Ela Mesma Company

Our Values

Diversity in stories matters.

Growing up in a small town in England, I didn’t see many superheroes that looked like Ella’s mixed family (I am white British and Black Nigerian).

I wanted to create a diverse company that celebrates dance styles from the diaspora and challenges aspects of our society and its beliefs. 

It was from this space that Ela Mesma Company was born.

“We delight in the beauty of the butterfly, but rarely admit the changes it has gone through to achieve that beauty.” Maya Angelou

We strive to create beautiful, inspiring diaspora dance theatre to allow transformation through the honouring of our values and the telling of personal and global stories. This supports us to connect to our truest selves and to create powerful, personal and political work that also is in resonance with Mother Earth works in harmony with the planet. Where possible we try to use recycled materials and minimise our carbon footprint.

There are five values at the heart of the work:

About Ella

It’s great to meet you here!

My name is Ella and my pronouns are she or they.

I created Ella Mesma Company to produce work by the superheroes that I wanted to see on stage.

I love to work with the dances of the Orishas and contemporary and Hip-Hop styles to create collaborative theatre with my company

“Dancers are the athletes of God.” Albert Einstein

I am super inspired by dance as a healing ritual and a gateway to transformation and positive change! 

Can art be activism? 

Can we use it, like a hammer, to shape the world we want to see? 

BECAUSE THE EARTH WITHOUT ART IS JUST EH!

I have a holistic approach to creativity, creating and crafting from a space that is  connected to self. A space that is full of bravery, enquiry and purpose.

As I came to dance later in life, having not had access to it previously, it is important to me to reach those who don’t necessarily have a background in theatre. 

As a person of mixed heritage (I am mixed Black Nigerian & white British), I also strive for my cast and the stories we tell, to be told by super-hero(ine) voices who are often under-represented onstage.

I also love to connect with my audience through discussion and play (though making sure the audience never feel pressured to join in!)

“Art is not a mirror to reflect reality, but a hammer with which to shape it.” Bertolt Brecht

ELA MESMA COMPANY TIMELINE

Testimonials