Artists

Artists are at the core of our work at Hi-ARTS. What unites this diverse group is that they share similar aesthetics and ideas about the transformative power of art and the importance of community. Our goal is to continuously nurture this spirit at Hi-ARTS. From a creative and artistic perspective, our artists have made Hi-ARTS the organization that it is. Below is a sample list of artists we have recently worked with. Tap an artist's name to learn more about what they do, and hit the archive further down for a look at who else the organization has been involved with over the years.

MJ Martinez 8/20/26 MJ Martinez 8/20/26

Kevin Alicea

Kevin is a director, actor, educator, and former professional soccer player whose work centers ensemble-driven process, identity-conscious storytelling, and equitable creative practice.

During his CRITICAL BREAKS residency, Kevin will continue developing The Line, a solo play in which one performer embodies both a father and son — one a famed police officer and the other a passionate social justice advocate – as their relationship comes to a head during the shooting of an unarmed Black man. Rather than presenting a story of hero and villain, The Line centers two men trying to understand one another. The work explores the tensions between family, policing, social justice, and the ways we attempt to understand the people closest to us.

MJ Martinez 8/20/26 MJ Martinez 8/20/26

Elinor Kleber Diggs

Elinor Kleber Diggs(They/Them), currently based in Harlem, New York, is an interdisciplinary artist and choreographer from Saint Paul, Minnesota.

During Elinor’s CRITICAL BREAKS Residency, they will continue to develop DUEL, an evening-length duet that transforms conflict into a catalyst for meaning-making and connection. This movement-based diptych investigates how moments of significant tension eventually give way to clarity.

This piece interweaves movement, spoken text, household items, and projection to construct a world that is both familiar and disquieting. Imagine walking through your home only to find that every piece of furniture has shifted slightly to the left or rotated counterclockwise a few degrees—subtle yet disorienting shifts in an otherwise familiar space.

MJ Martinez 8/20/26 MJ Martinez 8/20/26

Camille Simone Thomas

Camille Simone Thomas is a multi-hyphenate playwright-producer-performer-educator-facilitator.

Bad American is a solo show and interactive retrospective tracing an artist’s journey from “only a few bad police officers” towards "I think we should abolish the police" and the art she created along the way.

During Camille’s SKY LAB Residency, she will interview people who consider themselves abolitionists—meaning they believe police and prisons should be abolished—and weave audio snippets from those conversations throughout the existing text of Bad American. These interviews will expand the work’s exploration of the personal and collective journeys that lead people toward abolition.

MJ Martinez 8/20/26 MJ Martinez 8/20/26

Anichi Moon

Anchi Moon. A name discovered in a dream, carried gently by the wind between worlds. Born as Ching-I Chang, a name lovingly gifted by a beloved grandfather, Anichi walks through life with wonder in heart and songs in soul.

During Anichi’s CRITICAL BREAKS Residency, they will continue the development of Oceans Between Our Names, deepening its exploration of migration, diaspora memory, and the body’s relationship to displacement. Through repetition, imbalance, and suspension, the piece examines how memory mutates, survives, and transmits across generations. Embracing a low-tech aesthetic, it blends physical embodiment, sound, and visual design to transform the space into a shifting landscape of passage and separation. Oceans Between Our Names invites audiences into quiet acts of witness, reflecting on personal histories and the courage required for transformation.