Please join us in welcoming enthralling individual dancers and dance companies! Deaf Spotlight cannot wait to showcase these talents on the stage!
Harmony Baniaga | Dancer
Harmony Baniaga, a Deaf Filipina born and raised in Seattle, Washington. She is a ASL music performer, dancer, and choreographer. Usually her art pieces expresses herself through music and dance incorporating ASL are seen on Instagram and Tiktok: @hbsigndance.
She wanted to make music accessible for the Deaf Community so they can enjoy it through their eyes.
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ID: a purple brick wall with neon white circle over white text: “X, Harmony Baniaga, Dancer.” Harmony is a Deaf Flipino female with long dyed hair in a checkered shirt.
Fred Beam | Dancer
Fred Beam is an experienced performer, dancer, director and choreographer, with rich experiences with local and international theaters. He also performs in his one-man shows, “Fred Michael Beam: Sign Me a Story” and “Black, Deaf Male: Who Am I?,” which toured nationwide. He was a member of “I Didn't Hear That Color,” the first black deaf play ever produced. His television and film credits include “If You Could Hear My Own Tune,” “The West Wing,” “Secret Dream,” “Little Lonely Monster,” “Deaf Mosaic” and “The New Captain Kangaroo,” for which he won the 2000 Media Access Award.
He is executive director of Invisible Hands, Inc., which promotes deaf awareness through performing arts and was a founding member of The Wild Zappers, an all deaf male dance company. He also established Theater Arts Leadership Training for Deaf People of Color at Gallaudet University. Beam established the Black Deaf Expo and has hosted it since 2003, providing the Deaf Black Community the opportunity to stand proud, displaying their culture.
ID: a purple brick wall with Fred Beam, an African American male with long dreadlocks with caramel skin and a goatee in black attire with a circle around white text: “X, Fred Beam, Performer.”
Sunshine 2.0
Sunshine 2.0 is a professional traveling theater troupe based at Rochester Institute of Technology’s National Technical Institute for the Deaf (NTID) in Rochester, New York. The troupe travels to public schools, schools for the deaf and hard-of-hearing students, colleges, or civic group venues and offers performances and activities that highlight STEM fields and other educational topics through the arts.
Its current company members are Shiann Cook, Tyler Fortson and Zain Ahmed.
Urban Jazz Dance Company
Founded in 2007 by a pioneering Deaf Dancer/Choreographer, Antoine Hunter, Urban Jazz Dance Company consists of a mix of professional Deaf and hearing dancers. UJDC’s mission is to provide opportunities for Deaf, hard of hearing, and disabled artists to contribute to the arts and larger society, increasing awareness around Deaf issues via the performing arts. Featuring the syncopation of urban jazz rhythms, the company values the importance of play and performance to connect cultures of all races, ages, abilities and backgrounds.
Featured dancers: Marissa Head, Zahna Simon and Piper Thomasson
ID: a purple brick wall with a neon white circle around white text: “X Urban Jazz Dance Company,” with three dancers in action.