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Let’s Change the Subject
August 5, 2024 @ 10:00 am - 12:00 pm
LET'S CHANGE THE SUBJECT
This class is born from the question, how can I have rigorous compassion in my practice? In this workshop, we will explore this question together through mindfulness, meditation, and movement. We will begin by taking care of ourselves through breathing exercises and somatic meditation practices to tune into the present moment and let go of the noise surrounding us. Once we have laid this foundation, we will discuss recent developments in neuroscience that help us to understand how the brain processes pain and anxiety through the body. This scientific knowledge helps reinforce the power of mindfulness practices and lays the groundwork for rigorous compassion to enter one’s artistic practice. Then to change the subject, we’ll dance together in an open, improvisational manner for the sake of pleasure and care for the body, encouraging us to move intuitively and freely, without judgement or expectation.
JODY KEUHNER
Jody Kuehner aka Cherdonna Shinatra uses dance, drag, theater, camp, feminist traditions, absurdity and subversive commentary to make art. Eighteen years ago, she landed in Seattle and fell in love with its rowdy, postmodern dance culture. She fell in love with my own queerness. In doing so, Jody created Cherdonna Shinatra as a persona and character to question herself and explore the world from a uniquely queer perspective. Over the last 10 years Jody has created and performed a wide array of evening-length works and performance installations described as “uncategorizable spectacles” (The Stranger) for theaters, museums, clubs, parking lots, and abandoned buildings. She is a 2020 NEFA’s National Dance Project finalist, 2017 Artist Trust Fellowship recipient, 2016 NEFA’s National Dance Project awardee, and 2015 Stranger Genius Award winner. She has been presented locally at On the Boards, Washington Ensemble Theatre, Seattle Theatre Group, and the Henry Art Gallery. She has been presented nationally at the USF in Tampa FL, Go Drag! Festival, Berlin, Germany; University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI; Centro de las Artes, Monterrey, Mexico; The Yard at Martha’s Vineyard; American Dance Festival, Durham, NC; and FringeArts in Philadelphia, PA. Her exhibition DITCH was presented at the Frye Art Museum, Seattle, WA; The Momentary at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Bentonville, AK; Sarasota Art Museum, FL; and Akron Art Museum, OH. DITCH was featured in ARTnews, i-D Magazine and NBC’s 12 must-see LGBTQ art shows around the world.