Photo: Supplied: Auckland Arts Festival
When Lula Washington was growing up in Los Angeles, she'd never seen black ballet dancers on a stage before.
That changed in her 20s, when she went to a performance by the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre.
It sparked an interest in dance - which led her to dance classes and eventually a Master of Fine Arts in Dance at UCLA.
She and husband Erwin decided to open a dance company to train and showcase a new generation of black dancers. Nearly 50 years later, they're still going.
New Zealand audiences will get a chance to sample two new works Lula Washington Dance Theatre is bringing to the Auckland Arts Festival this year.
Kathryn speaks to Lula and her daughter Tamica - who's Associate Director of the company - about their dance journey and what Kiwi audiences will experience.
