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“Harlem Knows”: Eleo Pomare's Choreographic Theory of Vitality and Diaspora Citation in Blues for the Jungle

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 December 2020

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Abstract

This article examines Eleo Pomare's concept of vitality in his piece Blues for the Jungle (1966) as a black aesthetic approach to choreography. Vitality seeks to connect with black audiences in Harlem by referencing and affirming shared cultural knowledge, conveying an embodied epistemology of the US political economy defined by the lived experiences of Harlem: “Harlem knows.” Using a lens of diaspora citation, I argue that Pomare's choreographic citations of “vital” ways of moving and knowing in Harlem critique the terms for “proper” national belonging, while articulating diasporic belonging in motion.

Keywords

James Baldwinblack aestheticchoreographycitationdiasporaHarlemEleo Pomarevitality
Type
Articles
Information
Dance Research Journal , Volume 52 , Issue 3 , December 2020 , pp. 4 - 21
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2020. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of the Dance Studies Association.

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