Shauna Davis is a creator, dancer, and filmmaker and a 2023 R+D artist. Her emerging work SEEDS is an investigation of her family’s history against the backdrop of Miami, posing questions of collective dreaming. Through Shauna’s R+D fellowship, she began to record interviews with her family while seeking out clues in the archives that will inform the next project phase of film and performance.
SEEDS
unearthing family gems
For a time, I’ve considered myself the black sheep of the family- a dance artist from a Black family with roots in the Miami area since the 1900s. But that’s not necessarily true. My grandmother spent over three decades as an elementary school teacher, but long before that, she was an Overtown neighborhood vocal star, selling out churches and halls and opening shows for others before the age of ten. And in fact, mostly all members of my family were gifted musicians at certain points in their lives. I’m curious about their dreams. I’m curious about how their past artistic & other selves, from the 1930’s- now, has led me to the path of pursuing my own artistry. I’m curious about the life cycle and metamorphosis of dreams — which ones died so others could live? Are dreams important? and what role did the climate of Miami and our other origin cities play in this? As much as we sing, dance and sit playing cards, we never seem to talk about past ambitions, heartbreak, wishes or desires. I at some point was a dream of my most recent ancestors- and I share mine with others through touch and connection.
What dreams died so others could live?
To get a sense of this, I began the process of tracing my history during R+D. My goal was to gain a deeper understanding of who my people were, what they believed & what were (or are) their wishes. How has legacy trickled down?
My first week was spent in the archives pulling up records of anything that had to do with both my family’s emigration to Miami in 1914 and information that could tell me about how they lived. I was drawn to following my maternal line and that required a trip to Miami.
Filmed in Miramar, Florida, April 2023.
I conducted interviews with close friends and family members and visited the places where folks were born, married and prayed. My early observations & ~hypothesis~ being: my legacy is that of people who plainly went for it (!), and did what they wanted to do. From where I’m standing, they are confident, steadfast, passionate, and refreshingly uncomplicated. They built an organic community nurtured by an emphasis on education, arts and gratitude.
And the question was: what do I do with all this information?
I spent my second R+D week in the dance studio. The walls of dance studios have seen me through every phase of life. It represents the place where I’ve dreamed the most, achieved the most and worked the most. And now, while I craft my own legacy, it makes sense for me to bring the dreams of my family into the space too.
R+D has been a great container for me to brainstorm, dig and question.
I feel ready to start my main filming process in Miami and will continue synthesizing my newly-learned histories within my body for film and performance.
About Shauna
Originally from South Florida, Shauna Davis is a creator, dancer, and filmmaker based in Los Angeles. In creation, Shauna makes cinematic and storied dance experiences influenced by history and the fantasy of the future. She was a 2020-2021 Resident Artist with La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club and has presented work at Dallas Black Dance Theatre, Opera Omaha, LA Opera, and The MOCA Geffen, among others. Through movement and storytelling, Shauna finds alternate and colorful ways to express the nuances of being, while encompassing themes of legacy, reclamation and popular culture. As a dancer, Shauna has worked with artists such as The Weeknd, Olivia Rodrigo, & Shawn Mendes and has performed with No)One. Art House, LA Opera, Long Beach Opera and LA Chamber Orchestra. She is a graduate of New World School of the Arts and Southern Methodist University, Meadows School of the Arts.
