top of page
Search

Dance Podcast Episode 155: Building Community Through Dance, Jennifer Mabus

#155: In this episode of the Dance Behind the Screen Podcast, host Martheya Nygaard Scott sits down with Jennifer Mabus, choreographer, performer, educator, and founder of Grackle Dance Collective, to explore what it means to create dance rooted in community, empathy, and human connection.

Jennifer shares how immersive and site-specific performance transformed the way she thinks about the relationship between artists and audiences. From taking over a historic home to creating work in a funeral home and skate park, she reflects on the power of moving dance beyond traditional performance spaces and inviting audiences to become part of the experience.


The conversation also explores trust, consent, and collaboration in the creative process. Jennifer offers practical advice for performers: ground yourself, know and communicate your boundaries, and trust your instincts as a creative artist.

Jennifer also takes us behind the scenes of Grackle Dance Collective, a platform created to support Texas artists, amplify local voices, and bring dance directly into communities. She discusses the importance of listening, holding space, and thinking about community care as an ongoing practice rather than simply building an audience.


Finally, Jennifer reflects on building a sustainable life in dance. There is no single path—or timeline—for success as an artist. The episode closes with an optimistic look at the North Texas dance community, where established organizations and emerging voices are increasingly connecting, collaborating, and pushing the boundaries of performance.


 




Chapters

00:00 Meet Jennifer Mabus + Flash Four

03:00 A Human Future for Dance

04:00 Discovering Immersive Performance

08:00 Breaking the Barrier Between Artist + Audience

11:00 Creating Site-Specific Dance Experiences

15:00 Trust, Consent + Creative Ownership

17:00 Advice for Performers

19:00 Founding Grackle Dance Collective

22:00 Community Stories + Collaboration

24:00 Taking Dance to a Skate Park

29:00 What Does Community Really Mean?

32:00 Community Care + Holding Space

37:00 Building a Life as a Dance Artist

40:00 There Is No One Path to Success

43:00 Letting Go of the Artist Timeline

45:00 The Future of Dance in North Texas

49:00 Connect with Jennifer + Grackle Dance Collective


Jennifer Mabus

Jennifer Mabus is a Dallas-based choreographer, performer, and educator whose work blends emotionally driven dance, kinesthetic empathy, and immersive/interactive theater. She has performed with renowned choreographers and companies including Robert Battle’s Battleworks, Amy Marshall Dance Company, Heidi Latsky, Takehiro Ueyama, Bruce Wood Dance Project, NobleMotion Dance, and Dark Circles Contemporary Dance. Her choreography has been presented at national festivals and commissioned by companies such as Bruce Wood Dance Dallas, Avant Chamber Ballet, Houston Contemporary Dance, METdance, and Contemporary Ballet Dallas, as well as by the Foundation for Modern Music and Windsync ensembles. She has served on the faculties of Texas Christian University, UT Dallas, University of St. Thomas (founding program chair), Booker T Washington HSPVA, Interlochen Arts Academy, Texas Ballet Theater, Houston’s HSPVA, and Sam Houston State University. She has been an artist in residence with Arts Mission Oak Cliff, Agora Artists, Dance Source Houston, Noble Motion Dance and Rice University.


Mabus is currently building Grackle Dance Collective, a collabortive dance company that aims to create performances that move between the intimate and the expansive—blending collaboration, immersive theater, and the transformative power of dance. Mabus holds a BFA from Southern Methodist University and an MFA from Sam Houston State University. She is also a yoga teacher, Argentine tango dancer, and a dedicated “cat lady,” with a strong interest in Dance Movement Therapy.


Connect with Jennifer

Instagram: @jenmabus | @grackle.dance

Website: jennifermabus.com 



This season of the Dance Behind the Screen Podcast is supported in part by the Moody Fund for the Arts and our generous individual Season Sponsors, Dexter & Jenel Evans and Helen & James Gallas.







Comments

bottom of page