Jamire Williams with Marlon Taylor-Wiles | Jazz on a High Floor in the Afternoon

Curated by celebrated jazz pianist, composer, and visual artist Jason Moran and Whitney performance curator Adrienne Edwards, Jazz on a High Floor in the Afternoon is a series of live in-gallery performances presented over nine weekends. The series features cross-generational artists performing within Moran’s three mixed-media “set sculptures”—STAGED: Savoy Ballroom 1 (2015), STAGED: Three Deuces (2015), and STAGED: Slugs’ Saloon (2018). Each installation pays homage to an iconic New York jazz venue. 

For this performance, Jamire Williams performed live with contemporary ballet dancer Marlon Taylor-Wiles. Williams was a key contributor and producer on an album with Solange Knowles and has collaborated with major figures, such as Herbie Hancock and Dr. Lonnie Smith, Jason Moran, and Kara Walker. Williams and Taylor-Wiles activated a "set sculpture" by Jason Moran that pays homage to the iconic New York jazz venue Slugs’ Saloon.