Shamel Pitts | TRIBE

Touch of RED

Biographies

Shamel Pitts is a 2024 MacArthur Fellow, 2024 Doris Duke Artist Award recipient, performance artist, choreographer, conceptual artist, dancer, spoken word artist, director, and teacher. Born in Brooklyn, NY, Pitts began his dance training at LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts and, simultaneously, at The Ailey School. He is a first-prize winner in The National Arts Competition from YoungArts. Pitts received his BFA in dance from The Juilliard School and was awarded the Martha Hill Award for excellence in dance. He began his dance career in Mikhail Baryshnikov’s Hell’s Kitchen Dance and BJM_Danse Montreal. Pitts danced with Batsheva Dance Company for seven years under the artistic direction of Ohad Naharin and is a certified teacher of Gaga movement language. Pitts has created a triptych of award-winning multidisciplinary performances, with his arts collective TRIBE, known as his “BLACK series,” which has toured extensively to many festivals and performance spaces around the world since 2016. He is an adjunct professor at The Juilliard School; a guest faculty member at Princeton University, New York University, Wesleyan University; and has been an artist in residence at Harvard University. He is a recipient of the Princess Grace Award in Choreography and is an NYSCA/NYFA Artist Fellow, a Jacob’s Pillow artist-in-residence, and a 2020 Guggenheim Fellow.

Shamel Pitts Website & TRIBE Website

Tushrik Fredericks is a recipient of the Princess Grace Award (Chris Hellman dance honor), nominated by TRIBE (Shamel Pitts, founding artistic director) in 2021. Fredericks is originally from Johannesburg, South Africa. Growing up, he found himself drawn toward the style KRUMP. He graduated from the Peridance Certificate Program in New York City in June 2015 and has had the opportunity to work with Ate9 dANCEcOMPANY (Danielle Agami, artistic director), Sidra Bell Dance New York (Sidra Bell, artistic director), and UNA Productions (Chuck Wilt). Fredericks was an assistant lecturer to Sidra Bell at the University of the Arts Philadelphia for sophomore students (2016–2018). In May 2021, Fredericks received 3rd prize for dance at the SoloTanz Festival in Stuttgart, Germany, for his first rendition of his self-choreographed solo (territory) of the heart, and in May 2023, he showcased the completed rendition of the solo at the Museum of Contemporary African Diasporan Arts in Brooklyn, NY. Fredericks also received the Baryshnikov Arts Open Fall 2023 residency for a co-choreographed duet with Rebecca Margolick. Tushrik Fredericks Website

Lucca Del Carlo is a graphic designer and video artist from São Paulo, Brazil, and is currently based in New York City. Del Carlo is a founding member of the Brooklyn/NY-based multidisciplinary arts collective TRIBE. He has created the lighting and video mapping projections for numerous performance works and has toured and performed live with the collective in many countries all over the world. He specializes in transmedia, mixing cinema techniques, concepts of architecture, visual arts, light design, and technology, and integrating those specializations into the direction and creation of scenography, immersive environments, and visual live shows. In his view, all ways of visual communication have interlacing points, not only using technology but also using human cognition and its related censorial illusions. Del Carlo’s specialty is mixing these points in new ways to inspire and break common patterns in visual expression. Lucca Del Carlo Website

Sivan Jacobovitz is a producer/musician living in New York City. Dance collaborations include: Kimberly Bartosik's I hunger for you (BAM Next Wave) and through the mirror of their eyes (New York Live Arts Bessie Outstanding Production honoree); Shamel Pitts' BLACK HOLE (touring internationally), MENAGERIE (with Gibney Company), and Touch of RED; and ASSEMBLY (with GREYZONE). Sivan Jacobovitz Instagram

Rus Snelling is an Australian artist who has worked as a production, stage, site, and tour manager; lighting and set designer; consultant; technical director; and a fire sculptor with arts organizations and institutions. Snelling has freelanced on events and installations around the world, ranging from intimate theatrical works to shows on and off Broadway in New York City  and on the West End in London.

His work includes large scale indoor and outdoor festivals, the Sydney Olympic Ceremonies, the Melbourne Commonwealth Games Ceremonies & Cultural Festival, Melbourne International Arts Festivals, Montreal Just for Laughs, Edinburgh Fringe, Melbourne International Comedy Festivals, Vancouver Winter Olympics Cultural Festival, MASS MoCA’s Solid Sound, Centennial celebrations, river/street parades, tours, and various music festivals.

Snelling has worked with many artists for over 30 years—including Shamel Pitts | TRIBE, Merce Cunningham, Laurie Anderson, John Leguizamo, Phillip Glass, Brian Eno, Tim Robbins & The Actors Gang, Taylor Mac, Patti Smith, Trisha Brown Dance Company, Bandaloop, Camille A. Brown & Dancers, DeLanna Studi & Octopus Theatricals, Abraham.In.Motion, and Streb & Phantom Limb Company—on projects and tours through Australia, the United States, Canada, Tunisia, Europe, Asia, and South America. Snelling worked at PS122 many moons ago and was the founding production manager and resident lighting designer at Oz Arts in Nashville, TN, before he continued freelancing around the world. He hopes you enjoy the show!

Mimi Lien is a designer of sets/environments for theater, dance, and opera. Arriving at set design from a background in architecture, her work often focuses on the interaction between audience/environment and object/performer. In 2015, she was named a MacArthur Fellow and is the first stage designer ever to achieve this distinction. Mimi received the 2017 Tony Award for her design of Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812 on Broadway.

Selected work includes Grounded (The Metropolitan Opera and Washington National Opera), Parsifal (Bayreuther Festspiele), The Righteous (Santa Fe Opera), Intelligence (Houston Grand Opera), The Comet / Poppea (Prototype/The Industry/AMOC*), Die Zauberflöte (Staatsoper, Berlin), Sweeney Todd (Broadway - Tony nomination), Fairview and An Octoroon (Soho Rep), Black Mountain Songs (BAM), Pelléas et Mélisande (Cleveland Orchestra), and Four Nights of Dream (Japan Society/Tokyo Bunka Kaikan).

Her stage designs have been presented in New York and around the country at the Public Theater, Signature Theatre, Playwrights Horizons, The Kitchen, Berkeley Rep, A.R.T., Mark Taper Forum, Wilma Theater, Long Wharf Theatre, Goodman Theater, La Jolla Playhouse, Portland Center Stage, Alliance Theatre, and Playmakers Rep, among others.

Her large-scale public artworks include The GREEN (2021, New York), a public space intervention commissioned by Lincoln Center; PARADE (2022, Toronto), a conveyor-belt installation commissioned by The Bentway Conservancy; MODEL HOME (2017, San Diego), a performance installation utilizing a 60-ft crane; and 2×4 tree (2016), a kinetic sculpture commissioned by the Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts.

Her design work has been exhibited in the Prague Quadrennial, and her sculpture work was featured in the exhibition, LANDSCAPES OF QUARANTINE, at the Storefront for Art and Architecture.

Selected awards include a Bessie Award, Drama Desk Award, Lucille Lortel Award, American Theatre Wing Hewes Design Award, and an OBIE Award for sustained excellence. 

Mimi is a co-founder of the Brooklyn performance/art space, JACK. Mimi Lien Website

Originally from Brazil, Mirelle Martins received her bachelor’s degree in social communications from the University of Brasília (2002–06). She has worked as an artist, independent curator, and art producer since 2010. In 2013, Martins started to research her own artistic expression in performance art with the intensive summer course of Gaga.people.dancers in New York City. Since 2015, she has been producing Gaga courses yearly in Brazil, so far reaching over 1,200 students. In 2016, as a 32-year old, Martins made her dancing debut in BLACK VELVET, a duet by Shamel Pitts, with lighting designer Lucca Del Carlo. The show toured in the U.S. and internationally from 2017 to 2020 and received the Audience Choice Award at the Stockholm Fringe Festival (Sweden, 2017) and the Best Out-of-Town Production by ArtsATL (Atlanta, 2018). The partnership with Pitts continued with BLACK HOLE (2018), where Martins collaborated as performer and costume designer. Martins is one of the founding artists of TRIBE, the Brooklyn, NY-based arts collective created in 2019 and led by Pitts, where she also acts as creative director.

The Adeboyé Brothers are a director duo based in New York City and Atlanta, GA. Their work expands from documentaries, narratives, animations, commercials, and experiential designs. Together they have produced and directed documentaries, commercials, and animations for the Woodruff Arts Center, Pepsi, Spotify, and have been frequent collaborators of Shamel Pitts and TRIBE since 2018—contributing film and photography for BLACK HOLE and Touch of RED. 
The Palette Group Website

Kaz Russell is a seasoned stage manager, bringing over 30 years of international experience to her craft. Originally from Sydney, Australia, Russell embarked on her journey in 1994 as the tour manager for Midnight Oil. Since then, she has honed her skills across continents, gaining valuable experience in various aspects of theater, music festivals, and event logistics.

Throughout her career, Russell has had the opportunity to work on a diverse range of projects, including managing The Rocky Horror Show in Australia and directing music festivals. Her work has also taken her around the globe, touring with renowned bands and contributing to major events such as World Youth Day 2008.

Currently, Russell serves as the tour manager for musician Jennifer Knapp and lends her expertise as an event director and stage manager at OZ Arts Nashville. With her wealth of experience and dedication to her craft, Russell continues to make significant contributions to the world of stage management.

Dion Lee is a designer brand hailing from Sydney, Australia, established in 2009 by its eponymous creative director. Renowned for experimental construction combined with traditional tailoring, the brand has pioneered a modern identity for Australian fashion.

The Dion Lee aesthetic is technical with an intelligent sensuality. Each collection marries innovative construction with a consciousness of the form. Textiles are engineered to form sculptural embellishments. Architectural silhouettes are dissected to enhance movement and the flow of air and light. 

After debuting at Australia Fashion Week, Dion Lee presented collections in London before relocating to New York, where the brand has become a permanent fixture on the seasonal schedule. 

In 2013, Cue Clothing Co. acquired a shareholding stake in Dion Lee as part of a strategic partnership to develop and accelerate the brand's domestic and international growth.

Dion Lee is sold globally in over 40 of the world’s most exclusive retailers including Net-A-Porter, Selfridges, and Lane Crawford.

Australia is home to seven flagship stores, each designed to reflect the constructed nature of the product in an environment that is both industrial and luxurious. Dion Lee Website

TT Britt is a multidisciplinary artist based in New York City. Britt’s storytelling originated as a fashion stylist, and in recent years, those narratives have grown to include sonic transmissions as a DJ. The Virginianative is based in New York and draws inspiration from their communities both here and across the globe. Infusing the classic shape-shifting sounds of the Midwest with the paradigm-shifting sounds of Berlin, Copenhagen, Malmö, and beyond. Their sets will take you on a hard-hitting celestial journey through euphoric melodies, spastic synths, and chants. Uniting rhythmic frequencies of opposing forces, Britt’s singular style is much like that of a "meditating gunrunner." TT Britt Website

Ashley Pierre-Louis is originally from Miami, FL. For high school, she attended New World School of the Arts and later attended Florida State University, where she graduated with a BFA in dance. She is currently a dance artist and creator freelancing and exploring choreography in New York City. When making, she asks herself and audiences to imagine what our physical, emotional, and psychic expressions of what is deepest and strongest and richest within each of us are, and how we can share them collectively to create a sense of freedom in the mind and body. She currently performs with Shamel Pitts’ multidisciplinary performance collective TRIBE, Emily Johnson/Catalyst Dance, and Edisa Weeks’ DELIRIOUS Dances. She is also the Dream Partner/Program Manager for Florida State University’s Arts in NYC program, as well as the artist services associate for Performance Space New York (PS 122).

Her past artistic feats include working as the dramaturg for Shamel Pitts’ work Touch of RED, as well as being the associate choreographer for the play Help (2022) by acclaimed poet and playwright Claudia Rankine, directed by Taibi Magar, and commissioned at The Shed in New York. She has premiered the play Thoughts of A Colored Man by playwright Keenan Scott II and director Steve Broadnax III at Syracuse Stage and Baltimore Center Stage, as well as performed for the premiere of Donna Uchizono’s work March Under an Empty Reign at The Joyce: NY Quadrille Festival. She has been one of GALLIM’s Moving Women spring artists-in-residence and has also been a part of Alvin Ailey’s inaugural Choreography Unlocked Festival under the direction of Jawole Willa Jo Zollar, Urban Bush Women, and Robert Battle. Ashley Pierre-Louis Instagram

Domino Mannheim is a freelance lighting designer and assistant from Tucson, AZ. She graduated from the University of Arizona in 2017 with a BFA in technical theatre and lighting design. Most recently, she graduated in 2022 from Rose Bruford College in London with her masters in lighting in performance. She loves working on theatre productions, musicals, opera, and dance. Some recent productions she has assisted on include The Devil Wears Prada, the Musical at the James M. Nederlander Theatre in Chicago, Oratorio at Ars Nova in New York City, Ain't Too Proud first national tour at Proctors Theatre in Schenectady, and Iphigenia at the Cutler Majestic Theatre in Boston. As a travelling designer and assistant, she is grateful to have had the opportunity to help on this production and looks forward to seeing it come to fruition!

LaTasha Barnes is an internationally recognized and awarded dance artist, educator (assistant professor of dance, Arizona State University), and tradition-bearer of Black American social dance. Currently operating between New York and Phoenix, Barnes’ expansive artistic, competitive, and performative skills have made her a frequent collaborator to arts organizations around the world. She is also honored to serve on the brain trust guiding the ground-breaking stage production SW!NG OUT, as well as the visionary creator and artistic director of the critically acclaimed intergenerational and intercommunal cultural arts experience The Jazz Continuum. Visit LaTasha Barnes website to learn more about her journey, achievements, and cultural efforts.

Taylor Antisdel is a Brooklyn-based filmmaker and photographer with a BFA in directing from the School of Visual Arts. With a background in filmmaking, he strives to create photographs that are cinematic and multilayered. Taylor Antisdel Website

Pam Panozzo is originally from Southwestern Michigan and studied printmaking at Eastern Michigan University. He spent his early career as a graphic designer working with numerous nonprofits. He left the nonprofit sector to open a food cart and subsequently three vegan restaurants in Ann Arbor, MI. His restaurants have been featured in the New York Times and Bon Appétit magazine. During his decade in the restaurant industry, he advocated for fair wages and ending workplace sexual harassment at the U.S. Congress, DC City Council, and Michigan State Congress. For his advocacy work, he was honored with the Pace Setter Award presented by Jane Fonda and RAISE High Road Restaurants. Panozzo left the business at the end of 2019 and is now the social media manager and graphic designer of Shamel Pitts’ multidisciplinary performance collective TRIBE.

Sophie Myrtil-McCourty founded Lotus Arts Management in July 2014. She is originally from Paris, France, where she graduated from a translation and interpretation school in the French, English, and German languages. After college, Myrtil-McCourty worked in Paris as a freelance translator. She has always enjoyed the performing arts world, particularly dance, which she has practiced as an amateur for many years. Additionally, Myrtil-McCourty has done administrative work and international booking for her sister, a dancer/choreographer in Paris. In 1998, Myrtil-McCourty moved to New York City and started working for Marlies Yearby first as her personal assistant, then as the administrator of her dance company, Movin’ Spirits Dance Theater. In October 2000, she joined the staff of Pentacle as the administrator of the Help Desk program. As she also enjoyed booking other artists on the side, Myrtil-McCourty was promoted to join the Pentacle booking department in July 2004. She became the director of the department in 2008 and worked with an eclectic roster of six companies until June 2014. Myrtil-McCourty has also served on several panels including Dance Theater Workshop’s Fresh Tracks. She was on the committee of the 2015 Wassaic Festival, sat on the board of Tennessee Presenters, and was an advisory council member of the Field Leadership Fund, which is based on the premise that advancements in diversity among leadership will lead to a more equitable arts sector in New York City and beyond. Lotus Arts Management Website

Acknowledgments from the Artists

Funding Credits:

Touch of RED is a National Performance Network (NPN) Creation & Development Fund Project co-commissioned by Jacob's Pillow, YoungArts, Miami Light Project INC, UCLA Center for the Art of Performance, New York Live Arts INC, Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, and NPN. The Creation & Development Fund is supported by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, the Mellon Foundation, Office of Cultural Affairs, and the National Endowment for the Arts (a federal agency). Touch of RED is also made possible by the New England Foundation for the Arts' National Dance Project, with lead funding from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation and the Mellon Foundation; developmental support and the world premiere presentation is made possible by co-presenters Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art (Mass MoCA) and Jacob’s Pillow. We’d like to also thank the Consulate General of Israel in New York, Trust for Mutual Understanding, GIBNEY, and the Harkness Foundation for Dance. Bubble residency guidance provided by Duke Dang and medical consultant Dr. Wendy Ziecheck. For more information, visit National Performance Network.

Additional TRIBE commissioning, development, and core operating support is provided by the Mellon Foundation; Arison Arts Foundation; the New England Foundation for the Arts’ National Dance Project with funding from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation; the Howard Gilman Foundation; Dance/NYC’s Dance Advancement Fund, made possible by the Howard Gilman Foundation and Ford Foundation; 92Y Harkness Dance Center; National Performance Network (NPN) Creation, Development & Artist Engagement Fund Project. The Creation, Development & Artist Engagement Fund is supported by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, the Mellon Foundation, and the National Endowment for the Arts (a federal agency); New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature. 

This performance of Touch of RED, presented by Northrop and the Walker Art Center, is supported by Northrop Centennial Commissions—a collaborative program that assists and amplifies the new works of artists for years to come.

Support

TRIBE is a 501 (c) (3) arts and cultural non-profit organization based in Brooklyn, NY. To make a tax-deductible contribution to TRIBE’s next live performances and art projects, mail to: TRI314 Multidisciplinary Visual Performances, INC., 153 Jefferson Avenue Suite #1, Brooklyn, NY 11216

From Our Friends

Mixed Blood Theatre, Pillsbury House + Theatre, Leslie Parker Dance Project, and the Center for Performing Art co-present Black Dance Improvisation Festival 2025 Mar 28–29.

Born out of the body of work Call to Remember, these public performances feature the talents of Heaven Sha'Rae, Khary Jackson, Monet Slade, Taylor West, Andrea Potter, and celebrated musician and composer Queen Drea. BDI Fest 2025 amplifies solo dance improvisation and dynamic storytelling. All are welcome to join us in celebrating the creative joy of these artists. More info and pick-your-own-price tickets at BDIFest2025.eventbrite.com!

This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a Minnesota State Arts Board Operating Support grant, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund.

The presentation of Shamel Pitts | TRIBE was made possible by the New England Foundation for the Arts' National Dance Project, with lead funding from the Doris Duke Foundation and the Mellon Foundation.

The Northrop Advisory Board

The Northrop Advisory Board is committed to the growth and awareness of Northrop’s mission, vision, and the continued future of presenting world-class dance and music in our community. If you would like more information about the advisory board and its work, please contact Cynthia Betz, Director of Development, at 612-626-7554 or betzx011@umn.edu.

Thank you for supporting Northrop!

Making Legendary Performances Possible!

At Northrop, we believe in connecting great artists and ideas with our community and to a new generation of audiences. Your gift helps make memorable arts experiences possible by supporting extraordinary performances and new arts commissions, and helping ensure accessibility to everyone through live-streamed programming, outreach to diverse communities and subsidized student tickets. Our Friends are at the center of Northrop’s biggest ideas and brightest moments on stage.

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To learn more about supporting Northrop please contact:
Cynthia Betz
betzx011@umn.edu or 612-626-7554 

Friends of Northrop

A special thank you to our patrons whose generous support makes Northrop's transformative arts experiences possible. Make your mark on Northrop's future by becoming a Friend today, learn more by visiting northrop.umn.edu/support-northrop.

We gratefully acknowledge the support from the Anna M. Heilmaier Foundation, Curtis L. Carlson Family Foundation, Minnesota State Arts Board, hospitality partner the Graduate Hotel Minneapolis, and event sponsors PNC Bank and RBC Wealth Management. 

This season’s listing is current as of 2/24/25

Please contact Trisha Taylor at taylort@umn.edu if you have any corrections or questions.

Northrop's Aeolian-Skinner Organ

Thank you to the generous donors who continue to support programming for Northrop’s beloved Aeolian-Skinner Organ. It is because of you that this magnificent instrument’s voice will be enjoyed by many for years to come.

The Heritage Society Members

The Heritage Society honors and celebrates donors who have made estate and other planned gifts for Northrop at the University of Minnesota. 

• Nancy Allen*
• Jerry Artz
• John Follows*
• Stephen Gordon and Pat Gavan-Gordon
• Gail and Stuart Hanson
• Charlie Johnson
• Peter Lund
• Darlene M. Sholtis

*Deceased