela Mallozzi, and this is "Bare Feet."

"Bare Feet" is supported in part by... Announcer: Bloomberg Connects gives you a way to experience the arts from your mobile phone.

You can explore hundreds of cultural organizations from around the world anytime, anywhere.

Learn more at bloombergconnects.org or wherever you find your apps.

Announcer: Road Scholar, offering educational travel adventures for adults since 1975.

Announcer: Additional funding was provided by Koo and Patricia Yuen through the Yuen Foundation, committed to bridging cultural differences in our communities.

Mallozzi: These generous supporters.... Announcer: And by the Ann H. Symington Foundation.

Mallozzi: Over the years, I have come across so many dancers, dance groups, and musicians that have been empowering their cultural and ethnic communities through the arts.

For this very special episode of "Bare Feet," I want to introduce you to some incredible people who use dance and music to support the more disenfranchised communities and who empower NYC.

My first stop on meeting with empowering New Yorkers starts in Coney Island at the Cyclones' baseball stadium to meet with the Pacemakers.

[Big band music playing] The Pacemakers is this amazing, groovy senior citizens dance team.

The Cyclones put out an ad that they were looking for dance team members.

And to my surprise, I made it onto the dance team.

Yes!

And we did our first performance, and there was so much joy.

And then when I got home, that joy just poofed away.

I was cyberbullied.

Oh, my gosh.

Like, fans were like, "Who is that old bag?

Have her in the kitchen."

You know, they were insulting my looks, all kinds of things.

And so I called the Cyclones, and they said, "You hold your head up high and you finish the season."

Yes!

And I finished the season.

And I figured, OK, you know, my dancing days are over.

And I was sitting at dinner one night with my daughter, and she said, "Why don't you start your own dance team?"

We just started dancing, and I would send rehearsal videos to friends.

And I sent one to the Brooklyn Cyclones, and they were like, "Can you guys perform here?"

You are officially an honorary member of the Pacemakers.

Oh, my gosh, you guys!

And we have our ages on the back of our jerseys, and we made one for you, too.

Oh, thank you!

So, yep, there you go.

Oh, my gosh, I love this.

[All cheering] So our signature move is 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8.

Mallozzi: Yeah.

OK. And now you're gonna pip and then pivot again to the back.

Oh.

Yep.

[Laughs] Oops.

Avery: 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8.

Man: I've been dancing since a little guy.

Mallozzi: Oh, yes!

It is so much fun.

Can't beat the exercise.

What about the Pacemakers brings you back every time for the practice?

Just being with the kid-- the kids, yeah, kids.

We're kids.

And, Deni, what brought you to the Pacemakers?

Besides your wonderful brother.

Yeah, the same thing, just dance.

I figured at this age, keep doing it.

I'm a mom, I'm a grandma, but, um, gotta keep moving.

Yeah.

Can we do a little... Oh, yeah.

Show our numbers.

Absolutely.

Every time there's an opportunity to perform, I gravitate toward it.

But those opportunities at this stage sort of evaporate...

Right.

but the desire doesn't.

Right.

Of course.

A friend told me about this audition, and I got in...

Yes!

as the oldest one, so I anchor that end of it.

To have your brain exercise, your body exercise at the same time, that you enjoy it, I mean, it's the best package.

Yeah.

I love it.

So I'll keep doing this.

Yes!

High-five, girl.

Avery: It's all about saying to seniors, "Look, you don't have to be an Olympic athlete "to be fit.

You just have to move.

Move with us."

What?!

Yeah!

That was awesome!

Oh, my god, that was so amazing.

You guys are amazing!

Mallozzi, voice-over: I then head to the Brooklyn neighborhood of Bedford-Stuyvesant, also known as Bed-Stuy, to meet with Kendra Ross, local artist and founder of the STooPs Annual Art Crawl.

Our mission is opportunities for artistic expression in unconventional spaces.

So we have artists perform on stoops, sidewalks, and community gardens around the neighborhood.

Singer: And I wonder if you know What it means What it means Ross: You're gonna see dance, visual arts, music... Life on Earth needs diversity.

Ross: poetry, spoken word.

We don't come from these neighborhoods, these neighborhoods come from us.

Mallozzi: We're gonna see you dance.

Ross: Yes.

Singer: Passion Then out to stay late Ross: My performance is about looking at the history of Bed-Stuy, looking at the future of Bed-Stuy, and my hopes for healing and thriving of the neighborhood moving forward.

Stoops in Bed-Stuy are an iconic space of gathering.

So I wanted to heighten and transform those spaces a little bit into some opportunities for artists of all different genres here in the neighborhood.

I moved to Bed-Stuy in 2009, which was at the height of the conversations about gentrification.

So as a professional artist, I wanted to have a positive influence in the neighborhood, so I said, well, what better way to do that than through my art?

Mallozzi, voice-over: Kendra's mission with STooPs is to create a connection between the local artists who move in to Bed-Stuy and the neighbors who have been here from the very beginning.

Ross: I pray that STooPs is able to expand beyond Bed-Stuy and expand beyond New York City.

I would love to transform communal spaces in other places around the world.

[Cheers and applause] Mallozzi, voice-over: Next, I head to Broadway Dance Center in Manhattan for my very first vogueing class.

Vogueing was born out of the queer ballroom scene in the late 1980s in New York City as a form of self-empowerment and self-expression within the LGBTQ community.

I'm here to dance with vogue icon Cesar Valentino.

Right, left.

Vogueing is a dance that is based on posing like models in a magazine on a runway mixed with hieroglyphics and martial arts because it's a competitive dance.

And...pose.

It's a dance that's an expression of positivity, of self-appreciation.

So it's something that's accessible to everyone.

Left, right, left, turn.

Vogueing was something I experience for the first time in 1982.

And I was completely hooked.

I was recruited by Willie Ninja to be a member of the original founding members of the House of Ninja back in the early eighties.

And Michelle Visage and I were the first people to feature vogueing on television.

Oh, my--'cause no one had ever seen anything like it.

No.

Yeah.

It hadn't reached the masses.

And that's when Madonna came a year later and did "Vogue" the record.

And, you know, I think it's important that different people had a taste of it and it allowed for the world to see it.

A lot of people came from really rough homes with no support and no family system, so the ballroom allowed for an extended family, a sense of self-expression, validation.

In our world, you can be any size, any color, any shape, any capacity, and still be successful.

Vogueing is definitely a dance for survival.

And it was really a resistance.

Ooh!

I'm ready.

1, 2, 3, 4.

Under...there.

Push it back in.

Up over your head before you turn.

Wait, it's got to be up here.

Face forward.

Remember, it's a photograph.

And front and here.

Feet together.

And waist.

So when you're looking in that mirror, challenge yourself.

You're looking-- We had this conversation about who your biggest critic is.

Let that critic know it's not acceptable.

They're not welcome here because you're ultra-fabulous and mean business in that mirror.

Are we clear?

All: Yes!

Turn both feet to your left.

Step back with the left.

Turn both feet to your left.

Pose.

Pose.

Pose.

Pose.

Right.

You got to teach me some poses.

I-- See, I'm not a-- I hate modeling.

You got to give me some-- Ohh!

Give me some-- before everybody comes in-- Oh, see-- No, really.

I hate-- You have this amazing bob cut that you need to be... Did you ever see the famous album cover for Diana Ross?

Yes.

Where she's-- But she's gorgeous.

Diana Ross is-- As are you.

Gorg--you're so sweet.

As are you.

Get out of your head.

Seriously.

No, seriously.

Get out of your head.

OK. One hand variation.

Back to back.

Face to the gods.

Why do you think we're looking up to the heavens, Mickela?

Did you ever hear the term, "Face for the gods"?

Ahh.

Why are we selling face?

Why?

It's certainly not because we're ugly.

I feel like--I'm like ready to cry already because you just saying, like, we have to believe that we feel beautiful.

Like, that really-- You have to own that.

I know.

You have to own that.

Yeah.

My job here today is to let you know that you are important and valuable just as you are.

OK?

Don't let that nonsense on the Internet confuse you.

This is a resistance and a need for people to come together and celebrate each other.

Can we come together and celebrate each other today, please?

All: Yes!

Let's do this.

Valentino: Are you ready?

Are you ready?

All: Yes!

Work it, serve it.

Mallozzi, voice-over: The term vogueing was borrowed from the fashion industry.

The LGBTQ community in the late 1980s didn't see themselves represented in fashion magazines, so the ballroom scene emulated the photo shoots of the top fashion magazine in the world, "Vogue."

Valentino: I work closely with a lot of organizations to bring awareness and visibility to the trans empowerment movement, trans awareness.

The world has changed so much, and we've come such a long way to be a little bit more tolerant and respectful of other people's views, gender identity, sexuality, and so forth.

So that's a big deal, to let them know that the world accepts you as you are.

Circle side to side.

I've been a part of ballroom since 2019.

For me, it's where I let all of my sexiness out.

I kind of black out and just let it go.

I'm like Sasha Fierce.

OK?

She comes through.

As like a queer, Black, LatinX individual, ballroom is my life, my community, and I feel like if you have the opportunity to take a vogue lesson, [Deep voice] do it!

Uh...

It's learning how to be you, however you identify yourself.

Race, gender, whatever.

If you come to vogue and you feel that, you know, enthusiasm, that self-worth, that's it.

That's it.

It's good.

All right, runway time.

How about... [Pop music playing] It--during the class, I was like, I feel sexy.

And everyone around me is feeling sexy and confident, and that's--we're feeding off of each other.

And we don't get to tell ourselves that enough or ever.

Some people never get to tell themselves that.

Valentino: I think when people really look at themselves and they're able to say, you know what, I felt liberated, I felt celebrated, I felt loved, I felt validated, I felt special, that's why I do this.

Mm-hmm.

And vogueing really allows you to say, "I'm imperfectly perfect just as I am," and that's an amazing thing.

[Pop music playing] And that's a wrap, ladies and gentlemen.

[Cheering] Mallozzi, voice-over: My next stop takes me to Tompkins Square Park in the East Village to meet with Sidiki Conde, dancer, musician, and educator.

With his group Tokounou, their mission is to empower children and adults of all abilities through the teaching and performing of African dance and music.

Ahh!

Ahh!

[Singing in native language] Everybody.

[All singing in native language] Mallozzi: Tell our viewers a little bit about the work you've been doing for the disability community.

[Singing in native language] You've changed a lot of people's lives because of the work you've done showing that there is an ability for everybody.

Yeah.

Mm-hmm.

Life is good.

Yeah.

You know?

Aah!

[All cheering] Mallozzi, voice-over: Empowerment can take on many forms, including healing its communities.

I have the honor of meeting with Jacqulyn Buglisi, Artistic Director of Buglisi Dance Theatre.

She started the Table of Silence Project in 2011 for the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks in New York City.

The mission of the Table of Silence is a call to action for world peace through artistic prayer.

[Classical music playing] Buglisi: What the Table of Silence means for me is existence with our beautiful planet, with the natural world, with all life on our planet.

It truly is a multicultural prayer for peace.

Dance is this tremendous ability to bridge all boundaries across all nations in the world, across all situations, those in sorrow, in grief.

These incredible dancers, what they are saying, what they put their lives on the line to do, that's what I see for the future.

September 11th was kind of the first moment in my life where I was aware that the world was not perfect.

And during this piece, I get to explore all of the emotions and uncertainty that I felt back then.

The basis of the Table of Silence are these 12 gestures.

We have a name for each gesture, but they also come to mean different things to every person.

So the first one, the portrait, is also like you're looking through a key, like a small window.

The portrait in the beginning, just kind of watching the events unfold, and it's--for me, it's a very innocent moment.

[Drums beat] The heart flutters.

It's when your heart beats so fast and you feel it pounding within your body, and it's reverberating out of you.

I feel like that's really a moment where there's more amplification happening, and you feel everybody making that same gesture together.

Mallozzi: And I don't think if ever I'll not get emotional either seeing the piece or even feeling the piece.

It's just every single time it hits me in a different way, which means it's working.

Right?

Yeah.

[Drums beat] Jaeger: When we do the Table of Silence, there are 180 dancers, plus musicians, and then you have the audience that comes, and they're not just an audience, but they're participants, as well, because they're there with you on that plaza.

[All vocalizing] It just feels like this conjuring of healing and positivity and power.

Mallozzi: So you were a senior in college when the pandemic hit.

Man: Yeah, yeah, yeah.

I had a few months left, and I graduated on Zoom.

Wow.

Did the whole thing.

So I was a sophomore here in New York the day of 9/11.

Oh, yeah.

So it's interesting to meet someone who around that same age having this experience of something that's completely out of your control, the world changes, and everything's out of control.

Coming out of a pandemic, like, it just means the world to able to be in this, like, literal, like, circle of other human beings and sharing the space with them.

When we stop telling the stories, you know, then we lose relationships, we lose communication, and what we do is, of course, you know, the, you know, most profound through the body, the universal language.

[Music stops, applause] [Rhythmic drumming, chanting] Mallozzi, voice-over: My last stop brings me to the Queens County Farm Museum, one of the longest continually farmed sites in New York State and home for over 40 years to the annual Thunderbird American Indian Powwow.

I'm here to celebrate the dances, music, and culture of indigenous peoples here in New York City and from around the world.

40 years ago, there was very little happening here in New York City with Native American people.

And a lot of people were thinking that all that Native people were out west of the Mississippi, and I said, no, we have a lot of Native people here.

In fact, I was born in Brooklyn, New York, so I'm a New Yorker.

Yeah, exactly.

And I said, you know, we should have some kind of celebration here.

So we came and did the first powwow here 43 years ago.

And it just grew and grew and grew.

How many tribes do you think are represented?

Probably about 30, 30 or more tribes.

Wow.

Yeah.

This is our identity.

This is who we are.

And I always emphasize the fact that this is what's going on today.

Our Native Ameri-culture is a living culture.

Yes.

[Chanting continues] Man: We're the Wild Band singers.

We've been coming for at least 7 years now.

We came from Arizona.

We're originally from the Hopi Nation.

[Singing and chanting] Mallozzi: What's that style of singing that you guys are doing?

It's a Northern style of singing.

But growing up in the Southwest, beat's not a true Northern beat.

It's a little Southern stylish.

So... Kind of like a fusion, almost, of Northern and Southern together.

Right, right, right.

But I think that's happening throughout Indian country today.

[Chanting and drumming] Tell us the story behind this regalia.

This dance outfit is a grass dance outfit, one of the dances that's done in the Plains areas.

My aunt did the beadwork.

It belonged to my uncle.

She did it for my uncle.

And when he passed on, they gave it to me.

And so this continues to dance on.

Mallozzi, voice-over: The powwow doesn't just showcase the indigenous dances, singing, and drumming, but it also features artisans who make wampum, turquoise and silver jewelry, vintage and antique beadwork, Hopi and Pueblo pottery, and Kachina dolls.

There are also drums and musical instruments from the indigenous people of North and South America.

[Flute playing] Marie Ponce, a member of the Thunderbird American Indian Dancers, gives me a quick lesson on the Hoop Dance and its inspiration.

Can you make one circle with one hand?

No.

Ahh, that's good.

Keep going.

You're good, you're good, you're good.

All right, you're great!

All right!

Ponce: The most amazing dancers become the hoops.

And it's through your failures that you really learn how to do it.

And in that moment, you can find something that's unique and innovative that no one has ever done, because it was a mistake in the first place.

Right.

Right.

Step and step and step and step and step and make it go up.

And then go opposite from me.

And we're gonna go around.

Ahh!

Ha ha ha!

[Drumming and chanting] Mallozzi, voice-over: After the sun sets, the bonfire is lit, and everyone gathers for the Round Dance, or the Friendship Dance.

It is a welcoming dance, open for everyone to participate.

Ponce: The way I know that a powwow works is when I see the children running freely, safely, just with abandon.

They're dancing, they're enjoying themselves.

That's a beautiful powwow.

Sinquah: I'm honored and I'm really grateful to be part of this powwow, and I think we should all celebrate life with whatever culture that we've been gifted with.

We all need food.

We all need water.

We all need air.

We also need love and we also need family.

These are important things as well.

We need a little music and dance, right, and all that?

Oh, yeah, right, right.

[Drumming and chanting] Mallozzi: I was getting really emotional here.

Everyone was just welcoming to me and open to me.

And every single person that I crossed paths with, we felt that same rhythm, we felt that same energy that you just can't feel any other way, I don't think, without music, without that movement.

That's what "Bare Feet's" about.

It's about connection, it's about communicating through music, through this universal language, no matter what background you are-- Native, whatever, New Yorker, American, human.

This is why we're here.

So [kiss] I'll see you on my next "Bare Feet" adventure, wherever it's going to take me.

But today I'm here in this land and enjoying it fully with my heart and my soul.

Man over P.A.

: All right, all right.

That was it.

Mallozzi, voice-over: From our indigenous brothers and sisters to the LGBTQ, disability, and our older communities, dance and music give us the strength to share our own personal stories confidently.

The arts empower us to keep going, and they are what make us human.

And I'll see you on my next "Bare Feet" adventure, wherever it may take me.

[Chanting and drumming] Mallozzi: You can stay connected with us at travelbarefeet.com, where you'll find extra bonus videos, join our "Bare Feet" series conversations through social media, and stay updated with our newsletter.

Let's do it!

Let's do it.

Let's do it.

Let's do it.

Mmm.

Mmm.

Mmm.

Mmm.

Mmm.

Ahh.

Pose.

And reach.

Mmm.

Mmm.

Mmm.

Mmm.

Ahh.

All: "Bare Feet!"

[All cheering] Mallozzi: "Bare Feet" is supported in part by... Announcer: Bloomberg Connects gives you a way to experience the arts from your mobile phone.

You can explore hundreds of cultural organizations from around the world anytime, anywhere.

Learn more at bloombergconnects.org or wherever you find your apps.

Announcer: Road Scholar, offering educational travel adventures for adults since 1975.

Announcer: Additional funding was provided by Koo and Patricia Yuen through the Yuen Foundation, committed to bridging cultural differences in our communities.

Mallozzi: These generous supporters.... Announcer: And by the Ann H. Symington Foundation.

[Child babbling]