About

a NOTE from melanie

Welcome to the Jazz Dance Direct Archive. I began research for this project in 2016 and the website launched in 2018. It was a labor of love, and an offering to the jazz dance community that has given me so much. Jazz, our uniquely Black American art form, has always provided a space for my voice. Accordingly, I conceived this website to center the art form and its constituents. As of April 1, 2023, the project has concluded and this website will no longer be updated. The website will remain available as an archive for the project.

I see the core of jazz as democratic. It has individual and group values. It is musical. It has and inspires agency. Jazz dance embodies so many things — but above all, jazz is communal. To gain a full picture of the complexities of jazz dance in the 21st century, I attempted to catalog the many ways jazz dance shows up in the past and present, for enthusiasts, historians, and practitioners. This website purposely makes a space for the many styles and philosophies of jazz, as a record and a resource.

As the founder of the site, I retained editorial oversight. Though you will see a range of perspectives on jazz within the directory, Jazz Is… Dance Project maintains unwavering conviction in rooted jazz dance, formed from Black American identity and ingenuity, as the origin story and lens through which we approach our work.

Though we are no longer actively contributing to this site, I hope this archive can continue to be a resource for those researching jazz dance. Thank you to all who contributed and supported this project.

With a jazzy heart and mind,
Melanie

April 1, 2023