Chief Baba Neil Clarke

Chief Baba Neil Clarke is a highly respected, award-winning, and internationally-noted, culturally-grounded percussionist, bandleader, producer, scholar, spiritualist, and educator. His involvement in African-centered percussive arts and his prolific professional music career span sixty years. Born, raised, and trained in Brooklyn NY, Clarke has studied with percussion masters throughout the African diaspora. Rooted in traditional spiritual practices as a creative artist, his overarching work tends to be centered around exploring possibilities. He seeks to create opportunities for cultivating an understanding and appreciation of global African heritage through the embedded aesthetics of the drum as a musical instrument on its own merit. He approaches exploring varied applications, incorporations, and inclusions in as many artistic and creative contexts as possible, purposefully intent on dispelling stifling stereotypical misconceptions and unproductive biases.

Chief Clarke’s relationship with BAC goes back to his teenage years being encouraged in his artistry by the Council’s founder Charlene Victor. He continues to pursue this adventure of the creative communicative process in his ongoing artistic explorations.

Michael Manswell

Michael Manswell is an award-winning Dancer, Singer, Choreographer, and Teaching Artist. Michael began his creative journey as a storyteller at arts festivals in his native Trinidad and Tobago. He later studied music with Lindy-Anne Bodden-Ritch and at Brooklyn College with Tom Cultice. As a singer, he has toured Europe, the UK, and the Caribbean and has performed as a soloist in productions of opera and oratorio. He studied dance at the Trinidad Dance Theater (TDT) with Eugene Joseph training in Modern, Ballet, Jazz, Ballroom, and Folkloric styles and toured with the company in North America and the Caribbean. A prolific choreographer, he has created numerous works currently in the repertoire of Something Positive Inc., the performing company he now directs.An orisha devotee in the Yoruba religion, Michael presents lectures and workshops in dance, music, and traditional religious practice and works closely with the Caribbean Cultural Center African Diaspora Institute (CCCADI) and the Interfaith Center (ICNY) in their programs. Michael is currently an Adjunct Prof (Dance) at Lehman College and teaches for Something Positive, Brooklyn Arts Council, CCCADI, E.M Techniques, and Abundance Arts Academy. Most recently, Michael was given the title of “Cultural Ambassador” from Sesame Flyers International Inc. and a Citation for Cultural & Artistic Achievement from the Mayor of the City of New York.

Aeilushi Mistry

Aeilushi Mistry a Teaching Artist, Performer and Choreographer from Gujarat, India. She studied Bharathanatyam classical dance in India and completed her B.A. in Bharathanatyam from Gandharva University, Gujarat and advance studies in Bharathanatyam from Kerala Kalamandalam, Kerala. She is also trained in Gujarati Folk Garbaa, Raas and Divada dance traditions. In India, she managed her own dance school and worked with hearing impaired children for 6 years.

Currently, Aeilushi is based in Brooklyn and works at the intersection of art and cultural heritage, offering various dance and cultural tradition programs. She is a proud BAC Grantee and Teaching artist affiliated with Brooklyn Arts Council’s Arts in Education and Folk Arts Program.

One of Aeilushi’s programs is the annual Aarti Hindu Lamp Ceremony on the shores of Brooklyn Bridge Park’s Pebble Beach where she engages the community in the collective art-making of palm leaf lamps. This Ceremony is traditionally performed each morning and evening along India’s rivers, to convey gratitude to Mother river, reflect on community, and remember loved ones.

Neel Murgai

Neel Murgai is a sitarist, overtone singer, daf player, composer and teacher from Brooklyn, NY. He is a co-founder and co-artistic director of the South Asian music collective, Brooklyn Raga Massive. Neel has studied sitar for over 25 years from Pundit Krishna Bhatt. He learned overtone singing from Batuvshin of the Buriyat performance group Uragsha and from Timothy Hill of the Harmonic Choir. He is a graduate of Goddard College's MFA in Interdisciplinary Arts Program.

Neel has performed around the world with numerous artists from varying disciplines including, Bill T. Jones, Cyndi Lauper, Wyclef Jean, Andre DeShields, Karsh Kale, Vijay Iyer, Adam Rudolph, Daniel Bernard Romain, Dana Leong, Ellen Stewart, Laraaji, Yuerba Buena, Baba Israel, Raz Mesinai, Mission on Mars, Akim Funk Buddha, Loren Conners, Suzanne Langille, Louis Bellogenis and Cosmo Vinyl. He has performed at venues ranging from Lincoln Center and Kennedy Center to Late Night with David Letterman to jazz clubs such as the Blue Note and at festivals around the U.S including Art Wallah, Arts Plosure, Masala! Mehndi! Masti! and many others.

Neel was the music director for Brooklyn Raga Massive’s recording of Terry Riley’s classic “In C” and composed their homage to the maestro, “In D”. Neel played in the orchestra for Disney’s musical theater adaptation of “The Jungle Book” directed by Mary Zimmerman. Neel has composed music for many film, TV, video, theater, and dance projects including the features, “The Yes Men Fix the World" and "A Decent Arrangement". His music has been featured in the BBC series, “Holidays in the Danger Zone", and TBS programs, “Women of the Ink", and “Spotlights".

Vong Pak

Vong Pak is a Korean folklore, teaching artist, and theatre practitioner. His creative works are deeply rooted in the traditional Korean performing arts, such as pungmul, samulnori, masked dance, folk song, and pansori. Mr. Pak is interested in not just preserving the tradition but also wants to make it live in the here and now.

His music has expanded into the field of contemporary world music and is celebrated on the album, “Blue and White: Electric Shaman Live”. Mr. Pak has performed at Lincoln Center, Jalopy Theatre, National Folk Festival, Brooklyn Academy of Music, Symphony Space, Roulette, among others. He has also performed around the world in over twenty countries. Mr. Pak has been featured on Good Day New York, Pix11 Morning News, ESPN commercial, and in the documentary “Rhythm in Motions”. He is a Grant Awarding Artist for Creative Rebuild New York. He is currently developing a storytelling musical, “BK-Guts”. He holds an MFA in Theatre Directing from the University of Essex, U.K.

Quenia Ribeiro

Quenia Ribeiro is a dancer, choreographer, and instructor from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. With over 25 years of experience in the field, Quenia has performed and taught in Brazil, Greece, Canada, and throughout the United States.

Quenia has been teaching Samba and Afro Brazilian Dance in NYC since 1997 at schools including Jose Limon Studios, Hunter College, Djoniba Dance and Drum Center, and Harlem School of the Arts. In addition to teaching adults and visually impaired seniors, she has worked in the public and private school system with children and teens teaching Afro-Brazilian Dance and Creative Movement. Her work and instruction have also become widely recognized through her series of instructional Brazilian Dance DVDs as well as her self-produced instructional Samba Dance app, “idancesamba”.

Currently, Quenia choreographs and directs Grupo Ribeiro, a performing arts company that presents workshops, residencies, and shows featuring the music and dance of Brazil. Grupo Ribeiro’s main goal is to produce performances that are often highly interactive events incorporating the audience into the overall program and breaking down the wall between spectator and performer.

Clarivel Ruiz

Clarivel Ruiz (we, us, you) child of the African/Indigenous Diaspora; ancestors are from Ayiti Kiskeya (aka Hispaniola, aka the Dominican Republic and Haiti), first-generation immigrant raised in NYC on the ancestral bones/covered shrines of Lenapehoking. 
 
Our artist work honors Black Indigenous people whose histories are marginalized, subverted, and consigned to the fringes of memory. In 2016, we initiated the Dominicans Love Haitians Movement to celebrate our commonalities to forge a future free from tyranny. We are an arts-based nonprofit using the arts as a foundational tool to decolonize and increase tolerance, belonging, and dignity for all.  
 
As an Artist, Activist, Educator, and Cultural Worker, we support Educators in the transformative work of cultural responsiveness and unlearning racism work. In 2020, we conducted a public performance called "SuperHuman 91", attaching 91 pieces of sugar cane to protest the continued state of statelessness and immigration rights.  
 
We are alumni of Hemispheric Institute's EmergeNYC, Culture Push's Utopian Fellow, a Civic Practice Seminar participant at the Metropolitan Museum, The Innovative Cultural Advocacy Fellowship at CCCADI, a Brooklyn Arts Council award and Unicorn Fund recipient through New Media Democracy. Clarivel is an MFA graduate of CUNY, City College. 

Victor Sirelson

Victor Sirelson (he/him) is the president and prime mover of the Dancing Crane Georgian Cultural Center, the first Georgian cultural center in the greater New York area. The organization provides professional Georgian arts performances, children’s classes, and events centering around the cultural life of Georgian immigrants.

Victor began to work with Georgian culture when there was almost no Georgian presence in the rich New York art scene. During more than 25 years of his activities, Victor has truly showcased “Georgian” as one of the major cultures in New York. He has worked with three major areas of focus: 1) the development of professional-level performing arts of dance, song, and theater; 2) the establishment of the highest level programs for Georgian children to help Georgian immigrant families sustain a traditional life in New York; and 3) working in cultural circles in New York and throughout the United States so that Georgian culture is recognized and loved as a high-level rich tradition.

Victor is also currently an adjunct professor of mathematics at CUNY’s City Tech College and the University of Connecticut.

Enrique R. Small

Being a Panamanian citizen and having the experience of being part of folkloric groups, music bands, and plays in Panama, the seeds of leadership and a desire to serve the Panamanian community were birthed in Enrique R. Small.

For over 30 years, Enrique has collaborated as a musician, director, and writer of plays at the Mt. Zion Tabernacle Christian Mission of Panama, Inc. in Brooklyn. In 2014, Enrique began his journey with the organization, Day of Independence Committee of Panamanians in New York (DICPNY) which hosts Brooklyn’s annual Panamanian Parade. He has held several positions at DICPNY including serving on the board of directors, business coordinator, cultural liaison, and vice president. In 2020, Enrique became president of DICPNY where his main duties and functions include fundraising through different programs and activities such as parties, educational events, and community donations. He also coordinates the various committees involved in producing the parade. Currently, Enrique is also a Superintendent of Safety and Training at the New York City Transit Authority.

Maintaining Panamanian culture has been DICPNY’s primary work, the parade being a manifestation of that. When bands, tipico groups, artists, food, and delegations participate, Panamanian culture is highlighted in NYC. Over 15,000 people attend the parade each year and many Panamanians from other states travel to participate. Those born here as well as children of Panamanians learn the legacy of their parents. These are children who, in turn, are part of the tipico groups and bands; This participation whets the appetite of all who want to know more about their parents’ native country.