Listing: OSA 1 thru OSA 72

OSA 1

Wednesday, April 18, 2007

Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Grand Foyer, 4:08pm

Washington, DC

OSA 2

Thursday, April 19 11:30am

African American Civil War Memorial, 11:30am

Photo: OSA 46 outside Madison Square Gardens, New York, NY, June 2, 2007

(Chicago, Illinois for OSA 3-5)

OSA 3

Friday, April 20

Gary Comer Youth Center, Youth Dance Jam, 3:30pm

Outside a Handlebar restaurant, 7:45pm

OSA 4

Saturday, April 21

McCormick Place Convention Center, Veranda, 5:00pm

She-Boom Drum Circle, moving the Greenfest audience, 6:00pm

OSA 5

Sunday, April 22

Corner of W. Huron and Ashburn at abandoned, weeded lot, 7:30am

OSA 6 into OSA 7

Monday, April 23—Tuesday, April 24

Dupont Circle, making sounds and motions with Zaccai on his birthday, 12:06am

Teaching at Sitar Center, 4:30pm

Washington, DC

OSA 8

Wednesday, April 25

Teaching at Hope Community Public Charter School, 1pm

OSA 9

Thursday, April 26

Low frequency, bitter, anger, tears, complaining, jealousy

OSA 10

Friday, April 27

Green Line from Southern Ave Station to Columbia Heights, 11:15am

moving in my seat, mad and sad, a woman laughs at me, thinks I’m crazy, today the dance is stifled, my body molded to the patterns of negative thoughts. This is the night I almost killed my movement with my stubborn, self-critical, unforgiving, bitter heart...until I had a dream.

OSA 11

Saturday, April 28

Kenyon & Park Rd, NW, 8:36am

Morning of the revival, I awake thinking I almost died and rejoicing that I am still alive to dance. In the dream the doctor told me I only had 6 more hours to live and I was so scared. How was I going to do 600 days worth of OSA in 6 hours? I fretted and soon an African man came to dance with me. As we danced I got stronger and happier and wasn’t afraid of dying. I awoke renewed with life and emailed lots of people. So many people responded to my testimony and committed to supporting me complete my 600 days. After sending the email, I rushed outside to do OSA. Two teenage girls approached me while my eyes were closed doing the movement prayer, “give thanks.” Blasting me back to the hustle and bustle of Columbia Heights, “Excuse me, Miss, Miss?” When I open my eyes, the Latina girl says, “What are you doing?” When I respond “praying,” the black girl says “To God?” I say yes. She moves in closer and orders me to do it again. “Let me see.” I do the sequence again. I have been doing “give thanks” for nearly two years now. It is different everyday, but with the same intention of thanksgiving. Everyone who dances with me, whether they know it or not, does “give thanks.” There are so many ways to praise. “Are you poor or something,” the Latina girl interrupts. “No,” I laugh to myself, I’ve never heard that one. “Where you live,” she demands. I tell her around the corner. “In a house?” I tell her it’s with roommates though, so she doesn’t think I own a house. “Oh,” she does not know how to integrate this information into the reality of what and who she thinks I am supposed to be. “Oh, okay...bye!” She grabs her black friend by the arm and the run off from me. I think how special a task I have, introducing our young people to the arts. Some of whom will never go to a theatre or a class or a workshop, some whose only introduction to their creative side is bold people crazy enough to dance on the street.

OSA 12

Sunday, April 29

Malcolm X Park, 9am, before kriya

OSA 13

Monday, April 30

outside Sculpture Garden gates, 7^th & Constitution, 8:56am

OSA 14

Tuesday, May 1

African American Civil War Memorial, 8:48am

OSA 15

Wednesday, May 2

Dupont Circle/Rock Creek Park, near P and 23^rd streets, playing dance games with Michael and Samaa, 5:10pm

OSA 16

Thursday, May 3

“The Mourning Commute,” dancing on the Green/Yellow line from Columbia Heights to Braddock Road metro, 8:40am

OSA 17

Friday, May 4

14^th & Sheridan street, NW, waiting for 52/54 bus southbound after “rub-n-roll” barter with Jaime, 5:18pm, lots of horns honking

OSA 18

Saturday, May 5

Takoma Funeral March, 10:25am on busted-up basketball court at Piney Branch & Cedar roads, NW

OSA 19

Sunday, May 6

pre-drum circle at Malcolm X Park, 1:05pm

OSA 20

Monday, May 7

“Beatboxing at the Back of Ghandi,” with Michael beatboxing rhythms for me to groove to, 21^st and Q streets by Dupont Circle @ Massachusetts Ave., 5:32pm

OSA 21

Tuesday, May 8

African American Civil War Memorial, 10:00am, filming for OSA documentary

and @ 14^th and U streets, outside McDonalds

OSA 22

Wednesday, May 9

Harriet Tubman Elementary School, 13^th street between Kenyon & Irving Streets, NW, 8:19pm

honks, horns, lights, yells, whistles, claps. random man yelling from car: “keep doing it, keep the faith, do what you have to do! Don’t never give up!” Curtis comes to inquire: “Is it yoga? How old are you? How old are you again?”

dancing for DCPS (District of Columbia Public Schools), who is accountable for praying for these schools, for the students, the teachers, the staff, the administration, the parents? all of these schools need an OSA prayer. It comes to me to dance on as many playgrounds and school fronts as possible before school begins again in September.

OSA 23

Thursday, May 10

The Mall @ 7^th & Madison Streets, NW, dancing for the standstill of cars in “rush hour,” 8:00am-ish. Wondering: does America even qualify as “open space” for the OSA project? With all the borders, immigration laws, zones, immigration raids, harassment, slavery, prisons, gated communities...is this place open, and accessible to the “public” of global humanity? Ideas formulating for doing OSA Yoga in DC’s “roughest” neighborhoods: Sursum Corda, Berry Farms, parts of Georgia Avenue, Shrimp Boat, Deanwood area. Also, visions of “OSA Booty”, hundreds of women descending on public spaces throughout DC and booty shaking continuously for intervals of 5 or 10 minutes, booty-activating places like the White House, the Monument, K street near all the office buildings, etc.

OSA 24

Friday, May 11

Carter Baron @ 16^th street & Colorado Ave, 12:25pm

Tenleytown H4 bus stop, 7:11pm

OSA 25

Saturday, May 12

Malcolm X Park, 12:33pm

OSA 26

Sunday, May 13

Mother’s OSA Booty Shuffle at corner of Georgia & Lamont @ 2:30pm. dancing for all the mothers I know, I do a rotation of give thanks movement prayer for each mother past and present and future. knuckleheads at eddie leonard’s carryout yell across Georgia avenue on mother’s day to a mother of movement: “shake that ass!”. Stupid. stupid stupid. this is the well wishing all mothers have to look forward to on the holy mother-honoring day.

OSA 27

Monday, May 14

Lamont & 11^th streets, 10:54pm, the last hour of the day. singing, chanting spinning dancing with zaccai and bhakti. per-a yelling about the power and magic of black people into the windows of innocent, hard-working, sleeping latino families.

OSA 28

Tuesday, May 15

14^th & Girard at urine-infused basketball court under the feet of old men and alcoholics, 9:05am. the old men play chess, listen to the radio and ask me what I’m doing. they tell me I’m doing a good job.

OSA 29

Wednesday, May 16

10:01pm Kenyon and Park Road, NW, practicing for my show, working on New Orleans dance and Spiral dance

OSA 30

Thursday, May 17

11pm, Kenyon & Park Road, NW, planning sound score for show in my head, practicing different combinations.

OSA 31

Friday, May 18

Open Space Activation @ Potter’s House Show, 8pm

OSA 32

Saturday, May 19

3131 Connecticut Ave, fountain in front of high-rise apartment building & Cleveland Park @ Connecticut & Porter Street, 3:00pm

OSA 33

Sunday, May 20

Artomatic, 8^th floor, 4:00pm

OSA 34

Monday, May 21

Takoma on 4^th Street across from Mamasita’s after Dr. Afrika’s talk, 9:40pm

OSA 35

Tuesday, May 22

waiting for Ellen @ M & 3^rd Streets, NE, 9:45 am

Malcolm X Park, 4:00pm

14^th & Columbia Rd, across from 7-Eleven, 11:30pm

OSA 36

Wednesday, May 23

dancing to laugh counselor Carla’s laughter at Silver Sprung, 5:30pm

Kenyon & Park Rd, 10:00pm

OSA 37

Thursday, May 24

Museum of the American Indian, around 10am

OSA 38

Friday, May 25

Mt. Pleasant Park @ 17^th & Lamont, 9:00am

OSA 39

Saturday, May 26

11^th & Lamont by Arthur’s w/ boxing man in all red, 10:30am

OSA 40

Sunday, May 27

Kenyon & Park Rd, 7:50am

OSA 41

Monday, May 28

National Airport Metro and car rental line, 8:00pm

Kenyon & Park Rd by T-Mobile Store, dancing to Zaccai’s sermon and poetry, 9:30pm

OSA 42

Tuesday, May 29

African American Civil War Memorial, 10:45am

OSA 43

Wednesday, May 30

Platforms at Columbia Heights and Gallery Place Metros, 8:30pm

Union Station, outside main door by the fountain, 9:00pm

(New York, New York for OSA 44-47)

OSA 44

Thursday, May 31

Union Station, gate E18 in Washington, DC, 12:40pm

Javitz Center, in 1E foyer, 5:12pm, New York, New York

OSA 45

Friday, June 1

6^th Avenue between 32^nd & 33^rd Streets, 6:00am

OSA 46

Saturday, June 2

outside Madison Square Gardens @ 8^th Ave & 33^rd St, 7:40am; 1E Foyer inside Javitz Center, 12:35pm and autograph line #29 for Deepak Chopra, 2:00pm

OSA 47

Sunday, June 3

11^th Avenue between 35^th & 36^th Streets across from Javitz Center in New York City, 12:35pm, inside Javitz Center at booth 939, 4:20pm

OSA 48

Monday, June 4

dancing with my shadow on 11^th Street, between Kenyon & Irving outside the soccer field, 7:05pm

OSA 49

Tuesday, June 5

Green Line Metro platforms @ Columbia Heights, Mt. Vernon Square & Southern Ave stations, 3:00pm

OSA 50

Wednesday, June 6

Montgomery Blair High School rehearsing with my students outside entrance, 4:30pm

OSA 51

Thursday, June 7

Kennedy Center by the fountains, 12:40pm

Green Line @ Columbia Heights & Southern Ave. Stations, 7:00pm

OSA 52

Friday, June 8

Lamont Street, slipping and gliding on concrete after the rain, 10:15pm

OSA 53

Saturday, June 9

Park Rd @ 13^th & 16^th Streets, 11:05am

Emergence Community Arts Collective during a film screening about political prisoners, 6:50pm

OSA 54

Sunday, June 10

Dance Afrika DC with men on stilts on 8^th St, NE and with Coyoba Dance Troupe, Dance Place, 4:00pm

OSA 55

Monday, June 11

Bowie Town Center while waiting for table at Olive Garden, 6:00pm and while waiting for ride at Safeway, 9:03pm

OSA 56

Tuesday, June 12

13^th & Park Rd, 9:30am

African American Civil War Memorial, 7:00pm

OSA 57

Wednesday, June 13

Kennedy Center by the fountains, 1:15pm

Busboys & Poets, waiting for Elen’s birthday celebration in bookstore area, 8:30pm

OSA 58

Thursday, June 14

13^th & Park Rd, 7:30pm

OSA 59

Friday, June 15

Freedom Plaza, 14^th Street side, with Zaccai singing and chanting, 8:20pm, “BE WHAT YOU WANT TO BE!”

OSA 60

Saturday, June 16

Lamont Street, with Elen, 10:04pm

OSA 61

Sunday, June 17

Malcolm X Park, drum circle, 5:45pm

OSA 62

Monday, June 18

Park and Kenyon St, 10:20pm

OSA 63

Tuesday, June 19

11^th & Lamont, with Zaccai playing mbira in the circle of water he poured onto the concrete, and Lamont & Sherman Ave, 7:00am

Terrace Level of Kennedy Center at Wyclef concert, 8:00pm

OSA 64

Wednesday, June 20

On Irving between 11^th & 13^th outside locked playground at Harriet Tubman Elementary, 3:00pm

OSA 65

Thursday, June 21

13^th & Park Rd and on Lamont St., with Zaccai playing mbira, 8:00am

Wisconsin Ave and Woodley Rd, 12:05pm

Wisconsin Ave and Fulton St., 3:45pm

OSA 66

Friday, June 22

Lamont Street, dialoguing about life and love with Elen, 9:45pm

OSA 67

Saturday, June 23

St. Stephen Church, Auditorium for Summer Dance Jam Open House, 10:00am

OSA 68

Sunday, June 24

16^th Street at Park Rd (in front of Sacred Heart Church), & Monroe St, & Newton St., 9:30am

OSA 69

Monday, June 25

St. Stephen Church, Auditorium

Choreography Workshop with Fiona, 8:08pm

OSA 70

Tuesday, June 26

St. Stephen Church, Auditorium

Facilitating Family Playground for Summer Dance Jam, 10:15am

Playing “Moving Lightpost” with Hawah, noon

OSA 71

Wednesday, June 27

inside the Lincoln Theatre at free concert by Brother Ah’s World Music Ensemble and Eleggua, back of orchestra level and balcony, 8:00pm

OSA 72

Thursday, June 28

beside and in front of Greater Harvest Baptist Church, 7:30am

Corner of Lamont & Sherman Ave

St. Stephen Church, 6:30pm @ Samaa’s 1^st bellydance class, met Jen