Ajayi Dance LLC
create. connect. cultivate.
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FREE
Donations accepted toward the space and the work
Location:
The Dance Hub
4700 Lakeside Ave E, 4th Floor
Cleveland, OH 44114
Presenting Artists and the works in progress you will see: Ajayi Dance - Selected excerpts of "Gentle Men Let Us Rest." This work in progress has emerged from research and community conversations on the topic of patriarchal masculinity and the social, cultural, and personal impact it has had on individual experiences with relationship to self and others. Get a sneak peek at the process, talk with the artists, and provide valuable feedback to inform the future work which will be included in "Half the Sky" at Playhouse Square June 19-21. The Movement Project - Nostalgia, utopia, escapism. Our brains often process the past through rose-colored glasses while imagining a fantastical future that feels better than our present. This fascination with idealism has become intertwined with the digital world. When we recall memories, the mind subtly reshapes and polishes them, altering events until they resemble a dream. This piece brings that internal dreamworld to life, placing the shifting landscape of memory and imagination before the audience. What do our dreams look like when brought before the truth of reality? TMP photo credit: Black Valve Media
June 19-21, 2026
Playhouse Square
Half the Sky is a curated evening of contemporary dance works that explore themes of individual and collective identity and responsibility. The program features a cast of 18 local dancers representing the depth of Cleveland’s artistic landscape and includes new and recent works by Melissa Ajayi including AGAIN and AGAIN and (2025), and selected excerpts of Gentle Men Let Us Rest (in progress). Ajayi Dance is also excited to invite guest artist Annika Sheaff back to Cleveland to set her work Time is a Mountain (2025) on the Ajayi Dance artists and to perform Wish you were here (2021) by Monica Bill Barnes. Ajayi Dance is offering four opportunities for men (ages 18+) to connect with other men in the community and take part in a discussion about masculinity in our society and culture, facilitated by Dr. Will Ajayi, PhD and hosted by our generous community supporter, Master Marr’s Taekwon-do. ​ Each session will center on a different topic or question related to masculinity. Participants may participate in any or all sessions. Refreshments will be provided! The ultimate goal of these discussions is to inform the creative process of a future public performance by Ajayi Dance; participants will not be asked to perform. Participants will be credited for their insights, perspectives, and contributions and will have the option to remain anonymous.
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Ajayi Dance is currently seeking volunteers to take part in a series of focus groups to inform the research and development of a bold new contemporary dance work examining masculinity. As part of the creative process, choreographer and director, Melissa Ajayi is interested in hearing from men in our community about their experiences with and understanding of masculinity in their lives: how it benefits them, how it might inhibit them, and how they see themselves fitting into this construct? Ajayi Dance is offering four opportunities for men (ages 18+) to connect with other men in the community and take part in a discussion about masculinity in our society and culture, facilitated by Dr. Will Ajayi, PhD and hosted by our generous community supporter, Master Marr’s Taekwon-do. ​ Each session will center on a different topic or question related to masculinity. Participants may participate in any or all sessions. Refreshments will be provided! The ultimate goal of these discussions is to inform the creative process of a future public performance by Ajayi Dance; participants will not be asked to perform. Participants will be credited for their insights, perspectives, and contributions and will have the option to remain anonymous.
About the Facilitator
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Dr. Will Ajayi is the Head of Wellbeing at Netflix, with prior roles as Organizational Well-Being Consultant and Positive Psychology Program Manager at Google. He also served as a Mental Health Specialist at YouTube, supporting teams exposed to sensitive content and developing well-being programs in partnership with executive leadership to help foster a culture of well-being and resilience from the top down. Prior to his work in the tech/media industry, Will worked in healthcare (VA), private practice, and the criminal justice system (Federal Bureau of Prisons). Originally from Nigeria and raised in Cleveland, OH, he earned his Ph.D. from Kent State University, specializing in psychological & forensic assessment. A Clinical Psychologist by trade, Will has spent the majority of his career and clinical practice exploring ways in which we can collectively make the experience of seeking and receiving mental health support a stigma free, open, and fulfilling experience.