Photo caption: Jamal “Litebulb” Oliver
Chicago Footwork Artist Jamal “Litebulb” Oliver has been selected as a finalist for the 2023 National Dance Project (NDP) Production Grant, which is curated by the New England Foundation For The Arts (NEFA). Oliver, founder of Litebulb Production (LB Production) and co-founder of The Era Footwork Collective, was selected as a finalist for his work in producing “New Ghost,” a multimedia dance exhibition that explores the history and development of Chicago footwork through an examination of one of the foundational footwork moves called “the Ghost.”
“Being selected as a finalist for NEFA is an incredible honor,” says Jamal “Litebulb” Oliver, founder of Litebulb Production and co-founder of The Era Footwork Collective. “This opportunity raises awareness and support for Footwork, which will have a significant impact on the Chicago Footwork community and its advancement as a respected American art form.”
“New Ghost” integrates photography, lighting design, film projection, original music, and footwork, as Litebulb encounters legends of footwork – some living, some deceased – who bring him on a journey that charts both the legacy and current innovation of “the Ghost as a dance move.” As part of LB Production’s mission, this dance project uncovers and documents both the forgotten history of footwork and honors how moves like “the Ghost” is part of a living, breathing artform that continues to evolve today. Litebulb Productions most recently released a short documentary titled “My Life at 160,” a short film that depicts Oliver’s journey as a dancer and his work in uplifting the Footwork music and dance community.
This year’s NDP Production Grant received over 150 applications from creatives, artists, and dancers from around the U.S. LB Productions is one of forty (40) organizations that was selected as a 2023 NDP Production Grant Finalist. The NDP Production Grant annually provides a framework of funding to support the creation/development and U.S.* touring/sharing of new dance projects. While there are forty (40) NDP Finalist in 2023 across the country, only twenty (20) projects will receive an NDP Production Grant estimated at nearly $100,000 towards operations and community engagement work. In addition, with the support of NDP founders, the organization will provide $10,000 in funding for NDP Finalists. Winners of the grant will be announced in July 2023. The Era Footwork Collective won the NDP Production Grant in 2020 for its work in producing the award-winning stage show “IN THE WURKZ.” Oliver is one of the few African American dancers from Chicago that has won this award.
“It’s vital that we help shape the Chicago Footwork community,” says Oliver. “As artists, we are responsible for creating new pathways through our individual or group projects and inspiring the youth with creativity and opportunity. I’ve always been an upholder of the form, its origins, and the people who invented and innovated the style before my time, so reaching back and providing an opportunity to those before us who chose to spread their knowledge and skills for the next generation of Footworker’s is what “New Ghost” is all about. There is space for everybody.”
