Ella Mesma Company – Diaspora Dance Theatre

Ella Mesma Image — “Thanks for visiting our site! I am Ella of Ella Mesma Company. We are inspired to make work that undoes limiting beliefs and celebrates cultural and social identity to empower and inspire our audiences: just like our company name. We love to include audience interaction in some form in our work. We refer to the work we make as diaspora dance theatre, because we recognise that the roots of these folkloric dance styles lie in Africa, and that we are also making a new journey, (just as these dances did): taking influence from the past and making sense of them today .”

“Unabashedly Emotional”
The Guardian

“She really pushes the form beyond battles and bravado”
William Drew- Exeunt Magazine

“Amazing, powerful energy in abundance”
Dr Nathalie Teitler- Dancing Words

Ella Mesma Company is a British based dance theatre company who use a diverse range of folkloric dance styles, inspired by director Ella’s background in Afro-Latin, Breaking and Contemporary dance, as well as the skills of each individual who has joined the company.

The company strive to use diaspora dance theatre (a term they created to communicate this unique meeting of dance styles) to allow transformation: telling personal and global stories to connect to our truest selves, and create powerful, personal and political work.

“If there’s a book that you want to read, but it hasn’t been written yet, then you must write it.” ~ Toni Morrison.

Ella’s incentive is to make dance work where BAME, women, LGBTQI and working class people are at the centre of the story, and these stories are told using the dance styles she’s always loved.

Ella Mesma Company also teach workshops and work with young people to create dance projects in the community.