Today we’d like to introduce you to Faith Jensen-Ismay
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I started dance through a high school PE program, then continued on the Palmar College and San Diego State before beginning a professional performing career in 1987. I began teaching in the college systems in 1988 at Palomar College, then spent 10 years as adjunct faculty at SDSU and UCSD. I am currently teaching at SD Mesa and Southwestern Colleges while maintaining a professional company, Mojalet Dance Collective (founded in 1991). Along with my husband and amazing board of directors, I am also running The Vine Arts Village, a studio theater in Rancho Bernardo. I have had the pleasure of creating work for a variety of platforms to include concert dance, television and DVD platforms, hair shows, conventions, and choreographed and performed with companies for several international tours.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Life is full of obstacles and challenges which make the journey interesting and sometimes a bit stressful. As a mother of four amazing daughters, the challenge of balancing life as a mother, wife, dancer, choreographer and director can be tricky. Maintaining physically in tune with my body and creatively engaging in my craft while juggling many schedules is still a challenge, but not impossible. Injuries and financial support for the arts have been the biggest hurdles, but possible to overcome with the wonderful support of my husband, daughters, dancers and board of directors,
Our biggest challenge was navigating opening a new space in 2020 shortly before the COVID shutdown which was initially devastating: the cancelation of a full season with four pre-organized tours, and loss of earned income for over a year was stressful. The support of individual donors and generosity from the landlord sustained Mojalet for months. Then, almost a year into the COVID shutdown, Mojalet finally received government support to help with the loss of income. We managed to navigate the challenges with positive energy and continue to create new work through the hard stuff in life.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
Mojalet (modern, jazz, ballet) Dance Collective was created by myself and two colleagues as platform to create work that expanded beyond one genre. As a performer in SD, most people knew my work as a modern dancer; however, my early years in jazz opened door for me to expand beyond the realm of modern dance. I like to create diverse work that expands to share the good and hard challenges life has for us. Yes we make art about social, political and personal struggles, but we need to balance it with work that reflects joy, beauty and commodore in humans. To create projects that evoke emotion, and is relatable to the general audience is something I strive to achieve in my work. An important component of how we operate is to make sure the people creating the work are more important than the outcome – taking care of the artists / dancers.
I am proud of the longevity in the arts and maintaining a company that has operated in the black since it’s inception – that seems quite an accomplishment. The company was founded in 1991, formed a 501c3 in 2003, opened a black box theater in 2008, relocated in 2020, survived the COVID pandemic and continues to make work. However, my greatest accomplishment is the longevity of my marriage of 40 years, and our four wonderful adult daughters who now begin their own journey of professionalism in their work.
Do you any memories from childhood that you can share with us?
One of my favorite childhood memories was going to the theater to see Bye Bye Birdie with the Girls Scout troop. I had never been to a fancy theater like the Prado in Balboa Park. See a live musical as as a 4th grader was so exciting and eye opening. I still remember specific scenes from over 45 years ago, and standing in front of the theater with excitement.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.mojalet.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mojaletdance/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100037915494667
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFudElQkkwFmG7SfggTQB1w/featured
Image Credits
Christian Glaus, Manny Rotenberg
