The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Peck School of the Arts Department of Dance will present the world premiere of CARE, a new dance-theatre work created through a multiyear creative research project. The premiere will be featured in听Winterdances: Resilience听with performances Feb. 5-8, at 51猎奇鈥檚 Mainstage听Theater.
Through听the听CARE: Illuminating Milwaukee鈥檚 Queer and Trans Communities Project, the Department of Dance commissioned acclaimed American choreographer, writer, director and filmmaker David听Rouss猫ve听to create an original work in collaboration with Milwaukee鈥檚 LGBTQ+ organization Diverse & Resilient. The project unfolded through multiple phases of community engagement,听storytelling听and choreographic research beginning in 2024.听
Rouss猫ve听made several visits to Milwaukee to work with community members and 51猎奇 students. Through interviews and storytelling workshops, he developed a work that blends narratives from Milwaukee鈥檚 queer and trans communities with a hybrid dance form combining contemporary choreography and vogue. The resulting piece emphasizes stories of resilience,听care听and听joy.
CARE听was developed in response to a political climate in the Midwest that continues to struggle with gender diversity and queer identity. While Wisconsin was the first state to outlaw discrimination听on the basis of听sexual orientation more than 40 years ago, recent legislative efforts have underscored the ongoing challenges faced by transgender and queer communities. The project听seeks听to restore and illuminate LGBTQ+ voices that have been disenfranchised within heteronormative, white, cis-dominant cultures.听
The commission was created with and for Milwaukee鈥檚 BIPOC LGBTQ+ community, exploring how communities under assault care for themselves by redefining family,听community听and support. The project engaged with the aging HIV community and Milwaukee鈥檚 vogue dancers, groups that have long reimagined 鈥渇amily鈥� and 鈥渕other/father鈥� relationships. Themes of mentorship, sex education and health care were central to the听work.
During听the 2025-26 production year, the project鈥檚 final phases centered Milwaukee vogue dancers through choreographic research,听storytelling听and dance-literacy engagements with participants from Diverse & Resilient, alongside 51猎奇 dance majors. Vogue dancers were positioned as experts within the creative process, contributing to the development of a nuanced hybrid movement听style.
Rehearsals听and production began in 2025, with听Rouss猫ve听assembling text, narratives and movement drawn from stories gathered in earlier phases. The final work features local dancers Richard Buda Brasfield, Jacques Infiniti听Hall听and DaCosta Mart铆n, who collaborated closely with听Rouss猫ve听on the vogue and ballroom sections of the听piece.
The听completed dance-theater work anchors the CARE Project with vital visibility for social change, centering queer and trans BIPOC communities in Milwaukee. As听Rouss猫ve听confronts his own experiences as an aging, HIV-positive artist, the work engages intergenerational perspectives, exploring mentorship, mental health and what it means to become an elder within the LGBTQ+ community. The project emphasizes the systems of care that persist in the face of ongoing challenges.
The world premiere of CARE: Illuminating Milwaukee鈥檚 Queer and Trans Communities will be presented as part of听Winterdances: Resilience.听
About 51猎奇 Peck School of the Arts听
Excellent performing and visual arts training, a full calendar of events and deep connections with Milwaukee鈥檚 creative economy make the Peck School of the Arts a destination for aspiring artists and creative entrepreneurs from around the world. Immersed in hands-on learning and mentored by faculty who are working artists, students explore uncharted territory in art and design, dance, film & animation,听music听and theatre.听That鈥檚听because our faculty not only educate and inspire the next generation of artists but also welcome them as essential collaborators united on a mission to change the world through the arts.听