Marielys Lely Burgos Meléndez

AfroBorikua artistic researcher, somatic educator, embodied writer, dance audio describer, and communicator. Since 2014, she investigates experiences, poetics, and narratives of mobility-migration-dislocation. As 2021-2023 Artist-in-Residence at Movement Research, Marielys is excavating the presence of Latinx in the ´experimental dance scene´ in NYC, the body as a living archive, contemplative movement, pleasure, and her own ancestral indigenous wisdom.

As an independent and self-funded artist, Marielys has taught and shared work in academic and non-academic institutions in México, Belgium, Cyprus, Greece, Scotland, Dominican Republic, Canada, her native Boriké, and various cities in Turtle Island. Errática is her first self-published artist book (2019) in collaboration with Taller Asiray.

While in Lenapehoking, she has worked/ performed with Pramila Vasudevan, Antonio Ramos, iele paloumpis, Jill Sigman/ThinkDance, zavé martohardjono -as part of Territory: The Island Remembers, nominated for a 2022 Bessies Award-, and most recently Christopher Unpezverde Núñez. ´deadbird´ film by devynn emory, ´a fuzzy yellow spot´, by Christopher Unpezverde Núñez, and Sing by Ogemdi Ude -performed at Abrons-, are among the productions that have included Marielys´ audio descriptions. As a Dance Administrator/ Communicator she has supported performing arts organizations like Artichoke Dance Company and Buglisi Dance Theatre/ The Table of Silence Project 9/11, Yanira Castro/ a canary torsi, and currently works as Media and Communications Manager at Movement Research. www.marielysbm.com

[Image Description: Afroindigenous womxn looking fiercely at the camera, palms of the hands opened outwardly in front of her bare chest. The top of a belly scar shows off. Arms heavily tattoed. Black hair at shoulder level swirls with the wind. Photo by Kyle Kesses.]