A person in a sparkly, fringed outfit performs an extended floor pose in a graffiti‑covered room, stretching one arm forward and one leg upward on a textured metal floor.

Care: Illuminating Milwaukee’s Queer & Trans Communities

A diverse group of dance artists perform at Jan Serr Studio.

Care manifests UWM Dance’s commitment to recognizing and supporting Artists of Color throughout Milwaukee and the nation to create innovative, multi-disciplinary works. The creation will increase visibility and invest in social change for Queer and Trans BIPOC people in Milwaukee, emphasizing hopeful narratives that shine a light on how support can persevere despite oppressive forces. 

“Care: Illuminating Milwaukee’s Queer and Trans Communities” is a one-year project that will culminate in a dance work made by and for the Milwaukee BIPOC LGBTQ+ community, exploring how marginalized communities under assault care for one another. 

With a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), the Peck School of the Arts Department of Dance has commissioned internationally renowned choreographer, writer, director, and filmmaker David Roussève to create a new dance with Milwaukee-based dancers, UWM students, and and our community partner, Diverse & Resilient. 

Read the official release.

David Roussève

David Rousséve Promo Image
David Roussève (Photo by Rose Eichenbaum)

David Roussève is a choreographer, writer, director, performer and magna cum laude graduate of Princeton University and a Guggenheim Fellow. His dance/theater company REALITY has performed throughout the UK, Europe, S. America, and the U.S including four commissions for the Brooklyn Academy of Music’s Next Wave Festival.

Roussève has created three short films, the most recent screening at festivals at 56 festivals in 11 countries and receiving 10 awards including four for “Best Film”. Other awards include a “Bessie”, Creative Capital Fellowship, three Horton Awards, CalArts/Alpert Award in Dance, and seven consecutive NEA fellowships. At UCLA Roussève is Distinguished Professor of Choreography in the department of World Arts and Cultures/Dance. For Roussève, Care will generate new community connection and innovative dance that will share the beauty and resilience of LGBTQ+ communities of color and offer an expressive space for activism and pride in our community. 

Phases of Care

Phase I
March 2025
The project kicks off when Roussève makes his first visit to UWM for a two-week residency that includes workshops with UWM students, research and community workshops with Diverse & Resilient, and interacting with Milwaukee’s Vogue and Ballroom community. This first phase of the project will foster creative development and community engagement.
Phase II
August 2025
Roussève will return to Milwaukee for a choreography intensive visit that will continue research development and expand community outreach. This two-week visit will help Milwaukee African American and Latinx dancers create a nuanced movement style that will be a part of the final work.
Phase III
January and February 2026
Roussève’s final visit to Milwaukee will see two-weeks of production rehearsals, resulting in CARE’s debut at Winterdances, UWM Department of Dance’s annual faculty and guest artist concert. In this third and final phase, audiences will get to immerse themselves in Roussève’s work, interacting with a project that emphasizes hopeful narratives surrounding LGBTQ+ mentorship and mental health.

Special Events

David Rousséve Promo Image
CARE: An Artist Talk with Choreographer and Director David Rousséve
March 4, 2025
Join us for an Artist Talk and community conversation with David to learn more about the issues and themes of care embedded in his work. During the Artist Talk you’ll get to know David and his creative process and approach to LGBTQ+ advocacy.
Telling Our Life Stories in Words & Gesture: Workshop with Choreographer and Director David Roussève Promo Image
Telling Our Life Stories in Words & Gesture: Workshop with Choreographer and Director David Roussève
March 6, 2025
Join us for a community workshop taught by guest artist and acclaimed choreographer David Roussève as he explores his process for excavating narratives from life experiences though the voice and the body.
Hands in dynamic motion encircle a person's face against a vibrant purple backdrop with geometric frames and text for Winterdances Resilience.
Winterdances: Resilience
February 5-8, 2026
Presenting new works by dance faculty Mair Culbreth, Ishmael Konney, Dawn Springer, and a premiere work by acclaimed choreographer and special guest artist David Roussève. This world premiere dives into our shared humanity and offers a vision of how we gather strength through community and uplift human connection through storytelling, joy, and resilience.
Logo featuring green and purple shapes with the text ‘Diverse & Resilient.’

About Diverse & Resilient

Diverse & Resilient is a nonprofit organization based in Milwaukee. Its mission is to achieve health equity and improve the safety and well-being of LGBTQ people and communities in Wisconsin.

Diverse & Resilient sees a future in which lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer people in Wisconsin thrive, living healthy, satisfying lives in safe, supportive communities. Their work includes efforts to increase acceptance, end discrimination, and build leadership skills and confidence among LGBTQ people. Learn more on the Diverse & Resilient website.

This project is supported in part by the National Endowment for the Arts, the Eldon E. Murray Foundation Fund of the Greater Milwaukee Foundation, and the Joseph R. Pabst Fund at the Cream City Foundation.