To be an artist means living my life; the ups, the down, the joy, the pain, the healing and then sharing the journey with the world. 

Tisiphani Mayfield is a seasoned performer, educator, journalist, student, mentor, coach and mother. Ms. Mayfield earned her B.A. in Dance from the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee. She enjoys learning from all genres of dance but concentrates her studies in the African Diaspora.  She has training in traditional West African and Afro-Caribbean dance styles.  As well as training in Dunham, Horton, Lindy Hop, jazz, tap and hip-hop.  She is blessed to have been able to perform all over the Continental United States, the Caribbean and China.  The excitement, passion and love of her own culture brought Ms. Mayfield to Ko-Thi Dance Company where she moved from intern, to performer, to Assistant Artistic Director in the span of 2 years.  Ms. Mayfield has been teaching dance for more than 20 years and choreographing for 10.  Ms. Mayfield’s hard work is evident around the city of Milwaukee and in Florida where she obtained her first degree in Broadcast Journalism from Florida A&M University in 2004.  Ms. Mayfield has worked with Mahogany Dance Theatre in Tallahassee, where she was the Rehearsal Director, and Milwaukee Bucks Energee! Dance Team where she was a Captain and Choreographer. 

Ms.  Mayfield has also fused her training into a style affectionately named “Afro-Jazz” and works as a dance educator in the Milwaukee Public School system. Working as a Guest Artist for the intermediate and advanced students at Milwaukee High School of the Arts and has set several works on their students for concerts.  She is currently working to create a new dance curriculum at Lincoln Center of the Arts. Ms. Mayfield’s work ethic, and style can also be seen in her cheerleaders as they employ the stomp and shake style of cheerleading at their basketball games.  Ms. Mayfield uses her knowledge of the Diaspora and polyrhythmic movements to set her team apart from all other teams in the city.

Ms. Mayfield is also a Journalist working in television and radio for more than 13 years.  She believes that dance and journalism go hand in hand.  In both there is passion, fire and responsibility.  Through her journalistic works Ms. Mayfield shares the stories commonly ignored in mainstream media.  Expose corruption and wrongs that disproportionately affect communities of color.  Revealing the beauty and goodness in the communities that have been written off as underprivileged and under-served.