Today we’d like to introduce you to Sadé M Jones.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
It started for me on a stage in Brooklyn. I was performing A Raisin in the Sun and was surprised at what came out of me. It was the first time I realized what the arts can do for people. Here I was – just 12 years old – inducing what I would later coin as ‘collective catharsis’ throughout the entire audience. Beneatha’s monologue was so close to how I felt about my own poverty stricken life neglected and abused by my parents and immediate community. And it was so much the norm that healing just by having the words to say out loud actually turned into an organic community healing. In this unknown public school theatre, a mass amount of people were able to release generations of trauma.
And still, it wasn’t enough. My body craved release too. So when I first saw dance on stage (Fosse on Broadway), I literally jumped out of my seat. After the release came this explosive energy that had been suppressed for so long, demanding to be expressed. Alas, the reality of growing up in Brooklyn in the 90s without a home got the best of my creativity (and sanity) for a while. I spent most of my teens managing life without a home or family structure.
It wasn’t until the miracle of college that I got out of Brooklyn to find this blank slate that I could do what I wanted with. And I SLAYED. There was something special about the safety net of being able to do everything all at once. Amongst many things, I combined Social Psychology with Dance and Social Justice. Learning about the mind and body alongside culture and spirit really validated my views about the world. Back home, I was seen as the odd one out because I dared to think beyond the immediate circumstances and conditions. In undergrad, I was free to think, feel and do what I wanted. I utilized the free counseling on campus and paired it with dance to create my own personal somatic therapy practice in the safety of my dorm room. Back in 2005, I had no idea at the time, but I was creating the base of my current business. I started sharing my practice and theories with anyone who’d entertain me. It resulted in the creation of a women’s talking circle, dance performances, the Black Student Union, and an honor thesis. During my senior year, I met Ananya Chatterjea – the founder of Ananya Dance Theatre. My time in Minneapolis taught me to hone my skills and talents into a pedagogy of sorts. She dared me to question what dance was for – aside from entertainment. She demanded nothing less than unabashed authenticity and intention. A true southern Indian, she taught me yoga from a perspective most Americans are unaware of. I was immersed in the culture.
After graduation, I relocated to beautiful Austin and earned my Master’s degree in Social Psychology at UT Austin. And of course – the arts sprouted again. Now with the backing of all the knowledge gained from a second degree. I joined Ballet East dance company shortly after and was there for 10 years under the tutelage of Rudolfo Mendez and Melissa Villarreal who understood my multifaceted approach to life. She nourished and pushed me beyond those limiting beliefs from childhood. And I paid it forward by founding the Fine Arts Programs for black and brown charter schools in East Austin. I nourished and pushed students who grew up just like me. As I grew, so did they.
I realized that what I had developed was just budding. I also realized it was so valuable. I cast a wider net, founding Ashé Arts Collective – a non-profit performing arts organization in Austin. Once I started holding open classes and workshops, the healing began to take over the art. So I created SADEIZM Movement Alchemy as a container for more of the healing aspect and opened it up to all walks of life. I was able to incorporate my trauma-informed yoga certification with psychology and dance for a dynamic practice decades in the making. This landed me in the realm of health and wellness right at the time of the Coronavirus onset. It was a time where people were in dire need of tools to navigate having to sit with themselves.
The somatics and embodiment movement blew up. I retired from teaching and started this business with SXSW 2020 as a launchpad, but it didn’t launch. So I pivoted over to workshops and training in more corporate and leadership arenas to pay the bills. Like most artists, I performed virtually to make ends meet. And in 2022, the world seemed to open back up. So did my relaunch. SXSW rebooked me in 2022 and the clients came. Most of my time now is spent working with private clients through my Chrysalis Transformation Program, wellness workshops with organizations and businesses, and small pods/group classes around the city. Still an artist at heart, I don’t stray too far from the stage. But now, I bring forth collective catharsis through the production side of performance. I am a creative doula and movement director. Since the start of my business in 2020, I’ve worked on over a dozen productions, music videos and other creative projects city and nationwide.
My awards include B. Iden Payne, Austin Critics Table and Austin Examiner. I was featured on PBS Arts In Context as well as in EastSIDE Magazine. My work allows me to present through an array of platforms, such as: SXSW, SixSquare, Women and Their Work Art Gallery, UT Austin, Facebook, Texas Council on Family Violence, Texas Freedom Network, Bastrop County Cares, The Amala Foundation, Salvage Vanguard Theatre, Vortex Theatre, Ground Floor Theatre and The Long Center. Outside of Austin, I’ve presented work at Collective Thread Dance Festival (NYC), LadyFest (NYC), Duke University, University of Louisville (KY), La’Fabrik (Guadeloupe). Recent Movement Direction includes: “devour.”, BLKS, Bright Mother, Amendment and Un Ano. I have had the privilege of working with Magna Carda, Sheridan Reed, Riders Against The Storm, Lantic, Graham Reynolds. My work in the film Dark Matters was recently inducted into the national Criterion Collection.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Accomplishing what I have coming from where I did is a feat. Being WHO I am is the biggest victory though. There were struggles and obstacles along the way. Just being a Black woman in the US with a Diasporic point of view, who is a psychological expert that also performs and is a spiritual practitioner can be a mental overload for most. There is no box to fit me into. I am my own label. I have experienced confusion, fear, disgust but above all – astonishment at the being that I am and how I choose to move through life.
With stereotypes of what people are fed about Black folk and women, I was conditioned from a very young age to be small, apologize for taking up space, and care for people more than myself. Being unapologetically me while allowing space for others to do the same creates uncomfortable situations for environments that are created for hegemony – academia wasn’t exempt. It was the place to be for understanding identity and I wanted to be an identity engineer. I had no idea that academia was not in the star for me. I showed up with my afro and Angela Davis buttons and almost immediately, we all knew this wasn’t a great fit. I went against the grain for a few years before I left with my Master’s and one hell of a pivot. In the arts arena, my talents have been questioned coming from a psychologist. Or in psychology as a practitioner of an African Traditional Spirituality.
It’s this pervasive assumption that in order to be an expert at something – it has to be the only thing you do. We are conditioned to discredit anything that isn’t singular. It’s beneficial for us to adapt to an idea that some people can be a master of many trades. And I have found that movement, psychology, culture and spirituality provide a potent balm unique to the human condition. But we have to be open and committed to allow it.
At the age of 12, I committed to myself that when I finally got the freedom to choose my own life, I would never let it go. And I haven’t yet. This has made for a non-linear path, but I wouldn’t trade it for the world.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
SADEIZM Movement Alchemy provides culturally relevant + accessible healing, meeting people where they’re at and giving them tools to harness the wisdom of their own bodies. My work stems from the core belief that we are all born with innate wholeness. Over time it’s chipped away at or covered up by interpersonal, societal or physical factors – resulting in disconnection and dis-ease in many forms. When we have the space to be aware of the experiences and habits that form our lives, we are able to make choices that lead to freedom and well-being for ourselves and others. This is what alchemy is.
Alchemy got a bad wrap and is just now making a comeback. Its primary science and movement is physics – really. Movement is capable of transmitting information at a symbolic frequency. It is the truth indicator, the bottom line. Our first language and remains our primary form of communication. It’s an extension of society, of culture, and ultimately our personal identities. I like to use movement to influence personal identities and ultimately cultures so they may in turn, enrich societies.
Though healing is universal, everyone has their own access point. Creativity is like the cookie covering the medicine. So no matter my approach or access point, I ask myself: How can what I create be so delectable, people don’t know they are participating in change? How can I make education feel like entertainment? Growth feels like play?”
What do you do, what do you specialize in/what are you known for?
I am an award-winning performing artist, choreographer and director; Certified Trauma-Informed Yoga Facilitator, Social Psychologist, griot and healer. I specialize in mind-body connectivity, cultural discourse, artistic advocacy and identity engineering. My work lives in the interdisciplinary artistic praxis. My expertise includes psychology, dance|theatre, cultural advocacy and the healing arts. My Movement Alchemy is broken up into elements: water, fire, earth, and air.
Water (healing): I am like a translator to help you understand what your body is trying to say when you can’t quite seem to find the words. And finding words allows you to break out of a loop so you can break through, live through, and thrive on. A long-standing client coined the term ‘body whisperer’, but it’s more concrete than that. Using body mechanics, therapeutic practices and yoga – I am able to help people find where emotions, experiences and trauma is held in the body and process it out. Integrative Care Initiative for mind, body, spirit.
Fire (performance): I take the esoteric and make it concrete by, literally, putting it into a physical space. I am known for my performances being a revolutionary experience. As a Movement Director/Creative Doula, I help birth projects in a way that pays close attention to how the body operates in the space. I am typically booked for theatrical productions, music videos and interactive experiences. My work has been heralded as cathartic, genuine, provocative and beautiful.
Earth (education): The severity of this time has led to so many people/organizations trying to shift policy and haven’t shifted in themselves. Historically, institutional oppression has not allowed the space for internal awareness and how we show up in spaces – for ourselves and others. My workshops and training teach how to connect to self and others, sustainably embody the change we are working toward and address otherwise ‘charged’ topics in a heartfelt yet honest way. Being an educator for 12 years, the first thing I thought of during this pandemic was – who’s caring for the children? Growing up in a virtual world, we could already see the decline of interpersonal skills. Now we have prolonged isolation and uprooting tacked on. Parents are occupied and teachers are burned out. So I created SEL Through Movement to be an outside source to provide social-emotional tools for children ages 8-18.
Air (Keynote Speaking): As you have read so far – I have a powerful story to tell! It is my experience that a lot of deep knowledge in health and wellness is coming from only a handful of sources. It is my mission to continue diversifying the sources of knowledge and giving the people who they originate from their credit. Connecting with groups of people of all ages and backgrounds under the common thread of human experience is the most powerful medicine of all. My breadth of knowledge in a vast array of wheelhouses allows me to connect wide and deep. My life experiences give me the power to project positive (and realistic) messages to those who need to hear.
What sets you apart from others?
My practice has been simmering long before the concept of somatics came to solidify. Being an expert in the distinct triad of psychology, movement and energy makes my toolbox expansive beyond the typical somatic offerings. My ability to synthesize on the spot for what each individual or group needs is unique. My reach is dynamic because of the different levels of access points I offer ranging from watching a performance to one-on-one transformation programming.
What are you most proud brand wise?
I am most proud of my doctrine:
Be responsive
Meet people where they are at
Honor each person’s walk
Hold boundaries weaved with compassion and unabashed truth
Shine light on the path
Take the complex and make it concise, not contracted
Teach people to use the ‘internal technology’ themselves
Healing is not just for the broken. Trauma is an experience – not a disease
What do you want our readers to know about your brand, offerings, services, etc?
Whether the access point to Movement Alchemy is through performance, education, healing or a keynote address – my work is centered in the therapeutic power of movement and mind to support deep self-knowing, regulation and care. My brand promotes unapologetic authenticity, radical vulnerability, and innate wholeness. My services are accessible and adaptable to all.
What quality or characteristic do you feel is most important to your success?
What quality or characteristic do you feel is most important to your success? My approach is unconventional in a world where conventional is no longer working. I remember in 2013 when I tried launching these services. It felt like I was offering medicine to people who didn’t believe they were ill. I quickly realized that the doing was way more comfortable than the being. Wellness became just another checklist to manage. What I was offering was something way different than the norm. Now that the world is shifting, I am glad I stayed the course. I believe my success is in offering something new and rooted.
Pricing:
- Chrysalis Transformation Program: $1200-$5000
- Somatic Healing $444
- Private Pods/Groups $1500
- Workshops/Training from $1500
Contact Info:
- Website: www.sadeizm.com
- Instagram: @sadeizmbemoved
- Facebook: @sadeizmbemoved
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkupOvMM2qmHBJwDEvHJsZg
- Other: https://www.pbs.org/video/through-movement-goblbx/
Image Credits
Keilon Lawrence Jeffery Johnson Justin Humphrey Kate Taylor Steve Rogers
