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'Avatar' Choreographer to Lecture on Afro-Futurism Feb. 22

The talk, free and open to the public, will be held at the Duke Dance Laboratory

Lula Washington, founder of the Lula Washington Dance Theater, choreographed the ritual movement of the Na'vi people in James Cameron's film,
Lula Washington, founder of the Lula Washington Dance Theater, choreographed the ritual movement of the Na'vi people in James Cameron's film, "Avatar."

Lula Washington, the founder of the Lula Washington Dance Theatre and the choreographer behind the film "Avatar," will speak at Duke University on Wednesday, Feb. 22.

The event, to be held at the Duke Dance Laboratory (1516 Hull Ave.), is free and open to the public. Washington will speak from 1:15 to 2:30 p.m. 

Her lecture on Afro-futurism and dance is part of the guest artist series created by SLIPPAGE Performance|Culture|Technology, a dance company in residence at Duke.

"We are considering how performance and cultural theory intersect and the selection of visiting artists this spring is a reflection of that," said African-American studies professor Thomas DeFrantz, the director of SLIPPAGE who teaches a course on contemporary performance at Duke.

Washington choreographed ritual movement and created body language for the indigenous Na'vi people featured in "Avatar." Members of Washington's dance company provided motion for the 8-foot-tall aliens with tails. The dancers wore computerized body suits and used technology to capture their movements. 

Washington founded the company in 1980 with her husband Erwin to provide a creative outlet for minority dance artists in the inner city. Today, the Lula Washington Dance Theatre performs in more than 150 cities, in the U.S. as well as abroad.

DeFrantz initiated SLIPPAGE during his tenure at MIT, where he was professor of music and theater arts before coming to Duke in the fall of 2011. SLIPPAGE produces theatrical events and sponsors academic and artistic symposia, including the Black Performance Theory Working Group, the Choreography and Corporeality Working Group, and the Dance Technology and Circulation of the Social symposia, versions 1 and 2.