Elaine Ortiz uses dance to bring awareness to societal issues through a social justice lense. Their choreography incorporates complex rhythmic patterns and dynamic movement qualities. They showcase their passion for social justice and dance through the development of artistic activism by calling attention to several oppressed groups. Ortiz uses various dance vernaculars in their choreographic explorations such as hip-hop, Latinx, modern, jazz and contemporary.
Ortiz is senior in the Dance program at Springfield College minoring in Social Justice, Y Professional Studies and Business Management. They have worked with the Trisha Brown Dance Company, Monica Bill Barnes, Jason Aryeh, Sarah Zehnder, Tara Murphy, and Andrea Vazquez-Aguirre Kaufman. During their time at Springfield College, they have developed technique skills in jazz, modern, ballet, hip-hop and West African diasporic dance as well as participated in the touring Dance Repertory Company. As a company member, they have also had the opportunity to teach in Springfield Public Schools in both middle and high school levels. Ortiz has also partook in the company as a rehearsal assistant and community outreach liaison. During their time at Springfield College, Ortiz was able to take part in the American College Dance Association or otherwise known as ACDA’s regional conference and performed a piece by a fellow peer, Maria Jose Jaramillo, called I Was Here. They have engaged as well in the National Dance Education Organization Conference (NDEO) and Beyond the Proscenium.
As a student, they have been very involved on campus. They have worked extensively with Springfield Colleges Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion - formerly known as the Office of Multicultural Affairs. Ortiz participated in their Cultural Connections Pre-Orientation Program their first year and then went on to take the positions of Cultural Connections Leadership Program (CCLP) Leader and Coordinator. Through this experience they have had the opportunity to develop professional skills in management, programming, negotiation and collaboration. They have taking part in the well-known conference called IMPACT National Conference through presenting a panel on Power, Privilege, Pandemic: CuLtural Constructions of Beliefs and Behaviors and Building Community during a Global Pandemic. They have also assisted in SEAT at the Table conference which was created by fellow peer and colleague Charisse Del Vecchio as well as the Annual Women’s Tea, Taste Around the World, Feminist Talks, Virtual Hip Hop Summit for Change: Social Justice Leadership Summit and Cultrual Appropriation Program. Ortiz has developed programs of their own such as John Leguizamo’s Latinx History for Morons Screening and End of Semester De-Stress Night to name a few. Ortiz has also participated in social justice work outside of the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion through the Latinx Student Organization as co-founder and president.
Throughout their years at Springfield College, Ortiz has placed choreography on their fellow peers. Some of their works include Comenzando and Juegos de Ninos (work-in-progress). They are in the process of developing a senior showcase which is scheduled to take place in April of 2022 which is in collaboration with their fellow senior Cynthia Duran. In this show, they are exploring themes of ableism, gender, otherism, and mental health.
