¡A Bailar! Cultural Preservation in the Face of Climate Change

Ashton Lites, also known as Stiggity Stackz, is regarded as one of Boston's most renowned veteran freestyle dance specialists with 15+ years of intensive training in many different cultural and concert dance forms including Krump, Popping, Locking, House, Hip Hop, Ballet, Tap, Jazz, Modern, Afro-Haitian, and beyond. Stackz is an experienced event organizer, instructor, choreographer, and is well-traveled in the underground Hip Hop competition circuit. Currently, he runs a range of community-based dance and creative entrepreneurship development programs, events, and festivals through his organization StiggityStackz Worldwide, in partnership with notable organizations such DS4SI, The Boston Ballet, Red Bull, the Museum of Science, Artists for Humanity, Harvard, The Mass Hip Hop Archive, and more. 

Stackz is dedicated to supporting and centering his community in achieving artistic excellence, economic sustainability, and historical recognition with specific care and attention to Black creatives across generations and  creative outlets.

Marissa Molinar is a contemporary dancer, arts administrative activist, and founder/director of Midday Movement Series, a grassroots initiative cultivating a new generation of dance leaders. She holds a Bachelors in Environmental Science from Brown University with a focus in Urban Conservation and Environmental Justice, and she holds a certificate in Contemporary Dance from the Professional Training Program at Gibney Dance in New York, NY. ​Marissa has worked as a consultant with Urbanity Dance, the Next Steps for Boston Dance program, Global Arts Live, and more.

As a former Mexican Folkloric and Bharatanatyam dancer and late-comer to contemporary dance, Marissa is passionate about using dance as a tool for social storytelling and cultural transformation. She is a former member of Nathan Trice / RITUALS Dance Theater in Brooklyn NY, is a proud founding member of Ruckus Dance directed by Michael Figueroa, and recently performed with Laila Franklin, Boston Dancemakers Resident at the Boston Center for the Arts.

Cristela Guerra is a senior arts and culture reporter at WBUR in Boston, a queer Panamanian journalist of color, and a moderator who facilitates and leads conversations around race, identity, and equity. Before working in public radio, she was a newspaper journalist for more than a decade, working at The Boston Globe and The News-Press in Fort Myers, Florida. She is one of 24 journalists from around the world selected for the 2024 class of the Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard University. Her work received a regional and national Edward R. Murrow Award in 2014 and most recently received another regional Edward R. Murrow in 2023 as part of “Continuing Coverage” for her work at the US-Mexico border on the journey of Venezuelans migrants. She was chosen as a 2019 Latina Leader by Amplify Latinx and selected by YW Boston to be inducted into its 2023 Academy of Women Achievers and receive the organization’s Sylvia Ferrell-Jones Award. 

Cristela Guerra is the vice-president of the New England Chapter of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists, vice-chair of the board at RAW Art Works, and a board member at The Jar.

"Lady" Eli Pabon is a multi-talented dancer, singer, lyricist, educator, percussionist, and events curator. Born and raised in Boston to a Puerto Rican family of performers, musicians, and educators, she grew up learning the importance of music and dance in health, education, healing, resistance, and community-building. Eli has continued her family legacy by sharing her experiences and love through teaching dance, percussion, and song to others, as well as performing and producing arts programming and events locally, nationally, and internationally as an active artist collective member of MetaMovements and founder of BOMBAntillana. For more information, email epabon@metamovements.net

Amanda Bravo (she/ella) is a Nuyorican, multi-passionate, creative, clinical mental health counselor and expressive arts healer specializing in dance/movement therapy (DMT). She draws on her cumulative experiences from years of work in various fields, including a BA in Studio Art, a Dual Master’s degree in clinical mental health counseling, and board certification in DMT. Her central passion revolves around promoting representation and equity in the arts, with a primary focus on uplifting the voices of BIWOC and dis/abled individuals, particularly in narratives related to health.

Amanda embodies artistry as a catalyst for profound transformation and healing. Through various mediums such as resin work, drawings, paintings, weavings, embroidery, mixed media, and a future children's book, her work emphasizes the vital role of art in fostering mental well-being and personal purpose. In her art (Art With Intuition), Amanda strives to capture the complexities of societal issues, personal growth, and the profound impact of self-expression. Her art reveals the innate goodness and untapped potential within each soul, empowering positive change through creative exploration.

Art With Intuition has participated in numerous markets and events. Highlights include vending at C. C. Lowell’s Art Markets, organizer and community expressive arts facilitator at the Museum of Science’s SubSpace series: ¡A Bailar!, artist for South Boston Waterfront Utility art Program: “There is Creativity in Us All”, community arts facilitator at the “Community Art Healing'' series in collaboration with Boston at-Large City Counselor Julia Mejia and The Community Builders, and featured international artist at “Chronic Illness: A creative exploration” at Lexicon Cultural Center in Dublin, Ireland.

Social Media: @ArtWithIntuition on IG Website: Linktr.ee/ArtWithIntuition

Boston based DJ La Nena is all about creating a feel good atmosphere at every event she has the opportunity of playing music for. Growing up in a household deep rooted in Puerto Rican culture and with a mom who breathed and lived Latin music, DJ La Nena grew up to love and appreciate genres like salsa, bachata, and merengue. It was this first love of music and the lack of Latino representation she noticed in the city’s nightlife that drove her to buy her first mixer and teach herself the art of mixing beats. Now with over a decade of experience, her client list ranges from private events, boat cruises, weddings, and nightclubs. “For me is all about making sure people have a good time and leave the dance floor happy having danced to their favorite song.”