Ambar Ramirez
Words by Ambar Ramirez
“My motto is for the community, by the community. And that is a representation of who you share and forge spaces with, and in the midst is a true representation of community experiences built on the life experiences of true creatives that eat, breathe, live artistry in the streets of Jacksonville. And sometimes all it takes is just you stepping out into your backyard and see what’s in the midst of you.”
In the Midst, a Jacksonville-based dance community, came to founder and creative director Rochelle Underdue in a dream.
Throughout her life, Underdue had found herself “in the midst” of many defining moments. But in 2016, it was the unraveling of a bad relationship and a loss that pushed her one step closer to a creative project she had no idea would change her life. One afternoon, while napping, she felt an overwhelming nudge—something unshakable.
“I was taking a nap and I felt this nudge that woke me out of my sleep,” Underdue recalled. “It was just like, ‘You’re going to do a production.’ I remember this feeling, it was just so overwhelming, and I was here for it because I hadn’t had this creative pull in a very long time.”
But let’s not get ahead of ourselves — In the Midst didn’t happen overnight or even in a matter of months. Underdue has been building this dance platform for 10 years, but before that, she was, and always has been, a dancer at her core.
“I’m a natural-born dancer,” Underdue shared. “I was dealing with a lot as a kid and movement has always been a thing for me to just move stuff around.”
Growing up, Underdue found inspiration in the strong, dynamic women of pop culture—The Spice Girls, TLC, and Aaliyah. But the biggest influence on her love for dance came from someone much closer to home. Her mom.
“I remember her dancing with ankle weights to ’80s and ’90s music, and one day she moved in a balletic style. I didn’t realize it was a gift that I ended up inheriting. Another memory that I knew dance was for me was my first talent show in the fourth grade to ‘Spice Up Your Life,’” Underdue recalled. “One day after school, we had our first dance rehearsal. My sister just knew I was going to create. Out of frustration, I sat in the bathroom for what had to be 30 minutes. While they were eating pizza, I was choreographing in the bathroom. I came out and said, ‘This is what it’s going to be.’ These core memories undoubtedly shaped my reality of how I wanted to be in the world. Despite experiencing hardships in my early childhood, the gift of creativity kept my imagination alive.”
Underdue’s introduction to dance was organic, a natural gravitation toward movement. But when she moved to Jacksonville, her training took an unconventional turn. It was within the city’s dance community that she truly found her rhythm.
“When I came here and found an opportunity to be a part of the community and to actually see myself as a dancer, I just stuck with it,” Underdue said. “From there, I was able to jump off and go into other scenes and positions.”
She describes her dance journey as a series of moments where she was in the right place at the right time, with one opportunity leading to another. Being part of a dance crew that performed at the Ritz Theatre opened the door to “Rhythm Nation,” led by the late Kavin Grant—a mentor who played a major role in shaping In the Midst.
“In the Midst exists because of the community experiences that helped me to become who I am today,” she shared.
For seven years, Underdue trained in Jacksonville’s dance community, eventually landing a role in a modern dance company. But when the tragic loss of her father led her to step away, she found herself at a crossroads. One path led to California, where she imagined joining another dance company. The other pulled her back to Jacksonville and street dancing.
“I was like, no, you’re gonna be in the midst of people. You’re going to be in the midst of another community. You’re going to be in the midst of other dancers, and you’re going to experience this so you can come back to Jacksonville and do this,” Underdue shared.
Upon returning to Jacksonville, she was met with another devastating loss — the passing of Grant. In the face of grief and uncertainty, she turned to the one thing she had always known: dance.
“And as soon as that happened, I nearly just dedicated the platform in his name because it’s the reason why. When I say reason, I mean, of course, people get visions and urges to create, and I take credit for that. But he’s the inspiration — I wouldn’t have had this gusto to do it if I hadn’t experienced it with him,” Underdue said.
She described Grant’s influence as something bigger than just dance—it was about honoring the experiences carried within the body, passed down through movement.
“His message, even from the communities and lineage before us, is that we carry a lot in our bodies. We are the experience that someone once previously lived. If there were no documents, no nothing, I have nothing but my body and the experience and memories to carry it on. So therefore, I must show it — what it looked like for me, what I would want other people to experience, what helped me to go through life.”
Of course, as we now know, Underdue didn’t name this project after Kevin Grant. Instead, “In the Midst” came to her shortly after the nap we mentioned earlier.
“It was interesting because at that time I just remembered receiving this vision, this dream, and I was talking to a friend at the time, and it was just like, what do we call it? And I kid you not, I came across a scripture in the Bible, and it was Psalms 46, verse 5: ‘In the midst of her, God is within her,’” Underdue explained. “So there are different interpretations. But I was like, that’s it. It’s ‘In the Midst.’ And I was literally in the midst of people who had inspired me to step out and be what I initially wanted to be — whether that was a dance educator or just, I don’t know, this overall creative being, an expressionist. So in 2016, that was actually like a production introduction to Rochelle in the Midst.”
From that moment on, Underdue dedicated herself to building In the Midst. Along with her wife, Shirley Murray, and choreographer Asa Rivera, she has created a dance platform that not only carries forward Grant’s legacy but also serves as a safe space — both for natural dancers and for those simply looking to learn.
“I share my version of community building through providing dance workshops to help dancers learn about dance as a tool for healing, sharing the history of different dance styles to advocate for proper representation, and collaborating with organizations here to build the community together.”
In the Midst offers free community dance classes, which typically pop up at the end of the month, as well as specialty workshops for $15. Class schedules are based on Underdue’s capacity as director, but no matter the format, the mission remains the same — movement as a means of connection, healing and expression.
“It’s all about the heart. You don’t have to professionally dance. And when I say that, yeah, there are levels. But I always tell somebody, as long as you can find the rhythm, as long as you find the groove, you can dance. It’s just about being open and being in the community,” Underdue said.
With In the Midst, Underdue aims to uplift a community that often goes overlooked in Jacksonville.
“There’s nothing for us — specifically the people that eat, sleep, and breathe street dance. And when I say that, I don’t mean that others don’t, but dance isn’t just a fun thing to do for some of us. It’s a way of life, a lifeline,” Underdue shared. “Without this art form, I would not be here today.”
At its core, In the Midst is a dance community, but Underdue weaves in other artistic elements to create a multidimensional experience. One such initiative is a three-week journal movement series designed to connect physical movement with self-reflection.
“I found myself actually applying the work all over again,” Underdue explained. “Like I mentioned, I was doing these three-week journal movement prompt series, and I was like, girl, you’re actually seeing yourself practicing the prompts in your body. A couple of examples could be me using resistance bands and bringing back all the ways of conditioning the body that I’m really excited about again. So in the midst of all this, I felt discouragement, I felt uncertainty, I felt just blah. But then I was also being reintroduced to a form that helped me get here in the first place — to reapply it not from a place of survival, but from a place of love.”
In the years since its founding, In the Midst has made significant strides in the local arts scene. The group has performed at RAM for five years and participated in events such as the JWJ Hip-Hop Festival, Hip-Hop’s 50th Birthday at JWJ, Moving the Margins dance edition, Galaxy Fest, Love Fest, and Sip n’ Stroll: Pearls of the Orient with Grace Bio. Most recently, In the Midst was part of TEDx Jacksonville’s The Overlap alongside Yellow House founder Hope McMath.
Through creative collaboration, In the Midst has thrived and continues to grow. But with growth comes challenges — one of the most significant being the lack of a stable studio space and more events specifically focused on street dance.
“I mentioned how a person in Tampa saw my work and sent me a grant application to fill out because we see each other as the same. I see how the universities in their community provide opportunities for street dance culture to showcase the different styles that exist in Tampa. In observing this, I believe it is the acceptance of street dance culture and highlighting it through collaborative efforts. I have done collaborative work for the sake of hip-hop’s birthday or for an event that’s needed, but I would like to see more dance center-focused events that represent street dance culture and invite people outside of the culture to engage with it. Observe and witness the magic that is here in Jacksonville,” Underdue shared.
Despite the challenges, Underdue remains dedicated to In the Midst. At the end of our interview, I asked her what she was personally “in the midst” of right now.
“I believe I am in a reapplying discovery mode. I create a lot for the platform, and I naturally enjoy talking about the healing work that has taken place that allowed me to be in the dance community. I think I will find myself innovating things to add on to the platform to spread awareness of doing that inner work. I am considering pursuing my master’s in dance and movement therapy or some form of dance to complete my educational pursuits.”
To follow In the Midst’s journey or get involved, follow @inthemidstjax_.
Follow FOLIO!