Alfonso Cervera (he/him), or sometimes known as Fonzy, introduces himself under the categories of Queer, Mexican American, first-generation, activist, curator, and educator. These are the platforms in which he claims and shares his embodied experience as a professor and artist to newer generations. As a queer first generational Mexicano, Cervera is a choreographer, performer, and a current professor based at the University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign as an Assistant Professor in Dance. He creates works between the borders of Los Angeles, California, and Illinois where he presents experimental dance works that acknowledge the current times we are experiencing globally.
His research and specialization as an independent artist focuses on the conversation between Ballet Folklorico and Afro-LatinX social dances in a contemporary auto-biographical embodied experience that he calls Poc-Chuc. The practice of Poc-Chuc intentionally works to offer new choreographic methods, techniques. and perspectives in theory and physical embodiment. Cervera has been provided opportunities to practice his technique at the Cornish College of the Arts, University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, University of Wisconsin- Milwaukee, Cal State San Marcos (San Diego), Riverside Community College (CA), and Mt. San Jacinto Community College (CA).
His collaborative and independent works have been presented at the Judson Church Movement Research (New York City), Festival of Latin Contemporary Choreographers (San Francisco), Red Cat (Los Angeles), Pieter Performance Space (Santa Monica, CA), Highways Performance Space (Santa Monica), Bushwick Studios (New York), and Lux Boreal’s 4×4 in Tijuana Mexico to name a few. His work has also been presented at numerous festivals, universities, and in non-traditional spaces.
Cervera is also the Executive Director of Show Box L.A, a nonprofit that curates festivals and provides BIPOC artists opportunities to practice their medium. He has also received various grant awards such as the National Endowment of the Arts, Artist Trust Award, a Department of Cultural Affairs recipient, and other awards from various universities and organizations. Cervera is also a collaborator with his collective Primera Generación Dance Collective where they create contemporary works that question and complicate the flux of what it means to be Mexican American.
His research and specialization as an independent artist focuses on the conversation between Ballet Folklorico and Afro-LatinX social dances in a contemporary auto-biographical embodied experience that he calls Poc-Chuc. The practice of Poc-Chuc intentionally works to offer new choreographic methods, techniques. and perspectives in theory and physical embodiment. Cervera has been provided opportunities to practice his technique at the Cornish College of the Arts, University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, University of Wisconsin- Milwaukee, Cal State San Marcos (San Diego), Riverside Community College (CA), and Mt. San Jacinto Community College (CA).
His collaborative and independent works have been presented at the Judson Church Movement Research (New York City), Festival of Latin Contemporary Choreographers (San Francisco), Red Cat (Los Angeles), Pieter Performance Space (Santa Monica, CA), Highways Performance Space (Santa Monica), Bushwick Studios (New York), and Lux Boreal’s 4×4 in Tijuana Mexico to name a few. His work has also been presented at numerous festivals, universities, and in non-traditional spaces.
Cervera is also the Executive Director of Show Box L.A, a nonprofit that curates festivals and provides BIPOC artists opportunities to practice their medium. He has also received various grant awards such as the National Endowment of the Arts, Artist Trust Award, a Department of Cultural Affairs recipient, and other awards from various universities and organizations. Cervera is also a collaborator with his collective Primera Generación Dance Collective where they create contemporary works that question and complicate the flux of what it means to be Mexican American.