Interview with Christa Paulk by Amani Francis © 2006 Amani Francis and Terri Staten

On April 3, 1979, Christa entered this world with a passionate and determined cry, with features that could only be described as "lion-esque." One look at her daughter and Marjorie Paulk knew she had a "piece of work" on her hands. Almost 26 years later, shehas lived up to her reputation. As a youngster, she was always a star performer in her church choir and school choral and dance productions. At an early age her mother noticed that her seemingly shy daughter always added her own extra flair and pizzazz to anything she did. She always had been a "natural performer."

"My daughter has a self-determination and tenacity about life that is both admirable and annoying. Trying to parent such a headstrong individual sometimes left me exhausted. However, it was in those times that her sweetness would shine through. My daughter is a beautiful blend of strength and fragility, wisdom and innocence, and toughness and kindness. I am so proud of who she has become."

Christa considers herself a life-long connoisseur of art and music from different cultures. In school she excelled at a variety of instruments including piano, flute, piccolo, and clarinet. Although she has explored many forms of dance, including tap and ballet, there was always a "calling" whenever she heard the sound of the djembe.

Her African dance experience began in Atlanta, Georgia in January of 2000. After moving to Jacksonville, Florida the following September to pursue a career in Massage Therapy, she was able to continue her education under the instruction of Ifetayo Oyemuyiwa with Lajo Theatre of African Dance . After almost two years with Lajo, Christa and a group of friends formed another dance troupe called the Nia Dance Ensemble . Perfomances for Nia Dance Ensemble included, The National Black Social Workers Convention (Jacksonville, April 2003), Sapelo Island Cultural Day Festival (Sapelo Island, October 2003), Black Expo (Jacksonville, September 2003), and World of Nations (Jacksonville, April 2004). During this time, Christa began to travel to other cities and states for professional workshops with Master Instructors such as Youssouf Koumbassa, Mohammed Dacosta , Mominatou Camara and others. She, along with Jonas White and Adejose McKoy as drummers, also began Culture Moves 101 , which started as a Duval County Community Education class at Terry Parker High School . Realizing that the full scope of what she had in mind for Culture Moves could not be realized there, she established Culture Moves 101 as a business and moved the classes to the Scottish Rite Cathedral building in Springfield . There the seeds of her labor began to blossom even more. In June of 2004, Adrian Rhodes (Dri) and Adeyemi Olamina (Gbori joined the team as loyal and super- talented drummers. Now Christa could finally see in reality what had only been in her daydreams. "It's been a whirlwind ever since." Christa served as choreographer with Nia Dance Ensemble , and has also independently choreographed for Beauclerc Elementary School, Rising Stars of Tomorrow and FCCJ South Campus Dance Department .

Despite her busy life Christa considers herself a rather "simple" person. She remains true to herself with her own unique form of spirituality that is specific for her.

"Everyone has it. Not everyone knows they do, but they do. GOD is in all of us! It's just a matter of letting go and letting that part of us shine."

Christa enriches her spiritual side by reading spiritual texts from a variety of cultures, living in mediation, yoga, and good old fashion prayer. She has also maintained a vegetarian diet for almost 6 years. Up until December 8, 2004, her biggest inspiration had been her son Julius who was born when Christa was a mere teenager. Now her greatest inspiration is her two sons, Julius and his long-awaited little brother Jai-Hari.

" Years ago along my path of self discovery, I was given the name Oge'lue, or Oge' for short, by a good friend who was studying Yoruba. The name simply put, means "this light will shine at the right time, no matter the obstacles." The meaning stuck with me more than the name. My life had been full of many obstacles and I constantly wondered if I had what it took to make it. Finally, it dawned on me that challenges are not to make us question our strength. It is those challenges and the overcoming of those challenges that show us what we are made of. When we stop living in fear, we find that we are tougher than we think we are. One day, I made the decision to treat life as a roller coaster, and closed my eyes. I am really enjoying the ride! It is my hope that everyone that comes across my path benefits in some way. If I had to give a one-word instruction to everyone in the world it would simply be to "SHINE!" .

I recently interviewed my friend and African dance teacher, Christa Paulk. I was pleasantly surprised to learn more about her spirit than I ever knew existed.

Amani: Where are you from originally and how did you end up here in Jacksonville, FL?

Christa: I was born and raised in Atlanta, GA. I came here on vacation with my family in August of 1999. I came back with a friend the next month. Believe it or not, I just felt as though I was supposed to be here. I moved here September of 2000 which was one year to the date that I said I was coming here.

Amani: Tell me about your artistic path prior to becoming an African dance choreographer?

Christa: As a young child, I always performed in school plays and musicals, the school chorus and the church choir. I was also a mascot and cheerleader. In my late teens, I had become involved with the cultural scene. (Modeling, poetry, etc) I had always loved to watch the African dancers and the drummers, but did not really think of doing it myself. I did not have as much confidence then. I moved here and began taking classes with Ifetayo Oyemuyiwa and Lajo Theatre of African dance. After about two years, I began to travel out and learn from different Master Instructors. As a child, I had a secret passion of choreographing. With any music I listened to, I saw the entire show, costumes and all.

Amani: I know that you have two sons. How does being the mother of sons specifically shape you as an artist?

Christa: Being a mother period, has a dualistic effect on me. I am even more driven to succeed because I am not just doing it for myself; I am doing it for them also. At the same time, I believe that it somewhat grounds me so that I do not overboard. I can be an artist, but I have to keep a certain sense of practicality and decorum because I have them. I am happy to be able to expose them to so much. I personally believe that men in this particular art form are expressing themselves in the most raw and naturally beautiful way. I am glad that my sons get to see this as a reflection of themselves.

Amani: I read in your bio that the djembe has always “called” you? Explain to me what you mean by that.

Christa: It is something that is hard to put into words. It is something deep within the spirit. It almost feels untouchable. For those that believe in reincarnation, one could theorize that I am remembering my past lives of dancing and drumming. For those that do not believe in reincarnation, one could theorize that the memory is encoded in my DNA and every time I hear the drum, those cells are being activated. I am remembering what I forgot that I already knew.

Amani: What propelled you to want to start an African dance company here in Jacksonville, FL?

Christa: Believe it or not, it was not my intention to start a dance company. I had always said that I did not want the responsibility. Sometimes, GOD and the Universe have plans for you that you do not see in yourself. I began my class after dancing with Lajo for more than two years (September 2003). Originally the plan was to have a community class where all levels could just come, have fun, learn and express themselves. I had also hoped that an African dance network would form and that there would be different classes several times a week. Eventually the other people that were teaching classes stopped. I was also performing on my own with Nia Dance Ensemble. I realized that I had been fortunate to have really loyal students and I wanted for them to be able to use their skills for something. Our debut as Culture Moves 101 was in April 2005 at the World of Nations Festival. It's continued to grow since then.

Amani: What are some specific goals you have for yourself as a dancer and choreographer that you would like to share with our readers?

Christa: One of my goals is to continue my education so that I can become a lecturer in African performing arts and history. My goals as a dancer and choreographer are vast because I am not sure I see something that can be reached. Of course, I want to be successful and have people call me in to do workshops and choreograph for them. I myself would love to perform with a truly professional company such as the Chuck Davis Dance Company. However, I never want to feel as though I have arrived. I always want to come up with new things and continue to grow and be challenged as a dancer and choreographer.

Amani: I know that you choreographed the dance scenes for Majigeen. How did that experience affect you as an artist?

Christa: Majigeen was my first real production. I was treated as a professional. I learned what I should expect from entities that ask me to choreograph for them. It also stretched my imagination and made me push my abilities. For the first time, I was not just choreographing pieces to be danced. These pieces had to tell a story. These pieces had to portray certain information to the audience. It could not just look like a dance performance. The experience was definitely a benefit to me.

Amani: Describe your experiences as a choreographer as opposed to just being a dancer?

Christa: Both experiences are wonderful. As a dancer, you get to enjoy the movement. Someone tells you what movement to do, perhaps what emotion to portray and you take it from there. The audience sees and is inspired by you. As a choreographer, you get to take a grand idea and manifest it through others. I believe that is magical. It is more behind the scenes, but that is the beauty of it. The audience sees the dancers, but unknown to them, they also see you and your ideas. The challenge is training someone to portray what you are seeing in your head. Being a choreographer also challenges my skills as a dancer. The movements and the sequences that I see in my head may not always be as easy to do in real life.

Amani: You also drum as well. Describe the drums that West African dancers perform to for our readers, as many of them are not familiar with these drums?

Christa: The majority of our dances are performed with the djembe, and a family of drums called the djun-djuns. The djembe is the lead and provides the “melody” if you will, of the music. Dancers listen to the djembe for signals to change the movements, or to begin or cease dancing. The djembe also provides accents to intensify the movements that the dancers are doing. The djun-djuns provide the baseline, which is the foundation. The dancer's feet are almost always moving to whatever rhythm the djun-djuns are playing. Although nowadays, everyone plays any drum, in traditional West Africa , a woman would not be seen playing the djembe. This is due to the positions that must be used to play. One is standing with the djembe strapped to the body. The other is seated, with the djembe between the legs. The first position is not considered good for the woman because of the weight of the drums and the stress that it puts on the upper body and waist. The second is seen as distasteful because the woman would have to sit with her legs open. To this day, Les Ballets Africains-The National Ballet for the Republic of Guinea will not portray female djembe players; only djun-djun, which is what I play. Both of these drums originated in Guinea, but can be seen in all parts of West and even some of Central and South Africa.

Amani: As a writer, I know that a lot of my inspiration comes from music, as it does for many different types of artists. Who are some of your favorite musicians?

Christa: You can not find my favorites on the radio! LOL. This is not to say that I listen to all traditional African music, but with what I do, it takes up a lot of my listening time. Guinean musicians: Abou Sylla, Fara Tolno, M'bemba Bangoura, Fode Camara. Malian: Oumou Sangare, Habib Koite, and Mamadou Diabate. Senegalese: Youss N'dour and Fatou Laoube.

Amani: What choreographers and dancers inspire you to create?

Christa: I happen to be very Guinea biased if you can not already tell. I love Mominatou and Marietou Camara, Mohamed Dacosta (who is in Gainesville at UF), Mamady Sano and Yousef Koumbassa. I am just getting into Sabar dance from Senegal . My favorite Sabar dancer is Babacar Mbaye. Actually, seeing any Sabar dance inspires me creatively. Of course, anything with Les Ballets Africains is mesmerizing. I am also inspired by life itself. There may be something that I see or something that happens to me or another person. I am also inspired by what I have seen done in Yoruba festivals and rituals.

Amani: I know that your dance company, Culture Moves 101, is about to have a big production called Mande! The Evolution from Bare Feet to Blue Jeans. Tell me about the meaning of Mande, how you came up with that title for your show, and what the audience can expect when they go to see the show.

Christa: Mande' refers to the collective of West African cultures, languages and people. It includes Mali , Senegal , Ivory Coast , Burkina Faso , Guinea and Ghana . All of our rhythms that we perform with the exception of two come from this region, hence the name Mande'. I have always taught the history of the dance we are doing, however, at times it is hard to know where a rhythm originated. As the dances move from region to region, they remain the same, but they do change somewhat. For instance, Lamban was originally created in 13 th century Mali , however, the style that most people are familiar with today comes from Guinea. By naming the show Mande', we are paying homage to the entire region and to all that perform these rhythms. The subtitle evolved, because as a group, we try and bring things into a modern- day context so that our community can identify with it. Often when African-Americans view very traditional African dance, they are inspired, but they feel far away from it. They see it as something “other people” do. By bringing it into a modern context, by wearing jeans, or translating the songs to English, it feels closer. People see that it is what they have done, can do, and probably do anyway without knowing. I always want to respect the history of the people that we are learning from; however, I also want us to continue to use our own creativity. Sankofa: return and get it. The audience can expect to be inspired by the beauty of the dances in their traditional form (with small twists here and there) with traditional attire; and also feel as though they are part of the show during the scenes in modern context and attire. There is humor injected throughout the show, so one can expect a giggle or two. Ryan Sinclair is serving as our narrator and does a great job of keeping the audience involved. Of course, Boomtown has some of the best food in Jacksonville .

Amani: Do you have any other upcoming projects that you want to share with your audience?

Christa: I try not to speak on things until they are confirmed or in action. I can say that Mande' will be performed again in July at Boomtown (date to be announced).

Amani: You are so full of energy when you perform. Where does that energy come from?

Christa: Tofu!! LOL! I just thought I would throw that out there for all my fellow vegetarians. Honestly, I have to say from God. I don't work out especially hard or anything. As a matter of fact I was more active when I was pregnant with my little one than I am now. When I dance, I am in another zone, beyond the physical. There have been times when I have shown up to something and said I was tired or feeling a little sick, but once the sound of the drums got a hold of me, I could not stop dancing. It is definitely spiritual. I was told on many occasions while I was pregnant to sit down and take it easy. I am an Aries, so of course I do not listen. I danced up until a week before he was born. To this day he is always moving. I believe he is going to be my dancer. My older one may be my drummer.  

Amani: If you could use one word to describe you as a dancer, what would it be?

Christa: Evolving. I have changed a lot over the years and I hope to continue to change. The one thing that has not changed is my intensity. I have a rather intense personality so it comes across in my dancing.

Amani: What do you want to leave your audience with after they've seen you perform?

Christa: Joy. Just pure unadulterated happiness. That is the first thing. Of course, I want them to feel as though they were educated. Lastly, I hope they are inspired enough to get involved. Maybe they can not dance, but they want to sing or play instruments, or just be a cheerleader for the group. *smile* We welcome everybody.