Afro Blue is Gentry Isaiah George’s latest installment from his series ‘Roots & Rhythms,’ designed to commemorate Black Musicians of the 20th century. Renditions of the Jazz standard Afro-Blue recorded by American Jazz Vocalist Abbey Lincoln and Cuban Percussionist Mongo Santamaria are the centerpieces for the new work. Harmonizing biography, social history, music, and performance, George’s Zest Collective dance troupe celebrates the beauty and triumph of musical pioneers whose songs rang out despite the dark history of oppression. Zest Collective founder Gentry George is a graduate from the Juilliard School and began dancing with Ailey II and later with the Dance Theatre of Harlem. A Level 1 YoungArts award recipient, featured on HBO’s ‘Masterclass,’ he is also currently a professor at Miami Dade College’s New World School of the Arts. This piece was commissioned by Miami Light Project for the 2023 Here and Now. This performance is presented free to the public as part of the Rhythm Foundation and City of Miami Beach’s Arts in the Parks series. The show will be approximately an hour long.
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