We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Kim Popa a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Kim, thanks so much for taking the time to share your insights and lessons with us today. We’re particularly interested in hearing about how you became such a resilient person. Where do you get your resilience from?
My resilience comes from my collaborators and the collective of artists and mentors that surround and uplift Pones’ mission. When I began Pones, a non-profit dance company that utilizes dance for community, connection, and change, there wasn’t a model for how to create such an organization in our region. I first leaned on the expertise of Daryl Harris, my professor at NKU at the time, and a continued board member, friend and mentor. Daryl’s history of practicing art for social justice (primarily through the theatre work of Augusto Boal in the 70s) was a strong foundation for our work and Daryl’s guidance through the best practices of this work are still immeasurable to this day. As we continued to build the organization, we benefited from relationships with public art experts, such as Margy Waller and Pam Kravetz to make connections with spaces to perform off of the proscenium stage and expand the ‘where’ people see dance. We were able to dance on TANK buses, at IKEA, in grocery stores, and throughout the streets of our tristate. Pones started to develop a new model in the dance world, one where dancers were not asked to sign contracts, but rather can opt in per gig. This model has been invaluable to our retention rate and also to our ever-expanding creative scope. We currently have 60 dancers on our roster – of varying shapes, sizes, ages, abilities, races, genders – the diversity of our cohort is one of our biggest virtues. I lean on each of the dancers in different ways in different times, to incorporate their unique skills and to keep our work fresh, unique, and relevant. Their energy keeps me going! The last piece of my ‘resiliency stew’ is the Cincinnati arts community – from The Carnegie to the Cincinnati Art Museum, the Know Theatre to the Opera, we are always collaborating with other arts and social justice organizations. The collaborative spirit in our city is special (I believe it to be unique to our region). I am always excited at the invitation to brainstorm on new projects in new landscapes, such as within medical facilities, on an upcoming exhibit, or within a new work. My zest for art-making is perpetuated and fueled by the partners who I get to work with on a regular basis. My resilience is interdependent upon my community and the incredible wealth of people-rich resources that build me/us up each day.
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
I grew up dancing from the age of 3 and never stopped! To me, dance is synonymous with life, movement makes life worth living and it is the easiest form of expression for me. I first started college as a graphic design major, then switched to Spanish and after two years of ‘wandering around’ within the collegiate landscape, my dad encouraged me to change my major to my lifelong passion of dance. No one had directly told me this, but I thought (perhaps society tells us all) that dance wasn’t a real job, so I was reluctant at first. At NKU, I found lifelong friends, collaborators, and mentors, it was the best decision, and receiving my BFA in Dance was a ‘sliding doors’ moment for me. Directly after college I was a high school teacher at Walton Verona for five years, while simultaneously building the non-profit dance company, Pones.
In Pones’ 15 year history, we have collaborated on some incredible social justice work with survivors of human trafficking, those experiencing homelessness, trans youth, immigrants/refugees to our city, and aging populations. I have grown immensely through each experience. I am extremely excited about continuing to breakdown the Eurocentric lens that dance is often seen through, and to keep using dance as a tool for advocacy and to uplift stories/voices that aren’t commonly heard in our community via art. I am also intrigued and hopeful for the continuation of exploration of arts in healing programs. We have a long history of working with the VA Medical Center, bringing dance to the veterans there as a form of catharsis and expression. We also have partnerships with Good Sam, Cancer Support Centers, Children’s Hospital, and The Giving Voice Foundation. I am looking forward to a future where dance/movement is integrated into a holistic ‘prescription’ at medical centers. We see such astonishing progress and relief at the spaces we are in and I hope to breakdown the stigma of dance as “extra” or “not for everyone.” Lastly, I am excited about our apprentice program. It is an opportunity to pass the torch and continue our legacy of using dance for social change. The ArtWorks apprentices we work with over the summer are full of energy, ideas, and tenacity. I am continually inspired by them and cannot wait to see what the future holds if it’s left in their hands.
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
Curiosity, Perseverance, and Teamwork.
I think the most invaluable virtues that my teachers instilled in me early on was an insatiable curiosity. Keep asking why, keep uncovering each layer, keep looking in the metaphorical ‘corners’ where no one else is. That’s where the rich stories live.
Failure is tough. It hurts and it can be a weight. I tried early on to reframe failure as trial and error – part of the creative process – that gets me from one place to another, until I’m where I want to be. I now encourage all of my students “strong and wrong” because if we are too afraid to take a risk, we will stay safe, but stagnant. And that’s the opposite of creativity.
I feel like a broken record, but — surround yourself with other people who share your passion. And who are willing to dig and put in the work to actualize those dreams with you. Many hands make light work.
Awesome, really appreciate you opening up with us today and before we close maybe you can share a book recommendation with us. Has there been a book that’s been impactful in your growth and development?
“The Body Keeps the Score” by Bessel van der Kolk.
An oldie, but a goodie for a reason.
This book is about how our experiences throughout life ‘live’ in our bodies as memories.
It points out that we are often moving through our day-to-day disembodied and that connecting to and moving those experiences through the body can provide deep healing and comfort for us and (if applied) to our communities/those around us.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://pones.org
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/ponesinc
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ponesinc
- Twitter: @ponesinc
- Youtube: @PonesInc
Image Credits
courtesy of Cincinnati Arts Association
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
