Maxine Montilus

I have a profile feature in Shout Out LA! Click the link in my bio to read the article, or you can find it here: /meet-maxine-montilus-dance-artist/ Thank you @mellephillips for the referral! ❤️ Photo by @shocphoto #haitiandance #haitianartist #dancer #dance

Hello everyone! First off, Happy New Year! I hope that everyone is having a great start to the year. I am writing to announce that I have created a separate IG page for my project-based dance company MV Dance Project! The "MV" comes from the first name initials of my grandmothers, Marie Maxine Montilus and Velie Pierre. Both women lived lives of service to their communities in Haiti and beyond by sharing their time, resources and various modalities of healing with others. MV Dance Project aims to do the same by being of service to communities through the art form of dance-specifically through artistic work and dance education programming. Please follow @mvdanceproject for updates, including our upcoming presentation of "Our Bodies, No Apologies" on Saturday, February 7th at 8pm at @triskelionarts in Brooklyn! Also, shout out to @hello_melle for creating our logo! -Founder & Artistic Director, Maxine Montilus #mvdanceproject #dance #dancers

Here's a short excerpt of the piece I'm choreographing on dance majors at @iu_contemporarydance for their Winter Concert in December! Title...I'll figure that out by Friday lol. Given the times we're living in, I wanted to create a work that speaks to the world I want to see...with justice for everyone and building community while pulling from the wisdom of our cultural knowledge and ancestors to do so. Music composed by the wonderful @valjeanty #haitiandance #haitianartist #mvdanceproject #dance #dancer

Yesterday morning was when I found out fellow Haitian artist/poet and friend Michele Voltaire Marcelin passed away. I've been processing this news in a state of shock and sadness ever since I found out.... As a proud member of KaNu Dance Theater for over a decade, I had many opportunities to work and collaborate with her-the company's artistic director @jessica_stvilulysse made sure to incorporate Michele's poetry live with our performances often. The last pic in this carousel is of Michele and her husband @jmccalla1 - I always enjoyed spending time with them and seeing them together at various events because they loved each other HARD, and exuded their love everywhere they went. My thoughts are with him and their family right now. Michele, you were one of the kindest, most giving, warmest, and most talented people I've ever met. I'll miss you, and I'll never forget you ❤️.

Today is International Dance Day! Here's an oldie but goodie, circa 2017 performing my solo work "What Can't Be Denied" in @dancecaribbeancollective 's New Traditions Festival at Mark Morris Dance Center. Photo by Shane Drummond #internationaldanceday #dancer #dance #haitianartist

Maxine Montilus is a Haitian-American choreographer, movement director and educator based in Brooklyn, New York. In 2014, Montilus choreographed BallyBeg Production's third play and Equity-approved showcase, "The Taste of It" and was a 2015 nominee for Outstanding Choreography/Movement in The New York Innovative Theater Awards for her work in the production. In 2017, Maxine served as an Afro-Cuban/Haitian Folklore consultant for Camille Brown in her work for the Broadway musical “Once On This Island.” Maxine was also the choreographer for Opera Orlando’s presentations of George Bizet’s “Carmen” (April 2021), “The Secret River” (December 2021 & March 2026), and “The Magic Flute” (October 2022). All three productions made their premieres at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts. In 2023, Maxine was selected as one of Haiti Cultural Exchange’s Lakou Nou Artists-in-Residence as well. In 2019, Maxine founded her project-based dance company, MV Dance Project. In June 2019, the company performed its first evening-length production “Strength in Spirit” at Brooklyn Studios for Dance, and recently presented their latest work “Our Bodies, No Apologies" at Triskelion Arts and in the BAAD!Ass Women Festival at the Bronx Academy of Arts and Dance (BAAD!). Watch the full short film on Serendipity's YouTube channel today by clicking the link in our bio. Be a part of the project and celebrate your story. For further information click the link in our bio. Making the Invisible Visible: Black Women 365 Days of the Year is an exciting initiative led by Serendipity Institute for Black Arts and Heritage. Each day will showcase a different woman, whose story has shaped Black British or global Diasporic history; many of whom remain overlooked or under-celebrated in mainstream narratives. This will take the form of a rolling programme of short films, released throughout the year to keep these stories in daily circulation and to create an evolving constellation of leadership, resistance, artistry and enduring impact.

Join us this Thursday, March 26th for “Our Bodies No Apologies” Directed by Maxine Montilus, Our Bodies, No Apologies is an evening-length performance combining dance, text, and poetry that explores five personal journeys with body image and self-love, inspired by Sonya Renee Taylor’s The Body Is Not An Apology: The Power of Radical Self-Love. Featuring dancers: Chris Bisram, Michelle Mantione, Jaylen Ray and Azrielle Smith. 🗓️ Thursday, March 26th at 7PM 📍Bronx Academy of Arts and Dance! 🎟️ baadbronx.org

MV Dance Project will present "Our Bodies, No Apologies", directed by founder Maxine Montilus, on Thursday, March 26th at 7:30pm as part of @baadbronx 's BAAD!Ass Women Festival! This presentation explores the journeys of 5 dancers with self-love and body image, grounded in the work of the book "The Body Is Not An Apology: The Power of Radical Self Love" by @sonyareneetaylor . Click the link in the bio to purchase tickets, which are available on a sliding scale of $10-$20. Hope to see you there! Image Description: A flyer containing event details for an upcoming performance in the BAAD!Ass Women Festival, including a headshot of Maxine Montilus, a Black woman with dreadlocks looking directly into the camera.

Moving Spirits, Inc. has been on a journey of movement, memory, and reclamation for 15 YEARS! What began as a vision has grown into a legacy of dance that carries the stories, histories, and power of Black communities. Along the way, our work has traveled near and far from NYC to Cali, Michigan to SC, Brazil to Trinidad, Jamaica to Mexico, Switzerland, and beyond. Journeys that connect us with artists, families and traditions, as we fellowship across the African diaspora. Over these years we have continued "The Project": the work of honoring our histories and amplifying the voices that live within our bodies and our blood memory. We have remained "Rooted" in the traditions that guide us in the rhythms, rituals, and cultural practices that shape the foundation of our artistry. At times our creative process has asked us to retreat inward, to transform, to gather strength, like a "Cocoon", holding space for reflection, growth, and imagination. And now, we arrive. We are "Coming Home". To NYC once again to celebrate 15 years of Moving Spirits, Inc. As we celebrate Moving Spirits, we honor every artist, collaborator, student, and supporter who has been MOVED with us along the way. We are just getting started! #movingspiritsinc #movingspirits #blackdance #nycdance

Here is a short excerpt of the choreography I set for @operaorlando 's "The Secret River", which will be presented this Friday, March 6th and Saturday, March 7th at 7:30pm at the @meadgarden - visit Opera Orlando's link in their bio to purchase tix if you're in the Orlando area! Thank you @inezpatriciadance once again for your partnership and in allowing us to work with some of your incredible dancers! #operaorlando #dance #ópera #thesecretriver #meadbotanicalgarden

March is WOMEN’S HISTORY MONTH and we have some amazing women involved in THE SECRET RIVER which opens next weekend at Mead Botanical Garden!!! 🪴 🙋🏽‍♀️🎏 Sabrina Langlois as Calpurnia Renée Richardson as Cassandra Kimberly Hernández as Mother Albirtha Amy Cofield as Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings Maxine Montilus - choreographer Stella Sung - composer Katelin Kaplan - costume designer Destinee Steele - hair & makeup designer See their amazing talents bring to life the touching, heartfelt story of THE SECRET RIVER - based on the book by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings. 📚📖📙 Two performances only on March 6 & 7 at 7:30pm. VIP and General Admission seats still available for both performances. Secure your seats at link in bio. General Admission tickets are only $29 and include a chair on the lawn in front of the Grove Stage and a bottle of water. Feel free to bring a picnic blanket, lawn chairs, and your own snacks if you would like to. 🧺🧺🧺 AND the weather forecast is predicting clear skies in the 70s for both performances. Woohoo!!! 🌞😎

Jump into THE SECRET RIVER with us NEXT WEEKEND at Mead Botanical Garden!! 🏞️🦦🎣🎏 Two performances only on March 6 & 7 at 7:30pm. VIP and General Admission seats still available for both performances. Secure your seats at link in bio. General Admission tickets are only $29 and include a chair on the lawn in front of the Grove Stage and a bottle of water. Feel free to bring a picnic blanket, lawn chairs, and your own snacks if you would like to. 🧺🧺🧺 AND the weather forecast is predicting clear skies in the 70s for both performances. Woohoo!!! 🌞😎