Biography
Aquila Kikora Franklin is an Associate Professor of Theatre/Dance and the Associate Director of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion for the Penn State School of Theatre where she teaches courses including Intro to West African Dance, Hip Hop Theatre, jazz, and Mojah dance. Franklin has performed, choreographed and taught in cities across the globe including Linz, Austria, Grahamstown, South Africa, Dakar, Senegal, Minas Gerais, Brazil, throughout China, Europe, and the United States. In addition, she has choreographed and performed for the Atlanta Hawks Dance Team, Grammy Award Winning group Arrested Development, and renowned poet, Sonia Sanchez. Franklin was also a collaborator and choreographer for Dominique Morisseau’s Blood at the Root. Franklin’s creative work focuses on developing the Mojah dance technique, an original style that fuses elements of modern, jazz, West African, and Hip Hop movement into one form. As a community artist, Franklin engages with students of all ages using dance as a means of human development. She is the co-founder and director of Roots of Life Performing Arts Ensemble, a State College, PA Area School District arts education program comprised of 4th-12th grade students who perform throughout State College, Pennsylvania. Franklin received a JD/MPA from Georgia State School of Law and the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies in Atlanta, GA.