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Published on 5/17/08
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This month, charismatic artist-about-town Kate Sheehy is taking the curatorial reins at Links Hall, the longtime Wrigleyville venue for experimental and emerging dance, performance art, puppetry and music. We talked with her about Method to Madness, the performance series she’s assembled, and how she sees dance as part of a larger creative scene in the city. How do you define yourself? Artist, performer, curator?I find at the heart of my identity someone who shies away from definition. I am most comfortable as an artistic shape-shifter.
How did you come up with the title Method to Madness?
It’s a phrase I grew up with, usually spoken by my mom in reference to my dad’s chaos-as-organization process. When Links Hall presented me with an opportunity to put together a show a year and a half ago, I thought to myself, Wow, that’s a long time from now. Who knows where I’ll be or what I’ll be doing. I wanted to present a series that responds to that lengthy time line, and so the idea of creating a show that was about [the creative] process came to mind.
You’re known primarily on the puppetry scene. Why are you including dance in this series?
I want to create a series that speaks to the many ways in which we create: Puppetry, performance, video, sound—dance is a natural limb to complete the map. I see dance and movement as fundamental to self-expression. Dance communicates through the human body what someone else might find in papier-mâché, or sound, or object. The fact that two people can execute the same physical movement but, through the differed instruments of their bodies, convey such nuances, blows me away.
Have you ever performed in dance pieces yourself?
I worked with Janet Schmid on her project Pilotless during 2004 and 2005. There was a moment in the rehearsal process when the movement shifted from physical instruction to a focused intention riddled with the expression of power dynamics. This was really an exciting place to play. It was also refreshing to step into someone else’s process; I am used to a more improvisational style of performance: I get out there and am not entirely sure what I’m going to do. I must admit that it was a nice change to know what my next step was.
Which dance artists are you including in your series and why?
From my perspective, all of the performers involved in the series have a connection to movement. While 3 card molly [the duo of Ania Greiner and Liz Winfield] are not traditional dance artists, the precision of their choreography and synchronism mesmerizes me. I appreciate [choreographer] Janet Schmid for the playful and off-kilter filter with which she portrays social behaviors, and for the tenacity and thoroughness of her exploration. I worked with [dancer] Wannapa [Pimtong-Eubanks] in Pilotless, and remember being riveted during a rehearsal to witness the depth of transformation that took place from the initiation of her gesture. I am really excited to take in her solo piece, which is a Butoh-inspired performance. [The duet project] Alamoo offers a ritualistic collaboration between musician Annie Coleman—with whom my first conversation was a two-and-a-half-hour brainstorm—and dancer Sonya Seifert—whom I had the joy of meeting on a dance floor last winter. The dance floor is one of my favorite places of introduction.
What do you hope to offer the public with your series overall?
I hope to share my awe for what an incredible artistic community we have going on here in Chicago. I hope for the public to bundle up, get out and celebrate the madness of January. In addition to the performance programs, we will be presenting DIY skill-shares in satellite locations each Saturday.
Method to Madness gets crazy at Links Hall throughout January.
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