Oct 73 min read

Baltimore Choreographer “Puts on the Sleeves of Love”

Morgan Sledge is a dancer, teacher, and choreographer with strong artistic and personal roots in the Baltimore area. An alum of the Morton Street Dance Center, the Carver Center for the Arts, and Morgan State University, she draws on multiple disciplines to create work with significant emotional content. Her 2024 work “The Sleeves of Love” will be performed November 3 at the Baltimore Museum of Art as part of Full Circle Dance Company’s show “From the Source of Our Power.”

Q. When faced with the theme of power, why did you decide to turn to love?

Amidst the sudden death of my closest friend, I was confronted with competing emotions of sadness, fear, love, confusion, and even regret. Being that the cause of death was suicide, questions such as, “Did she know how many people loved her?”, “How could she do this to the people she loved most?”, and “How many times did love keep her alive before her final day?” were paddling around in my head. As I powered through the stages of grief with my family loving and supporting me, I was reminded of the complexity and power of love as it is explained in 1 Corinthians 13:2-8.

“If I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing. Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.”

With this message, I was reminded that even amid trial and hardship, love is the most powerful force. Love is the reason that we can continue to live even with the scars we have. Love is the reason we can forgive others and choose joy even in the rain. Love is the key to our existence because it is sacrificial in nature, and it requires that we give without asking for anything in return.

My piece serves as a reminder that love is the most powerful force on planet Earth and if we intentionally utilize its power, we can effect change as we empower and uplift our community. Everyone wants to be loved, but to give love is even more important because love is infectious and truly unstoppable.

Q: This is your first work created for Full Circle. What was the process like?

The process of creating this work was absolutely amazing. I appreciate the challenge to create within a theme because it allows my artistry to develop and pushes me to think outside of the box. When I first came up with the idea for my piece, I searched for music that spoke to the theme of “The Power of Love” while also catering to the dynamic nature of my ideas for the work. After landing on the poem “Put on the Sleeves of Love” by Sonia Sanchez, “Till that Day” by Emma Nissen, and “Can You Hear the Music?” by Ludwig Görenson, I was ready to set my ideas on the dancers. Initially, my piece had a cast of 7 dancers, including a strong male lead, however, over the course of the rehearsal process, my cast shifted to 6 female dancers. This encouraged a shift in the storyline of the piece, but I was excited to continue to sculpt the piece as changes happened.

I like to think of my choreographic process as one similar to sculpting. I start with a broad idea and as dancers interpret the movement and I see the way their bodies relate to the movement and each other, I begin the process of refining the movement and intention.

Q. What do you hope members of the audience walk away with from your piece?

I hope audiences are challenged to redefine how they love others, even those who are not close relatives or love interests. I hope they reflect on the impact of their own love and their responsibility to their community. And I hope audiences walk away with an understanding of the complexities and depth of love and its necessity within our community.