Sean Avery

1042 W. Taylor St., Phoenix, AZ 85007

bookingseanavery@gmail.com

623-238-9148

ARTIST STATEMENT

Sean Avery (he/they) is a rapper, poet & teaching artist. Their work integrates rap music, poetry, and theater to explore how Black masculinity is projected onto their body. They strive for an authentic performance of self, in hopes that they’ll inspire others to examine their own identities. 

EDUCATION

University of Madison-Wisconsin May 2016

• Bachelor of Arts in English with an Emphasis in Creative Writing
  • Certificate in African-American Studies

FACILITATION, TEACHING ARTIST, AND LEADERSHIP EXPERIENCE 

South Pointe High School July 2017 -May 2019

Creative Writing Teacher, English Teacher, Credit Recovery

• Plan weekly lesson plans based on Arizona ELA state standards
• Instruct 1-2 classes Mon-Fri (depending on the quarter)
• Grade & assess student assignments
• Coordinate student showcases and performances 
• After-school tutoring for both informational and creative writing

Childsplay: Theatre for Kids & Families May 2017-Now 

Summer Academy Teaching Artist (Seasonal Position)

• Planned weekly lesson plans for youth based on performance objectives 
• Directed youth theatre presentations
• Provided childcare for youth at the beginning and end of each day
• Co-taught theatre activities with other Teaching Artists and summer interns 

Phonetic Spit: Literary Arts, Youth Development & Social Justice Programming Sept. 2016 – May 2019

Lead Teaching Artist, Workshop Facilitator 

• Instructing creative writing and performance workshops for high school and junior high school students
• Artistically directing and/or performing in a yearly Hip-Hop theater festival
• Devising arts programming aimed to interest and retain youth poets

P.E.O.P.L.E. Program Middle School Spoken Word Instructor June – July 2016

Teaching Artist, Workshop Facilitator

• Wrote three-week curriculum with published poems, Spoken Word, and Hip-Hop music/lyrics
• Facilitated and encouraged a safe space for youth to explore their personal narratives and workshop student’s writing five days a week
• Collaborated with other three-week P.E.O.P.L.E. Teaching Artists on multidisciplinary workshops
• Developed a culminating performance to showcase student’s creative work on July 8th 

 

Whoopensocker Arts Outreach and Education Company Jan. – Mar. 2016

Teaching Artist

 

• Taught theater and writing to a 3rd grade Spanish immersion class at Sandburg Elementary

• Collaborated on weekly lesson plans with a cohort of teaching artists

• Facilitated individual writing, group writing, and performance activities 

 

• Developed student’s skits and short stories over a three month period

DEVISED THEATER & HIP-HOP THEATER EXPERIENCE 

Futuros Unidos + Q.Y.A.S. (Queer Youth Art Showcase)

Date: April 27th, 2019

Performance Workshop Facilitator & Performer 

Run Time: 60 min workshop & 20 min rap + spoken word performance

Location: Thornhill-Lopez Center on 4th, Tucson, AZ

Workshops centered in justice, poetry and performance; featuring art, poetry and drag from LGBTQ+ youth under 21. 

skinnyblk (album & play) at the Chicago Hip-Hop Theater Festival 

Dates: Jan. 17th 2019 & Jun. 9th, 2018

Writer, Performer & Co-Director

Run Time: 30 mins (shortened version)

Location: Uplift Community High School & Clarendon Park, Chicago, IL

skinnyblk is a multimedia journey through Avery’s life that celebrates being both Black and gender non-binary by confronting the stigmas of toxic masculinity and race through interdisciplinary performance art. Using anime, superheroes, dance, rap, and spoken word to challenge the lines separating “boy” and “girl” as Avery struggles to discover their authentic self.

skinnyblk (album & play) debut

Dates: Oct. 28th, 27th, 21st, 20th, 2018

Writer, Performer & Co-Director

Run Time: 45 mins

Location: Empty Space Theater (ASU Media & Performing Arts Building), Tempe, AZ

Jeff Chang in Conversation: ‘From Hip Hop to Policy Making’

Date: Sept. 11th, 2018

Performer & Panelist

Run Time: 30-45 mins

Location: Civic Space Park/ A.E. England Building, Phoenix, AZ

Join the Hip Hop Cluster and the Center of Race & Democracy for a performative panel discussion and movement facilitation on the relationship between Black Lives Matter, Hip Hop and art-making at the intersections of race, policy-making and social impact.

 

Soul Justice Project Presents: Pendulum

Dates: May 19th, 18th, 2017. 

Writer & Performer

Run Time: 60 mins

Location: Mesa Arts Center, Mesa, AZ

An evening length theatrical performance that navigates the lives of 7 Americans living in the margins of Democracy post-election night. Pendulum is an interdisciplinary production that blends the aesthetics of Hip Hop, multimedia, song and dance with a goal of creating dialogue that cuts through political rhetoric, and invites constructive discourse. 

The Election Monologues 

Date: Jan. 20th, 2017

Writer, Performer

Run Time: 60 mins

Location: Empty Space Theater (ASU Media & Performing Arts Building), Tempe, AZ

On inauguration day in the United States, an event of resistance and unity will take place in 12 cities across the country, bringing together people to share their personal stories about the 2016 election. Hear original monologues by a group of 8 participants from across the Valley, offering different perspectives on the 2016 presidential election.

MUSIC & VIDEO PROJECTS

 

• skinnyblk

 

• • • Multimedia collaborative project, Hip-Hop album & ensemble theater piece
      • 45 mins – 1 hr., June 2018
  • Nigga: A Monologue 
    • Performance Art Video / Short Film
      • 4 mins., December 2015

 

• EMOFUNK

 

• • Rap Mixtape / Music Project
    • 28 mins, June 2014

PRESS

 

• They Don’t All Make Headlines: 10 Poets You Need to Know in Phoenix Area | Phoenixnewtimes.com

• Lynn Trimble, May 2019  

• skinnyblk: New Play Explores Gender, Sexuality and Toxic Masculinity | laphoenikera.com

• Ayo Sinplaneta, October 2018 

• Five Questions: “‘Nigga: A Monologue’s’ Sean Avery” | Lakefrontrow.com

• David Klein, April 2016

• Nigga: A Monologue – Sean Avery | Afropunk.com

• Lou Constant-Desportes, March 2016

• This video will make you think about the n-word and its place in American culture | Blavity.com

• Blavity Team, December 2015 

 

 

PUBLICATIONS

• Poetry
  • “Dear Masculinity,” Maskuline x Dear Masculinity Chapbook, Print, April 2017, Pg. 4
  • “skinny-black jeans,” Art Hoe Collective, August 2016, Electronic, N/A  
  • “Otherworld,” Illumination: Undergraduate Journal of Humanities, December 2015, Pg. 22  
  • “In My Dreams,” Illumination: Undergraduate Journal of Humanities, December 2015, Pg. 23 
    • Wisconsin People & Ideas Magazine, May 2015, Pg. 69
  • “Prayer (Song) For Magic,” Wisconsin People & Ideas Magazine, May 2015, Pg. 68
  • “Hallowed Be Thy Name,” Toothtaker, February 2014
  • “Toast,” The Blue Guitar Magazine, Fall 2010, Pg. 19
• Essays
  • “Rap Music is Becoming Unsafe for Black People,” Msc.wisc.edu, April 2016 

LECTURES & PANELS / SPEECHES

• “Artists for Change Vol 3, Master of Your Craft (Panelist & Performer)”, Lakeside Presentation Space, Tempe Center for the Arts, Tempe, Arizona, 15 December 2018
• “Jeff Chang in Conversation: ‘From Hip Hop to Policy Making, Performative Panel (Panelist & Performer)’”, Civic Space Park/ A.E. England Building, Phoenix, Arizona, 11 Sept. 2018
• “Real Boy Documentary Screening (Panelist)” Project Humanities (ASU), Changing Hands Bookstore, Phoenix, AZ, 23 May 2017
• “2016 First Wave Graduation Ceremony Speech”
  • Varsity Hall, Union South, Madison, WI, May 2016 
• “Skinny Jeans & Blouses: Homophobia & Hypersexuality in Modern Hip-Hop Culture (Lecture)” 
  • “Wisconsin Festival of Ideas”. H.F. DeLuca Forum, Wisconsin Institute for Discovery, Madison, WI, April 2016 
  • “Cultural Re-education Lecture Series”. Gordon Commons, Madison, WI, March 2016

SCREENINGS

 

• Maskuline x Dear Masculinity (Performer, Musician)

 

• • • Chazen Museum of Art, Linebreaks Festival 2017, Madison, WI, April 11th 2017 

 

• Nigga: A Monologue (Actor, Writer, Co-Director)

 

• • Chazen Museum of Art, Unhood Yourself: The Real UW One Day Exhibition, Madison WI, April 2016  
  • Barrymore Theater, Wisconsin Film Festival, Madison, WI, April 2016
  • Margaret H’Doubler Performance Space, Lathrop Hall, Moonshine, Madison, WI, February 2016 
  • Sellery Hall Black Box Theater, Sellery Hall, The Studio Showcase, Madison, WI, November 2015 
  • Promenade Hall, Overture Center for the Arts, Passing the Mic Festival, Madison, WI, October 2015

AWARDS/HONORS 

• Black Male Excellence Award, Delta Sigma Theta Feb. 2016
• Mentorship Award, OMAI/First Wave Feb. 2016, Jan. 2015
• 2nd Place Poetry Contest, Wisconsin Academy May 2015
• Marion McCammond Award, Wisconsin Union Directorate Mar. 2015