Antoine Hunter's

Urban Jazz

Dance Company

October 2026 Newsletter

We sincerely hope you will join us for the inaugural World Deaf & Disabled Dance Film Festival! Below we'll share how to catch these incredible films plus UJDC's recent travels (we were "down under") and ASL-accessible community events.

In this Issue

🌍 Word Deaf & Disabled Dance Film Festival Tickets on Sale now!

🗓️ Upcoming UJDC Events & Tours

✈️ UJDC Down Under & All Over

🧏🏾‍♀️ Deaf Awareness Month

🧏🏽 Accessible Community Events

🥳 October Birthdays

🕊️ Rest in Power

Get your tickets & passes for the inaugural World Deaf & Disabled Dance Film Festival 🎟️ 🌍

[CONTENT DESCRIPTION: A promotional flyer for the World Deaf & Disabled Dance Film Festival. The background is a cosmic scene filled with blue, purple, pink, orange, and gold nebula clouds and stars. At the top center is a glowing rainbow globe wrapped with a golden film strip. Gold and cream text across the globe reads WORLD DEAF & DISABLED DANCE FILM FESTIVAL. At upper left is a red-and-white striped popcorn container with popcorn spilling above it. At upper right is a yellow ticket icon with a black star. Large gold, white, and cream text with black outlines fills the center and lower half of the flyer. A thin gold rounded rectangle frames the Friday and Saturday schedule. Along the bottom is a gold footer containing access and organizational logos, with a QR code at the far right.Text reads:

WORLD DEAF & DISABLED DANCE FILM FESTIVAL

Light Concessions Provided

Tickets $25 per program $80 Saturday day pass

November 6–7

Yerba Buena Center for the Arts

701 Mission St, San Francisco, CA 94103

Friday, November 6

6–9 PM: Evening Dance Documentary & Short Films Program

Saturday, November 7

11:30 AM–1 PM: Morning Dance Documentary Film Program 1

1:15–3 PM: Short Dance Film Program 1

4–6 PM: Short Dance Film Program 2

6:15–8:15 PM: Evening Dance Documentary Program 2

Tickets here: WDDDFF2026.eventbrite.com

The footer includes logos for sign language interpretation, closed captioning, audio description, and wheelchair accessibility symbols, followed by the YBCA, Urban Jazz Dance Company, Borealis Philanthropy, Intersection for the Arts, and FilmFreeway logos. A QR code appears at the bottom right. END CONTENT DESCRIPTION]

CONTENT DESCRIPTION: Still of vlogger April Scott, an Afro-American female (She/Her/Hers) with black curly short hair. She is wearing a pair of silver hoop earrings, a blue short sleeved top and black pants. with a transparent film strip floating off center. Bright pink text appears “World Deaf & Disabled Dance Film Festival 2026. ASL Vlog with April Scott.” The WDDDFF logo in the lower right corner and the interpreter, CC, and UJDC logos in the upper left corner. A red play button indicates a clickable link. END CONTENT DESCRIPTION]

[CONTENT DESCRIPTION: A flyer for the World Deaf & Disabled Dance Film Festival with a colorful cosmic background, the festival globe logo at the upper left, and the Urban Jazz Dance Company logo at the upper right. Text reads: Friday, Nov 6 | 6–9 PM. EVENING FILM PROGRAM. (Subject to Change). Vibrar el arte de sentir. Liquid Tongues. Killed It. Deafness Is Just a Language. TELON. Look Here/Not Here. Film posters and stills appear along the lower portion of the flyer. Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. 701 Mission St, San Francisco, CA 94103. Tickets here: WDDDFF2026.eventbrite.com. A QR code appears at the bottom right. END CONTENT DESCRIPTION]

[CONTENT DESCRIPTION: A flyer for the World Deaf & Disabled Dance Film Festival with a colorful cosmic background, the festival globe logo at the upper left, and the Urban Jazz Dance Company logo at the upper right. Text reads: Saturday, Nov 7 | 11:30 AM–1 PM. FEATURED DOCUMENTARY. Lives Beyond Motion. The Lives Beyond Motion film poster appears in the center, showing layered images of dancers in motion and film festival laurels. Text below reads: Join us for the San Francisco Film premiere! Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. 701 Mission St, San Francisco, CA 94103. Tickets here: WDDDFF2026.eventbrite.com. A QR code appears at the bottom right. END CONTENT DESCRIPTION]

[CONTENT DESCRIPTION: A flyer for the World Deaf & Disabled Dance Film Festival with a colorful cosmic background, the festival globe logo at the upper left, and the Urban Jazz Dance Company logo at the upper right. Text reads: Saturday, Nov 7 | 1:15–3 PM. SHORT FILM PROGRAM 1. (Subject to Change). Girl in the Mirror. UNHEARD. Delusion. Los Portales del Corazón. From Invisible to Invincible. I’M A WARRIOR. Unbound. The Last Dance. Traipse. SMA. Film posters and stills from the program are arranged throughout the lower half of the flyer. Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. 701 Mission St, San Francisco, CA 94103. Tickets here: WDDDFF2026.eventbrite.com. A QR code appears at the bottom right. END CONTENT DESCRIPTION]

[CONTENT DESCRIPTION: A flyer for the World Deaf & Disabled Dance Film Festival with a colorful cosmic background, the festival globe logo at the upper left, and the Urban Jazz Dance Company logo at the upper right. Text reads: Saturday, Nov 7 | 4–6 PM. SHORT FILM PROGRAM 2. (Subject to Change). Handscape. Steps of an Instant. #ThisIsDance ENVISION. Moonlight On Water. Les Chaussures Rouges (The Red Shoes). A Light in the Darkness. AT WATER’S EDGE. Voice of Dance – Tribute to Astad Deboo. Our Circle in the Storm. Here/Not Here. Film posters and stills from the program are arranged along the right side and lower portion of the flyer. Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. 701 Mission St, San Francisco, CA 94103. Tickets here: WDDDFF2026.eventbrite.com. A QR code appears at the bottom right. END CONTENT DESCRIPTION]

[CONTENT DESCRIPTION: A flyer for the World Deaf & Disabled Dance Film Festival with a colorful cosmic background, the festival globe logo at the upper left, and the Urban Jazz Dance Company logo at the upper right. Text reads: Saturday, Nov 7 | 6:15–7:30 PM. FEATURED DOCUMENTARY. ASSOLUTA. The Assoluta film poster appears in the center. The black-and-white image shows an older woman looking upward with blurred movement across the frame and a red form moving through the lower portion. Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. 701 Mission St, San Francisco, CA 94103. Tickets here: WDDDFF2026.eventbrite.com. A QR code appears at the bottom right. END CONTENT DESCRIPTION]

Upcoming Events 🗓️

Join us for the final ASL Open Stage of 2026!

[CONTENT DESCRIPTION: A flyer for ASL Open Stage 2026. The flyer has a bright purple header and footer with a black center section. At the top, white text with a black outline reads: Urban Jazz Dance Company and ASL Love Presents. Below it, large bold white distressed text reads: ASL OPEN STAGE, with 2026 in a white rounded rectangle.

The main flyer text reads: Do you have any ASL poems, songs, short skits, dancers, or jokes to share? Sign up in person! Come enjoy the fun atmosphere, grab a drink, and socialize!

Three event dates are listed. Friday May 22nd and Friday July 17th are crossed out with red lines and marked with green check marks. The remaining date is bold and uncrossed: Friday November 20th | 7pm - 9pm. Bright pink arrows point toward the final date and a large neon-style pink text graphic on the right that reads: LAST OPEN STAGE 2026!

Additional text reads: Address: White Horse Inn, 6551 Telegraph Ave, Oakland, CA 94609. Perfect for: Deaf community, CODAs, ASL Students, and ASL Learners! A bullet list reads: Come feel the Deaf DJ spinning the beats! Free for all! Ages: 21+. Deaf-Friendly Space. Wheel-chair access available. Small purple stars appear near the access notes.

On the right side, white angled words read: Song! Dance! Poetry! near a purple graphic of two hands forming a heart shape. The bottom footer includes text that reads: For more information, follow us on: www.realurbanjazzdance.com and small logos for Urban Jazz Dance Company and ASL Love. END CONTENT DESCRIPTION]

[CONTENT DESCRIPTION: Still shot of Vlogger: April Scott, an Afro-American female (She/Her/Hers) with black curly short hair. She is wearing a diamond shaped creme and black geometric designed earring, a pink top under a black sweater on a vlog opening slide with an asymmetrical black and purple background with transparent overlapping elongated white ovals above April signing ‘applause’ enthusiastically on the right. A large purple arrow pointing toward April in a white box in the lower left corner. White text appears “ASL Open Stage. November 20 | 2026. ASL Vlog with April Scott.” The CC, interpreter and UJDC logos are in the upper left and lower right corners. A red play button indicates a clickable link. END CONTENT DESCRIPTION]

UJDC Down Under & All Over ✈️

[CONTENT DESCRIPTION: Photo of University of Utah Dance students, accompanists, UJDC dancers, and Mx. Hunter posting for a group picture following a master class. They are in a dance studio. Several smiling and signing ILY. END CONTENT DESCRIPTION]

[CONTENT DESCRIPTION: Group selfie of 5 members of UJDC outside of Tanner Dance. END CONTENT DESCRIPTION]

[CONTENT DESCRIPTION: Post-performance group picture of 7 Ululations and Gurgles of the Invisible cast members in costume on stage. END CONTENT DESCRIPTION]

[CONTENT DESCRIPTION: Post-performance bow. Members of UJDC stand on sages along with members Fine Lines Dance stand on a red-lit stage waving hands. Members the audience waving in applause are also visible. END CONTENT DESCRIPTION]

[CONTENT DESCRIPTION: Group photo of 6 UJDC members in front of the International Association of Dance Medicine & Science (IADMS) stage. All are wearing IADMS shirts and smiling. Behind is a screen that reads IADMS 2026, THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!, UCA, Melbourne, Australia. END CONTENT DESCRIPTION]

We were busy in September! Early in the month, we traveled to Utah to perform Ululations and Gurgles of the Invisible at the University of Utah. Our tour also included a master class for university students and a special dance workshop for disabled teens. Thank you to the University of Utah and Guerilla Opera for this opportunity! Just one week after returning to the Bay Area, we hopped on a long flight to Melbourne, Australia, where we performed at the 36th annual International Association for Dance Medicine & Science conference. Mx. Hunter also moderated the panel Embodied Resilience: Reframing Dance Medicine Through Deaf-Led Practice, where UJDC dancers and Assistant Director Zahna Simon shared a powerful conversation about dance, healing, and the experiences of marginalized dancers.

Deaf Awareness Month & Beyond🧏🏼‍♀️

[CONTENT DESCRIPTION: April, Black female with very short dark hair with mini twists, wearing a light blue shirt under a black sweater, and gold hoop earring signing ‘Deaf', with a gray and black border and black text “Deaf Awareness Month ASL Vlog. Featuring April Scott.” The interpreter, CC, and UJDC logos are in the corners. A red play button indicates a clickable link CONTENT DESCRIPTION]

Deaf awareness month may be officially over but we will continue uplifting Deaf voices, artists, and stories today and everyday. Check out April Scott's Deaf Awareness Month Vlog to learn more about #DeafWokeArtisticWellness and all the ways we celebrate BIPOC Deaf communities.

Accessible Community Events 🧏🏾‍♀️

October 16 at 8 PM:

The Fall Show

In a surreal story that’s full of big hearted fun, tender moments, and vibrant expressions of emotional depth, The Fall Show is a visceral exploration of how we relate told through movement and music. ASL interpreted on October 16! Use the code 'ASL' for accessible seating.

[CONTENT DESCRIPTION: Promotional slide on a black background for The Fall Show. At upper left, large teal and gold text reads The Fall Show, with smaller text below: Created by Erika Chong Shuch & Charles Mee. Beneath is a circular illustration divided into teal and gold, showing two large faces in profile with two silhouetted figures falling between them. At the bottom left, gold and teal text reads: ASL Interpretation Provided. Friday, October 16 @ 8 PM. On the right, ASL vlogger Ian Sanborn, a white man with curly hair wears a black shirt and signs toward the camera. Ian is outlined in teal and gold. A red play button indicates a clickable link. END CONTENT DESCRIPTION.]

October Birthdays 🥳

April Scott: 10/6

Rest in Power:

Linda Steele II & Mel Chua

[CONTENT DESCRIPTION: A memorial image honoring Linda Steele II shows two photos side by side. On the left Linda wears a black top and a headwrap looking upward with a calm expression. On the right Linda smiles warmly wearing a white sleeveless top and a green patterned skirt outdoors. Green text reads Rest In Power Linda Steele II of Urban Jazz Dance Company with a white dove graphic..END CONTENT DESCRIPTION]

[CONTENT DESCRIPTION: In loving memory Mel Chua performs onstage in GentriDEAFcation seated in a wheelchair at center stage. Mel wears a red knit beanie a layered vest over a long sleeve shirt and brown pants. Mel turns gently with one arm crossing the torso shaping a grounded intentional movement. The stage is dim with warm lighting and a simple sign reading Mission stands in the background. END CONTENT DESCRIPTION]

Please consider donating to support our Black-led dance company. All donations are tax-deductible donations.

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“If you can’t fly, then run. If you can’t run, then walk. If you can’t walk, then crawl, but whatever you do, you have to keep moving.”

- Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

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