I am an interdisciplinary music/ dance scholar with a research focus on the histories, aesthetics, and circulation of Cuban popular dance culture. My Writing 101 courses at Duke include La gozadera: Music/Dance/Emotion and Writing Through Dialogue and Improvisation. My current writing projects address dialogue and interaction in contemporary Cuban jazz; music, dance, and social spaces in the circulation of timba culture; and the aesthetics and possibilities of Afro-Cuban dance techniques. Alongside my scholarship, I teach and perform Cuban popular music and social dance and Brazilian capoeira. Both inside and outside the academy, I'm interested in the potential of community-based arts practices for facilitating individual and community self-expression and empowerment and generating inclusive spaces where tough conversations can be had and new kinds of relationships can be forged.