Few dancers who have graced Kansas City stages possess the drive, the depth of curiosity, or the breadth of performance experience that Emara Vonae’ Neymour Jackson can claim. The 26-year-old multi-hyphenated artist is a dancer-singer-actor-author-choreographer-filmmaker-performance-artist — not necessarily in that order. Her résumé reflects an international profile, with activities in Paris, Marseilles, Seoul, New York, and Hollywood. 

Kansas City is home now, and Emara has become a standout with the Owen/Cox Dance Group (with which she performs this March 14th through the 16th).

She is also interested in creating her own works: performance art that taps into the city’s history of jazz and blues, and collaborative efforts “where people can interface with experimental art that is influenced by the past and the present.” 

Raised in Kansas City and St. Louis, Emara attended Paseo Middle School and St. Louis’ Central Visual and Performing Arts High School — before attending California Institute of the Arts in Los Angeles. 

She has studied with and/or performed with a wide range of choreographic, visual, cinematic, and musical artists: from Solange Ferguson Knowles to Dimitri Chamblas; from Nina Flagg to Rosana Gamson, from Gerard & Kelly to Moses Sumney, and from The RZA to Christina Aguilera. 

She has created films, choreographed, and participated in music videos and international fashion launches. She starred as Josephine Baker in Gerard & Kelly’s short film Bright Hours, appeared in Opera Theatre of St. Louis’ Treemonisha, and in 2024 played Celie in the Center of Creative Arts’ production of The Color Purple. 

She has received Dance Saint Louis’ Dance Career Award and a Princess Grace Foundation award. We recently chatted with Emara about a life and career in the performing and visual arts, and about her hopes and dreams for her future and for Kansas City. Here are excerpts: 

On her undergraduate experience: 

I went to CalArts as a dance major, but I ended up learning a lot about filmmaking. I was able to get into the MFA courses and some theater courses. … It’s the type of institution where no one person’s journey is the same as any other person’s. Whereas some conservatories are very strict on what you do and how and when you do it, at CalArts you can take advantage of a lot. … 

But I had to show that I was capable of carrying my weight in those film courses and those writing courses, because they wouldn’t have allowed me to be in those spaces if I wasn’t going to do the work. I’ve always had to make my own way … through determination and by proving that I was there to be a long-term artist — not just a dancer but an artist, a well-rounded visionary. 

On her early career: 

At one time I thought dance was my number one thing, with singing and acting coming in after that. But I love them all equally. Now that I’ve graduated from college with a degree in dance, I’ve learned that I actually need all of my “facets” in order for dance to make me feel as happy as it did when I was younger. 

But I have to continue to vocalize while I’m dancing, and to allow for acting and expression to be at the forefront: it’s the storytelling that still makes me want to dance — not because my body loves it all the time. In my heart, I’m really a melting pot of many things, and dance has really just been the canvas that is most accessible for me to work on.

On creating her own expectations for herself: 

I have to advocate for myself, because there are not many other people that can advocate on my behalf. I learned that especially in college, because when people told me “no” based off of a generalization … deep in my heart I knew that I would want more for myself than what they could see. 

Maybe it’s faith-driven. Maybe I could attribute it to my upbringing, to believing in things that are not directly in front of you, but are meant for you. 

On settling into the Kansas City arts life: 

Kansas City has always had a great heartbeat with jazz and blues, that’s something that was always prevalent to me grow up in the city. When it comes to dance, I’d like to see more immersive art, more collaborative efforts, site-specific works. 

I don’t audition much, and that has to do partly with the fact that I’ve built and sustained my own little career off of relationships, cool investments, workshops, and just staying “Hi I’m Emara and I’m available: I’m resourceful and I’m reliable.” 

So my career so far as been by word-of-mouth and referrals. I’ll probably keep auditioning for the rest of my life, but hey, I do love a good referral. 

Website: emaraneymourj.com

Instagram: @emaraneyj