Restless.Native.Dance - Profile: Tamieca McCloud

Tamieca was born and raised in Newark, NJ, where she spent the many years studying at the School of the Garden State Ballet, and she was also a part of the Newark Youth Dance Ensemble. She suspended her training in high school; taking the opportunity to realize her appreciation for other disciplines - especially team sports, literature and visual arts. In 1990, she attended Rutgers University, where she resumed her dance education and performed extensively within the Dance Department at Mason Gross School of the Arts, as well as with New Jersey based Acrodanse Theatre under the direction of Michael Gary. She completed a dual major in the studies of Dance and Literature, gaining her Bachelor of Arts in 1994.

Tamieca has been performing professionally since 1995, when she began touring with Pilobolus Dance Theater. She has been choreographing since 1992. Her work has been performed at Rutgers University (NJ), Mulberry Street Theater (NYC), the Thelma Hill Presents series Toenails of Steel and Ruby-Red Text (NYC), Judson Memorial Church (NYC), The Bridge for Dance Uptown Performance series (NYC), the Dancers Responding to AIDS Remember Project (NYC), the CEC Meeting House (Philadelphia), and in Bermuda as a guest of the National Dance Theater of Bermuda.

In addition to her work as a dancer and choreographer, she has tried her hand at acting and served as a high school teacher at CedarBridge Academy in Bermuda. She also studies Capoeira, Tae Kwon Do and photography and works as an IT professional. Her primary focus is on the development of her own choreography through Restless.Native.Dance.

She does all of this through, and therefore would like to acknowledge, the love and support of Tania, Carol, JuWan, Colin and other family and friends. She also thanks those she doesn't know personally, but who have shown their support by attending performances and sharing their thoughts on the work.