Native Intelligence/Innate Intelligence

Native Intelligence / Innate Intelligence is a dance performance incorporating modern dance, hula, Hawaiian chant, and live music to examine home and belonging. The research for the work began with questions around what it means to be native in a time where this word is often politically charged, and yet everyone is native to somewhere. The piece explores ideas around nature versus nurture: how does what we inherit genetically influence who we become, and how much is shaped by our environment. Within all of these influences, where does instinct come from? Using the metaphor of lei making for the strands of our DNA, the work looks to weave together stories from varied identities as a way to build bridges that celebrate difference and respect unique individuality.

With live music by electric cellist Wytold and Hawaiian chanter/percussionist Patrick Makuakane, scenic design by Brenda Mallory, projection design by Kelly Colburn, lighting by Peter Leibold and costuming by Marques Hanalei Marzan, the work creates a comprehensive picture of the multiplicity of identities we all navigate, and invite audiences to reflect on their perception of Native people, their own identities, and instinct.

Joining long-time company dancers Tiffanie Carson, Abby Farina, and Deontay Gray are new company members Jamison Curcio and long-time friend and collaborator of CKM&A Matthew Cumbie.

Christopher K. Morgan CKM&A, Artistic & Executive Director

Christopher Kaui Morgan (he/him) is a choreographer, performer, educator, facilitator, curator, and arts administrator whose Native Hawaiian ancestry and wide-ranging international performance career influence all aspects of his work.

As a choreographer, he creates performances that synthesize dance, storytelling, original music, and multimedia design to explore identity, social, and cultural issues. Christopher founded dance company CKM&A, in 2011; the same year Dance Magazine profiled him as one of six breakout choreographers in the United States. His choreography has been performed in 22 countries on 5 continents and received support from Creative Capital, New England Foundation for the Arts, National Performance Network, Dance USA, Native Arts & Cultures Foundation, and Western Arts Alliance. In January of 2024 he was named Artistic Director of Malashock Dance, where he began his dance career in 1995.

Christopher served as Vice President of Programming at the Maui Arts & Cultural Center from 2022-23, curating dozens of music, dance, and theater performances annually, overseeing the Schaefer International Gallery, and a robust arts education program that serves thousands of Hawai'i youth, adults, and arts educators. From 2017-21 he served as Executive Artistic Director of Dance Place in Washington, D.C. stewarding the organization through the COVID-19 pandemic and its economic impact by maintaining the entire 23 person staff with no layoffs or furloughs and continuing to pay artists and teachers. He oversaw the curation of 35+ weekends of performances and artist-centered projects annually, a school for youth and adults, a 50 person staff & faculty, and Dance Place’s role as a neighborhood community arts center & nationally prominent performing arts presenter.

Teaching credits include American University (2011-14), the BA and MFA programs at the University of Maryland (2014-17) and residencies at over 20 conservatories and institutions of higher learning in the US and abroad. Since 2006 Christopher has also directed Art Omi: Dance, an annual collaborative residency for international choreographers in New York, shaping the program's unique approach to cross cultural collaboraion and peer-to-peer mentorship.

Known as a thoughtful advocate for cultural integrity, inclusivity, and diverse representation in the studio and on stage, Christopher was nominated by President Joseph R. Biden and confirmed by Congress on March 15, 2022 to be a member of the National Council on the Arts. Christopher serves on the board of the National Performance Network, Association of Performing Arts Professionals’ Equitable Partnership Working Group, and Western Arts Alliance's Advancing Indigenous Performance Committee. He lives in San Diego with his husband, opera director Kyle Lang.

To purchase tickets to see Native Intelligence/Innate Intelligence at the UH Hilo Performing Arts Center, follow our purchase tickets link to the right. Single tickets for this performance will go on sale September 3, 2024.

• Advance Sales/At the Door General: $25/$30
• Advance Sales/At the Door Discount: $20/$25
• Advance Sales/At the Door UHH/HCC Students w/valid ID & Children 17 & Under: $10/$15