The old adage, "You Can't Go Home Again" is generally true. But for many county residents like Aisha Walls, who left the area to pursue educational and professional goals, returning "home" has resulted in positive outcomes and great benefits to the community.
Walls is currently a physical therapist at Mendocino Physical Therapy as well as an instructor at SPACE- Near and Arnold's School of Performing Arts and Education. Born in Berkeley, she was raised in Mendocino County- first on the coast and then moving inland to become a student at the Waldorf School of Mendocino County.
"In middle school I started taking SPACE classes," Walls recalls. "At least 50% of my classmates were involved in SPACE. I took courses with Ulla Rand and Sandy Metzler, and even at a young age she caught the eye of SPACE co-founder Laurel Near.
"That was my first encounter with SPACE. I also recall being at the Ukiah Playhouse dancing in big skirts with my classmate Rye Gilley playing a big guitar. Hilary Baumann had a special dance piece for that show. She had such a special movement- I was amazed by her intricacy and got pulled in by hip-hop."
From there, Walls attended courses at Mendocino Ballet.
"There was a time where I just did ballet, then Rosie Mendoza began putting together a hip hop dance company. So Rosie pulled me in. Laurel kept pulling me in to summer school classes. Then I was invited to perform in a show called "A Thing Called Love." It was produced by Laurel and Kate Magruder. I was 15 at the time, and the subject matter was all very mature, dealing with the prevention of fetal alcohol syndrome. I was a very shy person, so I was in awe of all these professional dancers and actors. It was quite an honor. That first show felt next level to me. It was the real thing. We rehearsed, made a movie, toured, and even performed as far as Sacramento."
She attended school at Bennington College in Vermont. She has a masters and doctorate in Physical Therapy from UCSF/San Francisco State as well as a BA in exercise science and kinesiology. "It's been a fun way on some weird level to combine dance and arts with the scientific side of the body."
Walls is reluctant to discuss her resounding success as a professional dancer. She performed extensively with the famed choreographer Ronnie Ruddick and Emmy-Award winner Tony Basil. She has performed in numerous television commercials including an NFL Replay commercial and roles as a dancer for Kia, Bank One, Will Smith's "Party Starter" music video, NFL Streets and a TV Land commercial. She has taught extensively throughout the country.
"I loved to travel. I went to Los Angeles and the Bay Area. I would not have come back to Ukiah if it wasn't for family. There's an urge to leave, but once you travel around enough, there's only one place you call home. Even though my reasons for returning here were originally centered around family, I started seeing the value of being back in the community where I was raised. Now I have children. This is a great place for them to grow up."
"Once I'd returned to Ukiah, I kept going to Mama's Café and I kept seeing Laurel there. Every time I saw her, she'd ask, 'Why don't you teach at SPACE?' At that point, I had two children in diapers, but Laurel is persistent," Walls smiles. "I agreed to choreograph as a guest artist. When I found myself at SPACE- going back to this familiar place following motherhood and the exhaustion of taking care of others, it was the most incredible change for me. I asked myself, why am I anywhere else but here? We did that show, I loved the vibe and the kids, and from then on I started saying 'yes' more often," she continues.
"We kept drawing Aisha into everything we could get her to do," smiles Near.
Walls began teaching a few classes in technique, hip hop skills and then co-directing with Near.
"I was here for about a year until we co-directed. I was scared, but I said yes. I kept asking myself, why is the most amazing person ever asking me to direct? I basically tagged along for our first show, Danceology."
"She hardly 'tagged along,'" corrects Near, smiling.
"Then we did Danceology 2, and in 2020 we were rehearsing a show called "It's about Time" when everything shut down. Now, three years later, we're jumping back into it," says Walls. She is currently teaching about 82 students ages 8-16 for the upcoming performance.
"Aisha is so organized. With that number of students, everything has to be ready to go," says Near. "Her keen attention to the emotional and social development of each child is evident throughout the show, and each child has a moment in time to shine," she continues.
"There are two things required to create a successful experience for the students: artistic messaging and purpose- doing both of those in the most interesting way while communicating with everyone, sticking to deadlines and mapping everything out, while making sure every child is succeeding and having a part in the process and the production," says Walls.
Walls comes directly from her physical therapy job right over to SPACE for rehearsals.
"As a physical therapist, I evaluate and treat musculoskeletal disorders and orthopedic issues. I treat post-surgical patients and many with back pain. I evaluate patient issues, design a treatment plan and the PT assistants and I carry out that plan, which includes education, a home exercise program, sometimes caregivers, mobility transfers, soft tissue release, therapeutic exercises and neurological education. I always have music in my treatment sessions. If I'm telling someone to stand up straighter, I use some of the imagery we use in dance. I tell my patients to stand tall, to be proud."
Along with her doctorate and her extensive professional dance career, Walls found the time to become a certified Vinyasa Yoga instructor.
"I did that because I love yoga. It feels so good to my body. I also see it as something that can be done therapeutically. As a physical therapist, I can't tell you the number of times I've seen the power of yoga. I learned about physical therapy following my work with dance and movement. I'm thinking we've been doing core stabilization in ballet and diaphragmatic breathing in yoga- one of the most powerful art forms, so it all comes together. People need imagery and need to feel intention in what they're doing. Most people who are in pain are depressed. Yoga helps with that. The other wonderful thing about yoga: the way you speak and begin and end your classes- that awareness of the present moment hopefully helps to engender a positive state of being." Walls hopes to someday create a supervised, therapeutic course combining group wellness and physical therapy.
Like so many people who have been touched by SPACE, Walls still feels the lessons she learned as a young person resonating through her life as a teacher.
"The thing that makes SPACE unique is its impact on children. This current show is about sharing stories, history, remembering roots, who we are, and a whole layer about what time means to us. We do shows that have a thing to be learned."
"Aisha is one person in SPACE who is a part of launching an arts work force," says Near. "For this show, she has invited teachers to have great fun with costumes while encouraging them to create dances from various eras for a variety of skill levels—all with a meaningful theme for families revolving about the nature of time. For me, having done this work for over 30 years, it is such a joy to see the next generation of devoted teaching artists creating shows with youth. Aisha's artistry surpasses my wildest expectations. What a life-changing experience for the youth to be dancing with a master dancer who worked professionally for years before returning home to Ukiah," Near concludes.
For more information about SPACE's upcoming shows and teaching schedule, visit https://www.spaceperformingarts.org or phone (707) 462-9370.
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