Freelance Choreographer.
Wilma-Emilia specializes in choreographing jazz dance pieces. Is your junior company looking for a new number or do your teachers need inspiration to create jazz dance routines? Contact us now for jazz dance choreography.
“In the creative process I feel it’s essential to connect with your soul before taking any action or making a step. This way whatever you end up doing came from the right place. You need to be able to listen to your heart and take the time to feel what is going on around you. Only by knowing where you are you can communicate with others from a true place. I believe the only way of truly getting through to people is sharing something of yourself and this way you can communicate. Dancing for me is the most natural way to communicate. Sometimes the word performance is misleading to me since it gives out the impressions of portraying something else – I think all performing is honestly sharing the moment with your audience. If you want to be able to communicate you need to start by listening. So, I start by listening to my heart. I think you can only dance with all of your being and that’s why I call everything I do the #danceyourheartoutsessions”
– Wilma-Emilia Kuosa, Jazz Dance Artist
Drag Shows
Wilma-Emilia Kuosa has been choreographing for drag queens such as MissB andSheila and for the Helsinki Drag Battle-concept.
KESYTÖN - Marquise of O - Faster Pussycat! Kill! Kill!
Introduction coming up!
HÄKKIOOPPERA/Cage Opera
Introduction coming up!
Geisha Dance Concert.
Photo by Anita Herkman
Geisha dance concert concept is the second piece by Wilma-Emilia Kuosa and it’s a crossover collaboration between artists. The concept includes a dance performance created by Kuosa and a cappella ambient music by the singer Emma Salokoski. The piece will provide a mirror of the position of women in todays society. The piece will give it’s voice to equal human rights for women.
The piece will be presented along with a photo exhibition presenting dancing and body painting to raise awareness of the position of young women today. Emma Salokoski is giving her voice to the matter by composing all of the music for the piece with only her voice as her instrument.
Here is a piece from Wilma-Emilia’s interview about the piece:
“My inspiration for my second piece the Geisha dance concert came from profound frustration of feeling like nothing more than a tea room entertainer in a man’s world. I got tired of being treated like a young girl in professional context’s. I got sick of making coffee for people who want to abuse my skills and benefit from my talent. I just couldn’t take another meeting where I needed to tolerate comments about my ass before we could start an actual conversation about work. I started feeling like I was the Geisha of my own life. This is why I mirror todays perception of women with the geisha myth. That is how I have felt throughout my career – you better aim to please. I want to speak up for equality.
I started by drawing out these geisha figures in all of the positions I no longer wanted to be put it – silenced, subordinate and objectified. I have been researching human rights violations against women and I let my knowledge inspire me to name the geishas accordingly.
In the piece we create a safe space for people to think about human violations in an immersive art cradle and speak up for humanity.”
Previous performances:
Geisha dance concert premier took place at Kanneltalo on the 5th of September with two other performances on the 7th and 8th of 2018.
Geisha dance concert concept has presented it’s second demo at the Tanssi vieköön! dance fair at Helsinki, Finland, in Messukeskus on the 18.-19.8.2017.
Geisha dance concert concept has presented it’s first part
the living body painting featuring photo exhibition at Asematila, Kylätie 25 A 3 Huopalahti, 31.3.-2.4.2017.
Artists involved:
Concept: Wilma-Emilia Kuosa
Music: Emma Salokoski
Dance: Wilma-Emilia Kuosa
Video materials: Ellen Virman
Body painting: Maaren Heiskanen
Photography: Jean-Claude Néron
#danceyourheartoutsessions
Supported by the Finnish Cultural Foundation, Kanneltalo and the city of Helsinki
Neglected Dance Concert.
Photo by x
Neglected dance concert piece is a performance by two artists concerned with the wellbeing of today’s neglected young adults. It is a duet of a jazz dance artist and of a vibraphone player. The piece gives its voice to a generation consumed by the absence of their community. It addresses the consequences of neglect and the bruises in the futures of this generation. Neglected dance concert piece is screaming for your presence, loving without judging and challenging you to listen to the real survival stories.
What are the effects of neglect?
The Xposure duo has collaborated with the Helsinki Missions Youth Crisis Center. Together they held a free workshop for young adults to enable them to express the experiences of neglect as artistical statements. The material gathered in the workshops is the key ingredient in the making of the piece. It brings their perspective of abuse as a part of a performance that aims to raise conversation over the situation of the young adults today.
Neglected dance concert piece is the first creation by the Xposure duo in four languages. Neglected premiered at the KokoTheater on the 15th of June 2017 with all together 6 performances. Duration 30min.
XposureDuo:
Wilma-Emilia Kuosa is a dance artist from Helsinki, who has specialized in jazz dance during her studies in France at the OFFJAZZ Dance Center in 2010-2013. Kuosa is the hostess and founder of the Jazz&Dance-improvisation club often performed at the Koko Jazz Club. She is a dance teacher and works actively as a freelance choreographer. To Wilma-Emilia her body is an instrument to embrace all of the destinies – the stories in need of light.
Arttu Takalo is a vibraphone player and a composer. His long lasting career has taken him to many different roles in the field of Finnish music. Arttu is well-known as an arranger, composer and producer. Takalo is the undeniable interpreter of the dark waters of the human psyche and his melodies will bring light to the lost souls.
Check out XposureDuo on Facebook
Jazz & Dance.
The club concept brings together the essentials of jazz in an improvised performance between the dancers and musicians built into a dance party with the audience! Jazz&Dance has enjoyed four seasons of pure jazz culture at the Koko Jazz Club where the Finnish world renowned jazz musicians have met the stars of the dance world on stage. The Jazz&Dance concept has been performed with Sami Saikkonen, Jarkko Lehmus, Virpi Juntti, Sami Vallius, Meeri Altmets, Satu Rinnetmäki, Iiro Näkki, Minna Tervamäki, Sini Länsivuori, Alpo Aaltokoski, Reija Wäre and Jyrki Karttunen together with it’s host dancer and creator Wilma-Emilia Kuosa. Each performance has been a true experience of the #danceyourheartoutsessions