Joe Goode Performance Group and JGPG’s Dance for Parkinson’s Program present Daddy Matters— an ongoing father-daughter project, duet & discussion co-created/shared by Jhia Jackson + Richard Jackson. Daddy Matters uses structured improvisation, audience direction, and a blend of Black contemporary music styles to engage with themes of race, family, and Parkinson’s Disease. The work is generated from an interview with Grandma Tiger, creating an intergenerational experience that evolves over time as the family shifts and the work’s intended audience does as well.

For this culminating event, we invite families, artists, healthcare practitioners, and those living with Parkinson’s Disease or similar neurological conditions to join us in creating a space for reflection on the role of family relationships in promoting human flourishing. RSVP required for Zoom access link.

Jhia Louise Jackson is an artist, academic, and activist who regularly engages in interdisciplinary projects. She has worked with artists such as Alexandra Pirici, Joya Powell/Movement of the People Dance Company, Raissa Simpson/Push Dance Company, RAWdance, Cally Spooner, Kim Epifano/Epiphany Dance Theater, and dNaga Dance. As the founder of j.habitus and a current doctoral student in Sociology at UCSF, she creates visceral explorations and presentations of topics drawn from her academic and activist work. She earned her BA in Dance, Sociology, and Ethics from Loyola Marymount University in LA and her MS in Bioethics from Columbia University. She is the founder of Emerging Black Bay Artists, an online community supporting the professional development of early and mid-career Black artists in the Bay Area. Visit www.jhiajackson.com to learn more about her work.

Richard Jackson, Jr. is a New Jersey native and an avid music lover who is guilty of influencing and nurturing his daughter, Jhia Jackson’s, love of music and dance.  Using his extensive library of over 1,500 of record albums (vinyl) and attending live performances, it afforded him an opportunity to connect today’s music with its roots in yesterday’s artists. He is a graduate of Howard University, with a Bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering, and Pepperdine University, with a Master’s degree in Business Administration.  Richard, who has been living with Parkinson’s for over 20 years, has no formal dance training or credits beyond what has been absorbed by attending over 20 years of Jhia’s dance and cheer performances.