Welcoming John-Mario Sevilla
as part of Luna's leadership team
Luna Dance Institute announces the hiring of John-Mario Sevilla to join the leadership team during a dynamic time of growth and change. As Luna turns 30, purchases a permanent home, and transforms its vibrant programs into a new Creativity Center in southwest Berkeley, Sevilla’s fresh perspectives, grounded in decades of experience, will lead the organization to a new future.

Sevilla hails from Maui though New York City (NYC) where he directed and produced programs at the historic Harkness Dance Center at the 92nd Street Y (92Y). As a teaching artist, he has taught to all ages and levels, conducted research and assessment, and initiated early childhood arts curricula with the NYC Department of Education. Prior to 92Y, he was the Director of Education at New York City Ballet overseeing residencies at more than 300 public schools.
As a dancer, Sevilla performed in the dance companies of Pilobolus, Alison Chase, Murray Louis and Alwin Nikolais, Anna Sokolow, and his choreography has appeared at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, LaMama, Judson Church, Dance Theatre Workshop, and 92Y. He is a hula student of Kumu Hula Hōkūlani Holt (Pāʻū O Hiʻiaka) and Kumu Hula June Ka‘ililani Tanoue (Hālau I Ka Pono), and a Philippine folk dancer.

Luna invites the public to meet John-Mario Sevilla at upcoming anniversary events: a Community Gathering and Picnic on May 28th at Tilden Park and a fundraising Soirée on June 2nd at the David Brower Center. 
A message from John-Mario
Like so many, I am rising from the current crises of our time and recognizing how, yet again, such moments of flux can inspire healing, transformation, renewal and enlightenment. To a lesser degree, we experience these kinds of moments in life a lot. We are shaken and knocked off-kilter by a daunting challenge or unexplainable mystery, and yet we are able to resolve the matter, gain balance, move forward. The process may require curiosity, resilience, ingenuity, and the community of other problem-solvers and elders. The answer may arrive through reflection and imagination. We may have to step back, pause and breathe for a moment. We may have to acquire new skills and techniques. Ultimately, the resolution can feel liberating and powerful. While all of this is awesome and true, the conversation can also sound jargony…edu-speak. Pedagogical. Pat.
From afar, I recognized how Luna communicated its take on dance and education with a different kind of language and lilt. Luna mixed in other words–like “soul,” “love,” and “policy”–and, long before the rest of the field, infused this vocabulary with intentions of diversity, equity and inclusion into a declarative stew it called a Theory of Change. As a new member of the team, I am enjoying the bold taste and fascinating texture of this mélange. I am encountering how this vision is interrogated and embodied with rigor, fulsomely and collectively. And I am eager to engage the rest of Luna–as it, too, emerges from our moment of chaos, adapting to an altered world, soon to be perched in a new, permanent site in Berkeley!–soar and dance into action, impacting the neighborhood and broader community through its next, resplendent iteration.
I look forward to meeting you all very soon.

John-Mario
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