The CUNY Dance Initiative (CDI), an expansive program providing New York City choreographers and dance companies with creative residencies on CUNY college campuses, announces performances of To Dance Is To Be Free, by Gerson Lanza. The show is set for May 14 and 15, 2026 at 7:30 PM at Aaron Davis Hall, 129 Convent Avenue at West 135th Street, New York, NY, 10031. Tickets start at $28.52 and can be purchased here.
Using tap dance, live music, and spoken word, Gerson Lanza creates a compelling journey through the intersecting themes of race, ethnicity, and immigration. An immersive dance performance that celebrates the essence of authenticity in rhythm, To Dance Is To Be Free fuses art and advocacy to foster a deeper understanding of the multifaceted tapestry of Blackness and American society at large.
Originally from La Ceiba, Honduras, Gerson Lanza first encountered tap dance after moving to New York City in 2001. He immediately fell in love with the art form, and began training at Wadleigh School for the Performing and Visual Arts and the Harlem School of the Arts. With Music From The Sole, led by Leonardo Sandoval and Gregory Richardson, he has participated in residencies at Lincoln Center, Jacob’s Pillow, Works & Process at The Guggenheim, and Fall for Dance Festival at New York City Center. In his own right he has been featured as a Strathmore College Amplify Artist and Artist-in-Residence, selected as a NYDance Lab Onebeat Fellow, and featured in “Artist at the Center” at New York City Center, curated by Ayodele Casel, which landed his first New York Times review for his choreographic work. He also headlined the Millennium Stage at The Kennedy Center with his jazz quintet.

Lanza received his Master in Fine Arts (MFA) from The University of Maryland, where he focused on the Afro-Latinx diaspora. His research landed him the International Program for Creative Collaboration & Research Grant to study the relation of the African diaspora in Honduras and Spain through the lens of tap dance. Gerson has also served as a consultant and presenter for 92 Street Y's newest curriculum, "Tracing Footsteps, " taught by performing arts educators in New York City.