Silvita Diaz Brown
Chicago, IL
Dance
Silvita Diaz Brown is a Mexican/American choreographer, dancer, actor, acrobat, yoga instructor and movement teacher established in Chicago since 2008. She is the founder of Sildance/AcroDanza dance-theatre company. In Chicago her work has been presented and supported by several venues and organizations-including: Chicago Dancemakers Forum, The National Museum Of Mexican Art, Links Hall, See Chicago Dance, The Cultural Center, Cliff Dwellers Foundation The Harold Washington Library, Malcolm X College, Chicago Daztheatre Ensemble among others. Internationally she has been presented at various venues and festivals in Spain, India, Canada, Mexico and the USA. In 2019 Silvita was awarded The Individual Artists Grant from the City of Chicago and The Links Hall Artists CO-MISSION FELLOWSHIP for her project “Leyendas y Realidades.” “Leyendas” was also part of 2020 American Dance Abroad Pitchbook volume VII and Silvita was honored to be nominated for a 3ARTS award in Dance in 2020 and 2021. In 2021 She was awarded a Chicago Dancemakers Forum Digital Dance Grant for her dance film “Visita a Nuestros Muertos” and she has been selected for a Ragdale residency this 2022 where she will dive into the creative process of new work “Ellas y Yo Mexicanas.”
As a dancer/performer, she has worked with independent choreographers, dance companies and theater directors in Egypt, Mexico, Canada and United States. Silvita holds a BFA in Contemporary Dance from UDLAP, Mexico, and a MFA in Theatre with Movement Diploma from York University, Toronto. She also completed two yoga certifications and has trained in partner acrobatics with Acroyoga Montreal and Acro Dutch. Silvita teaches yoga and movement all across Chicago. Her yoga and partner acrobatics practice have been transformative vehicles in her life and have richly influenced her dance practice, creative work, vision, and performance.
Her work: Silvita interlaces dance with acrobatics, sound, and spoken word and video. Using both English and Spanish, she uses her art to celebrate her Mexican heritage and to awaken insights about gender equality and female empowerment . Diaz Brown's interdisciplinary work investigate the self: its desires, fears and realizations and how they intersect with societal norms and expectations. She is also compelled by the ways that mysticism, mythology, and folklore can reveal heroic aspects of our everyday life journeys. Her goal is to discover and articulate deep strengths and insights that inspire audiences to feel empowered in their identities and futures no matter where they come from.