Melissa Pérez Sousa

I was born and raised in Venezuela. I studied Contemporary Dance Performance at UNEARTE (Caracas), as well as Social Dances of the African Diaspora such as Hip Hop, House, Tap, and Body Percussion (in New York and Europe). Although I began my journey in freestyle Hip Hop and House dance competitions, my focus over the past six years has been on performance and composition within contemporary creation. At the same time, I pursue studies and practice in video production and editing, specifically in the field of Dance Film. As a performer, I have worked with Sandrine Lescourant, Dana Foglia, Ladies of Hip Hop Festival, Alvin Ailey School, Jorge Gonçalves, Catarina Campos, Marco da Silva Ferreira, Jonas & Lander, Bouziane Bouteldja, and Jep Meléndez. I am the founder of LOOP Festival (with editions from 2017 to 2020) and co-founder of the pedagogical project YOLK, focused on research, education, and activism within the Street & Clubbing dance community.

@melpsousa

Residency project

TAMBOR is an autobiographical solo dance piece that, through memory, transmutes wounds as a means of creation. This solo revisits the data inscribed in a body shaped by cultural heritage, migration, and negotiation, through, for example, the evocation of archetypes and folkloric mythologies. The work reflects on identity, expression, and belonging, maintaining a body in constant latency—feet in motion, rootedness, and the duality of energetic concepts of the masculine and feminine—explored through new currents of expression and the reimagining of previously fictional narratives. Inspired by conversations with my mother, TAMBOR connects with bodily archives, songs, music, and the paradox of joy and violence experienced in public space.

Residency archive Graner

  • 2025 · Cross-residency with CAMPUS PCS (Porto) · TAMBOR

International cross-residency program co-organized with the Institut Ramon Llull.