My childhood consisted of always having a baby niece or nephew running around - I am the youngest of four siblings, by 12 years, all of which now have their own children. We were a very loud, creative family, and we like to eat, dance and make up stories or little performances. I always felt enriched growing up in London around so many different cultures - but also somewhat slightly disconnected from any direct heritage.
At school, teachers usually got the Domincan flag wrong, when it was world heritage/ flag day. Either they “couldn’t find my flag” or that they “just got confused.” I never knew anyone who was Latinx or looked like me or my family. I didn’t know where I belonged. My knowledge of my culture and heritage has come from my own endeavours, and searching as I’ve gotten older.
I have inherited my mum’s strength. I saw her make a lot of difficult decisions while I was growing up - the reasons for which only became clear when I was older. She has always inspired me with her courage and kindness. It was because of her I understood that the world is yours, if you choose it to be. Also my dad's stubborn determination (though he might disagree!) The best piece of advice I’ve been given is that “names are the sweetest and most importance sound in any language.” This was in Dale Carnegie’s 'How to Win Friends and Influence People' and honestly this is the most useful advice I could have taken into my career with me.
What matters to me are the BLM movement, along with the senseless murders and harrassment of countless black, brown, queer and trans people in the West. As a queer POC, we move through the world experiencing micro aggressions every single day, and this isn’t a new fight that needs to be fought, but it really brought to my attention how much you can, and should be doing with every last drop of privilege you hold, help pave the way for people who don’t have a voice, people struggling to even achieve basic human rights. When I was younger my parents took me to see Cirque Du Soleil at The Royal Albert Hall. I was still very young, but I remember it like it was yesterday - the lights came up, and I was mesmerised. The whole entire world has transformed into this magical reality, created by dancers, and acrobats, singers, and clowns. It created a feeling of such joy and excitement that stayed with me for months after. I would close my eyes to go to sleep and all I could think about was that magical world. I fell in love with the idea of creating a world out of nothing. During this time I was also doing showcases with my Saturday dance school, for dance and musical theatre. And when the lights came up, I felt that same exhilaration, but even more so, because I was a part of that magical world. It was then I knew that this was something I wanted to do for the rest of my life. I have learnt that it’s okay to try new things, to take on different hats and see what works for you. I started off as a dancer, moved into musical theatre, choreography, and finally acting for stage and screen. I’ve learnt to be proud of my work, to not back down when people joke about how it’s not a “serious career.” Don't minimise your achievements. We've worked hard to get to where we are.
There’s a big stigma in the dance industry against curvier girls, it can be really damaging, and it is something that has caused a lot of body dysmorphia. Because of this I’ve often shrunk back into myself, trying to make myself disappear. I try to remind myself to stand tall in scenarios where I stick out, we deserve to be there as much as the next person. A close friend of mine - Shani Erez, once told me that her mother would often remind her “You’re a tall girl, never slouch.” And it is something that has stuck with me ever since, never shrink.
I once had a meeting with a big agency head who bombarded with instructions on how to change my look and reinvent my brand. I knew immediately that it wasn’t what I wanted for myself. My resistance deemed me unworthy of his time. My mind replayed the meeting for days on end. What did I do wrong? I realised in the end it was nothing. People will try to sway you left and right in this industry, take what they can use, and throw the rest away. That was a massive watershed moment for me, it was then that I started to realise I am allowed to say, that I can be in control of the direction I want to go in - and no one, not even the biggest agency head in the world can tell you otherwise.
A lot of what I do revolves around the fact that I am Afro-Latina. I carry a lot of influence from sayings and traditions brought forward from my mother’s side of the family. My dancer/ choreography style derives from a mixture of Latin dance, the African ancestry of my country, and the Caribbean cultural influence.
I love London for the massive amount of culture in London, and even more so within the creative industry. I miss the pre-COVID Hectic - London, rushing to get from place to place - although I try to not get sucked into this too much, the world is so beautiful, even in areas where it traditionally “isn’t”. I’m so grateful to live in a place with so many other beautiful creatives to learn from. I love those little mutual laughs you have with someone sitting across from you on a train when you share a little moment.
The kindest thing someone has done for me is believing in me, when I didn’t have the strength to believe in myself.
My perfect Sunday in London…early summer, the sun is warm, people are playing music outside, lunches at the open air restaurants or food trucks, walks across London, over tower bridge, down through Bermondsey, finding little parks or quiet gardens to sit in and just breathe, and feel the grass beneath your feet, then finding a quiet place to stroll until the sun goes down.
