2022 interns
The Rhapsody Project’s paid interns are funded by generous donors, grants, and our partnership with NW Folklife. They are deeply embedded in the development of our organization—especially as we pivot from the pandemic to the new world. In addition to conducting independent projects exploring personal and cultural heritage, our interns run tRp’s social media accounts and learning bankable skills as they prepare to join the cultural workforce.
Moonyeka
tRp intern '22
Moonyeka (they/them/Angel) is a nonbinary Filipinx femme shapeshifter, teaching artist, curator, scholar, and interdisciplinary artist, specializing in movement-based storytelling.
Moonyeka recently joined The Rhapsody Project team as one of the Storytelling Strategists interns. They are one of Velocity Dance Center’s 2022 Creative Residents, currently creating CENSORED, a research process centering QT + POC showgirl histories, performance intelligences, systems, and technologies of artist working girls.
Moonyeka’s dance and movement foundations include freestyle forms such as Popping, Tutting, Animation, while also being informed by modern dance, improvisational methods,and sensual movement practices imbued with QT Filipinx greatness.
Pre covid-19 Moonyeka directed WHAT’S POPPIN’ LADIEZ?!, LIL BROWN GIRLS CLUB (a movement based mentorship program for young g*rls of color), and organized (e)merge: a movement based healing intensive for dance communities and beyond in September 2019.
Moonyeka's past interdisciplinary performance works include BASTOS (2017), BASTOS TALAGA (2018), In The White Frame (2018), Inang Bayan (2019), SIN-EATER (2021), Mother of Pearl (2022) which have been presented in festivals, living rooms, queer night clubs, Velocity Dance Center, On The Boards, Heidi Duckler's (MAP), Risk/Reward, Museum of Museums, BASE, Seattle Center, across diaspora and beyond.
Moonyeka is also one of the co-curators for Nightlight, a full moon ritual, performance event and dance party.
Amongst many projects and collaboration Moonyeka shapeshifts as a songstrexx/lyricist/performer of The Gender Tender Experiment. If you're extremely lucky (by tipping $100 bills) you may see their baby drag persona, Neon Orchid, grace the Queer Trans stages of Seattle with the Melted Forest, a psychedelic creature forest drag house led by Fox Whitney.
You can find out more about upcoming performances + group courses, such as Aswang Movement Incantations, SLITHER: a sensual movement practice, Q TUTS, and other offerings here:
instagram @m00nyeka patreon.com/moonyeka
venmo @moonyeka
Asma Masude
tRp intern '22
Asma Masude is an intern for the Rhapsody Project in partnership with Northwest Folklife.
Despite not having much talent for making it herself, music has been a big part of her life for as long as she can remember. Asma is absolutely mesmerized by the effects music can have on people, including herself. She loves connecting the magic of music and sound with her visual art and poetry.
Most recently, Asma has been working on collaging projects involving dumping her head straight to the paper as accurately as possible and weaving in the universally unique experience of growing up with a third culture. She has grown up in a swirling mix of iconic early 2000s pop and the even more iconic classic Bollywood songs on cassettes playing on loop during road trips. Resultantly, she is always more than eager to bring her Pakistani and Muslim culture into whatever project she’s working on. Rawness is at the core of everything she tries to create.
Asma works towards sharing The Rhapsody Project’ story with the world by creating content for the social media and supporting them in any ways she can. At tRp she is excited to be surrounded by such creative and passionate people and to be part of projects that connect so deeply with music and our roots.
