By Patricia Corbett

A Black Woman Speaks of Art, Identity, and Ancestry

I’ve known Lady Dane Figueroa Edidi personally for more than 10 years. When she granted me this interview after two years of interaction only via social media, I was ecstatic to hear her warm and spirited voice again. As we shared pleasantries we segued into a transcendent interview that far exceeded my expectations. There was something different about Lady Dane. Something powerful. She exuded her usual colorful confidence, but she was so vividly clear about who she is and her walk in the world. Our conversation was mixed with a landscape of emotion. We laughed and cried. Lady Dane was no longer the little girl who years ago auditioned for my play. In our absence from each other, she waded into the deep ocean of identity and emerged the female embodiment of who she had been all her life.

Lady Dane Figueroa Edidi is a Nigerian, Cuban, Indigenous, American Performance Artist, Author, Teacher, Choreographer, Oracular Consultant, Priestess, and Advocate self-described as an Ancient zz Priestess of Mother Africa. She is a force in the world of art, trans advocacy, and the spiritual realm. Her art and passion for issues that impact trans people globally is a testament to a legacy handed down, cultivated, and inspired by her family and the ancestors. Allow me to introduce to you Lady Dane Figueroa Edidi.

“My father is Nigerian and my mother is Cuban and Indigenous. I come from a family of performers. They were loud and talkative. My Mother and her sisters sang. So I was expected to sing. I was very introverted. I read Langston Hughes and history books about Africa and America. I would write my own books and poetry. I was told I needed to be smart and educated. If I want something I had to fight for it. Nothing would be handed to me.” . Read more in TRIBES Spring 2017 Issue 37.