Meet Jeremy de’jon guyton | Director, Choreographer, and Alchemist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Jeremy De’jon guyton and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jeremy De’jon, do you have a favorite quote or affirmation?
There’s a Toni Morrison quote that I cling to: “All water has a perfect memory and is forever trying to get back to where it was”. I feel most at home by bodies of water. My high school was less than a mile from the beach and on my toughest days, I’d walk down and plant my feet in the sand and breathe. To me, this captures the essence of water’s power – an eternal cycle that spans eons. I like to imagine each water droplet has been cycled through for multiple generations and it serves as a humbling reminder of the scale of the lifetime I’ve been gifted to experience. I’ve lived by the Potomac and experienced rebirth in the cradle of the Mississippi; 2 years ago, the Pacific called me back home. This quote reminds me that, like water, I can always return home.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?

I move on creative impulse. Years of improvisational theatre technique teach me “yes and” and my practice is abundance and generosity. An undergraduate mentor once urged me to enter any creative process as though I had infinite resources. My practice seeks solutions and relies on the magic of my grand//mother’s resourcefulness to alchemize dreams into realities, albeit ephemeral. It is the ephemerality of my practice that draws me in and invites me to stay—nothing has to last forever and everything evolves to fit the needs and desires of an ever-evolving body of work and play.

A highlight of my career thus far is touring with Solange Knowles for her When I Get Home European tour in 2019. I was the assistant to her movement coordinator, Maya Taylor, and performed in the iconic crystal suit designed and made by Tina Knowles. This opportunity expanded what I thought was possible for myself as a choreographer and a performer and also taught me invaluable lessons about the industry. 

The work I am most proud of is my growing bar room sessions series.

bar room sessions was initiated in December 2018 with four other dancers and a DJ in New Orleans. I was growing increasingly frustrated by the whitening and “straight”ening of Afro//queer club spaces that I would frequent – the dance floor had evolved from sanctuary to cage with unwanted touch and gaze and I was craving space to write, sweat, move, indulge, draft, listen to, and live in, narratives of Afro//queer resistance and liberation. I, like so many of my community members, found family in the club; it was the first time I saw multiple representations of Afro//queer authenticity and where I first felt safe and seen.

When COVID drove us all inside, I returned to my childhood home and continued this process as a solo work, creating in my parents’ bedroom closet. The physical closet I danced in was a manifestation of the emotional and spiritual closet I had left in 2008. In returning, I was confronted with the pain and trauma of my adolescence and began shaping a closet disco to facilitate the healing and repair needed for myself and my relationship with my grand//mother, who is now an ancestor. 

As I deepen in this work, I am archiving and documenting closet discos of my Afro//queer siblings, inviting them to share their stories, weaving a tapestry of urgent histories that serve as blueprint for Afro//queer youth. I am capturing these stories through filmed interviews and free//style movement meditations and plan to compile a digital library so that future generations of Afro//queer starlings can see themselves reflected in the beautiful cosmic array of our stories, pain, community, and love.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?

Ooof, so many places.

We’d spend an afternoon at L.A. State Historic Park. We’d grab po’boys from Little Jewel of New Orleans up the street.

Our beach day would be in Malibu. There’s this cove just beyond some rocks so it’s a bit of a trek to get there but not very crowded. I never remember the exact street to turn down for parking. It’s muscle memory at this point.

Speaking of treks, my favorite day hike is to the Bridge to Nowhere through the San Gabriel Mountains. You definitely have to wear some hiking boots as there’s a couple rivers to cross as you make your ascent. The prize at the top: a natural spring with a series of small pools to cool off in.

One night, we’d end up at the Blue Collar on Fairfax. The bartenders here know their way around spirits and create delicious drinks. If they invent something you like, you can name it and add it to the Rolodex. It’s a fun night to get creative and try something new.

Recently I had some friends in town and we went to Six Flags Magic Mountain. I hadn’t been since high school and the kid in me was so hype to be riding some of favorite rollercoasters again. This was definitely a day well spent – thinking of returning to Knott’s Berry Farm soon for some continued nostalgic thrills.

Our night out dancing would lead us to Hood Rave (IG: @hoodravela). Hips gyrating all night while drenched in sweaty, melanated bliss.


The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?

My father.

I was adopted by Herbert Charles Guyton in 1990. He transitioned to the ancestral realm in 1992 due to complications from AIDS. I chase his voice in the rehearsal room; he improvises with me and together we find liberation as Black, queer men. When we rehearse together, we spend time constructing memory space – _playing in the in between for hours, slipping deeper into the edges of our consciousness. I am reminded, through his journey, of the consequences and harsh realities of this world and am held accountable to his desire for a space in which he could be—authentically, be. The new world I dream and work toward creating is guided by the beacon of his spirit.

Website: www.jeremydejon.com

Instagram: @jayguy_

Image Credits
Malachi Middleton, Maiwenn Raoult, Molly Stinchfield