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S. Ama Wray, MA, PhD

Irvine

S. Ama Wray, PhD


Dr. S. Ama Wray is a Professor of Dance at the University of California, Irvine, engaging as a teacher, choreographer, director and of scholar creativity and improvisation. A TEDx speaker, also invited to present at the United Nations, Princeton, Harvard, The Institute for Advance Studies and Dance USA, she has similarly taught dance for prominent institutions, including the Martha Graham, The Royal Ballet and Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre. She began her career as a dancer with the London Contemporary Dance Theatre and later with Rambert Dance Theatre. Dr. Wray founded and directed JazzXchange Music and Dance Company, in which she collaborated with artists including Wynton Marsalis, Bobby McFerrin, and Derek Bermel. Beyond dance she has directed theatrical plays by the award-winning playwright Mojisola Adebayo – Muhammad Ali and Me; Moj of the Antarctic and Stars and Afrofuturist Space Odyssey. S. Ama received her Ph.D. from the University of Surrey, where she developed her theory and practice of Embodiology®, a movement practice that cultivates innate intrapersonal, social and creative intelligence through the wisdom of the body. The practice leads to cognitive, social and emotion regulation and ultimately human flourishing. Her scholarly fieldwork is rooted in Ghana’s Kopeyia Village, where she centers artists and community members as the carriers of wisdom. Her monograph Embodiology: From Ancient Movement and Music Practices to Phenomenal Being is forthcoming on Routledge Press, and her teacher training program to extend Embodiology’s reach is in its 3rd year. New clients include: NYC Public Schools, LA Unified Schools District, University of North Carolina, Charlotte and the University of California - Office of the President. Stemming from this, during the pandemic ViM™ - Vitality in Motion - was created for California’s Susan Samueli Integrative, Health Institute, supporting everyday people transform their indoor isolation into spaces of ‘co-liberation’. This virtual iteration continues as JiM™ - Joy in Motion - welcoming more people, new to its sensory and cognitive poetics. The breadth of her work also encompasses media art, as a Fellow of the National Endowment for Science Technology (UK’s version of McArthur Genius Award) her digital explorations led her to create performances intertwined with technology; Texterritory—a live, interactive cellphone-based performance –was both award-winning and the first of its kind. These innovations continue through AI 4 Afrika, an initiative she co-founded with choreographers, data scientists, scholars, and entrepreneurs in 2020.

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