Guest Artist Residencies

The Era Footwork Collective logo features the name of the organization in big-block, bold red letters.

 

Students! Join the OFA, OFA Dance Program and Black Arts Collective for two residencies featuring leading artists from Chicago and Boston dance styles. Find out more about creative research and development, community building through artmaking, the history and culture of a Black art form, and your place in making art! 

Sign up in the Interest Form to learn more and be part of these extraordinary artists’ residencies!

OFA Artist Residency: The Era Footwork Collective

  • Campus Visit #1: Wednesday October 15–Sunday, October 19 
  • Campus Visit #2: Wednesday, February 11-Sunday, February 15 
  • Campus Visit #3: Thursday, April 30-Sunday, May 3 (Arts Fest) 
Overview 

The Era Footwork Collective residency is envisioned as a three-part, creative research-driven collaboration with the Era, a Chicago footwork collective, and includes Stiggity Stackz, a Boston-based leader in the freestyle dance culture and OFA Dance Program teaching artist. (See more info on Stackz residency below.) The Era residency is a partnership with the Office for the Arts, including the OFA Dance Program and Harvard Choruses, and Black Arts Collective (our student partners). With students, faculty and the community at the center, the residency combines deep artistic engagement with creative development, curricular connections and community building through the arts. During multiple visits, the Era and Stackz will immerse students in the history, culture,and embodiment of this underrecognized Black art form while also participating in ground-up community organizing. Activities include: discussions in and outside the classroom, film screenings in the Houses, participation in co-curricular community classes at the Harvard Dance Center and conversations during informal gatherings such as meals, arts events and spontaneous happenings. This immersion exchange emphasizes process-based learning from culture bearers, fostering a deeper understanding of dance, creativity, storytelling, community and the professional paths of artists and arts collectives. 

Want to get involved and find out more? Reach out to Alicia Anstead (OFA) at anstead@fas.harvard.edu. All are welcome!

The OFA Arts Residency with the Era Footwork Collective is made possible with support from the Peter Ivers Memorial Fund. 

 

Stiggity Stackz logo with black lettering and images of freestyle dancers

OFA Dance Program Artist Residency: Stiggity Stackz 

  • Friday, February 6–Sunday, February 15 
  • Monday, April 27–Thursday, April 30 
Overview 

The Spring ’26 OFA Dance Program Artist Residency provides Boston-based freestyle dancer, educator, community leader and organizer Ashton Lites, aka Stiggity Stackz, with space, time and financial support for the creation of a new work Stackin’ Stylez: Crossfade (working title) that will invite students and community members into the creative process. Stackz is an OFA Dance Program teaching artist and has been a core collaborator since 2023 when the Dance Program first piloted its initiative Infinite Possibilities: the history, culture, and concepts behind freestyle dance. Infinite Possibilities features a different cast of freestyle dance innovators and styles in each iteration and builds on Stackz’s own major dance battles in the city. The February 2026 iteration will feature members from The Era Footwork Collective (see above for The Era residency). 

During this Spring ‘26 OFA Dance Program Artist Residency, students and community members will be invited to open rehearsals and feedback sessions during creation periods, an opportunity for direct exposure to the creative process with Stackz and his artist collaborators at Harvard Dance Center. This will lead to a work-in-progress showing with Q&A at the end. 

Want to get involved and find out more? Reach out to Elizabeth Epsen (OFA Dance Program) at epsen@fas.harvard.edu. All are welcome!