KATIE BURKS
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ABOUT
Katie Burks is an American dancer, choreographer, educator, and adventurer
who has been privileged to perform, teach, and present choreographic work across the USA and internationally. Passionate about all types of movement, Katie is inspired by outdoor adventure, global exploration, and travel.
Katie Burks Dance Reel
Dance
Biography
A proud native of Dallas, Texas, Katie is a graduate of Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Dance from Point Park University, from where she graduated cum laude, and a Master of Fine Arts in Choreography with distinction from Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance.
Katie has enjoyed a diverse and international performance, choreographic, and teaching career. She served as a founding member of contemporary dance company Fault Line Dance (PDX) as well as a dancer and teaching artist for Attack Theatre (PGH) which blends modern dance, original live music, and interdisciplinary art forms. A founding member of Portland, Oregon's Leoné Dance Theatre, Katie served as the Jazz dance company's Rehearsal Director throughout their 2017-2018 season.
Katie has been fortunate to perform alongside various organizations as different as Shen Wei Dance Arts (NYC) and the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders (DFW). She has been truly blessed to work with and perform the works of many life-changing dance icons including Mr. Robert Battle, Peter Chu, Larry Keigwin, Jessica Lang, and the ineffable Twyla Tharp.
As an educator, Katie has had the privilege of teaching dance to educational outreach programs, dance studios, schools, and universities across North America and in England as well as guest teaching in Europe and in China. She holds TEFL/TESOL certificates to teach the English language as well as is presently learning to speak and teach dance in Spanish.
From presenting work in local artist showcases in Portland, Oregon to sharing the stage with talented artists and choreographers in Athens, Greece, Katie is grateful to have presented her choreography across the USA and in China, England, Europe, and Mexico thus far. Her first full production, Ways of Seeing (2019) raised approximately $3000 in benefit of Portland, Oregon based non-profit The Aspire Project. In November of 2020, Katie presented her first global dance theatre production, TOTAL FEAR as the capstone project of her MFA graduate research.
Katie presently teaches dance to ages 4 - 18, serves as a Company Director and faculty member for XD2 competitive dance studio in North Texas, and is in the research and development phase of what will be her first evening-length work, which holds the working title Sirens.
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Recent Projects (That I Think Are Pretty Cool)Celebrating Hope Warsaw, Poland | May 2023 Performance concert for residents of CPH Modlinska, Ukrainian refugee humanitarian aid center bringing together international performing artist dancers, musicians, and actors, and providing performance opportunity for children residents of the center Burden Warsaw, Poland | July 2022 Artists Sans Frontières partnered with The Glitch Project (London) to produce ASF's first residency-based immersive dance theatre work supporting performing artists from Ukraine and Belarus TOTAL FEAR Global | October 30th 2020 Horror dance-theatre production based on Total Theatre and the process of generating fear for dance and theatrical stage Ways of Seeing Portland, OR | September 14th 2019 Creator. 90-minute benefit dance production based on research of perception and accessibility which raised approximately $3,000 for local non-profit The Aspire Project Creative Dance Workshop Wenzhou, China | July 5-8th 2019 Teaching Artist. Four-day Creative Dance and Choreography workshop organized by UK-China Performing Arts Greenwich Music Time Festival London, England | July 2nd 2019 Performer, Boundless Skies; Instructor, Painting the Sky - an adaptation of Boundless Skies through dance and music composition workshops held with 40+ Primary School students and musician Richard Navarro Spatial Performance Festival Athens, Greece | June 14– 15th, 2019 Choreographer and Performer, Processing (in collaboration with AAIS) and solo work Thread (world premiere) as part of Interdisciplinary Festival presented by Gesamtatelier
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Companies + Individuals That Hired Me (Some Even Paying Actual Money)AAIS - Architectural Interprofessional Studios | London, OR Performance Projects, 2018-2019 Leoné Dance Theatre | Portland, OR One Year Contract, 2017- 2018 Founding Member, Rehearsal Director Fault Line Dance | Portland, OR One Year Contract, 2016-2017 Founding Member, Executive Assistant to Artistic Director Eliza Larson Attack Theatre | Pittsburgh, PA Independent Contractor, Teaching Artist, Dancer 2011 - 2014 Game Night and the Seven-Minute Dance Series, annual productions of The Dirty Ball Zoe Bennett | New York, NY Performance Project, 2014 Distilled Vinegar reconstructed at Dixon Place Shen Wei Dance Arts | New York, NY Performance Project, 2012 Undivided Divided presented at North Carolina Museum of Art Repertory Dance Companies I and II | Dallas, TX Educational, 2007-2009 Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts
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Additional Artists That Put Up With Me (Both On and Offstage)Those Gracious Enough To Let Me Perform Their Work: Camille A. Brown, Sand | Peter Chu, Smell Memory with Nine | Bill T. Jones via Stuart Singer, Chapel Chapter | Larry Keigwin, Angels of Anxiety | Jessica Lang, Prayers | Mark Morris via Elisa Clark, Polka and Bedtime | Judith Leifer-Bentz, 9 Minutes | Solveig Santillano, Faces of Trafficking | Kate Skarpetowska, Tidal Intersections | Twyla Tharp, Treefrog in Stonehenge | Christopher Vo, On The Cusp and Remembrance Those Gracious Enough to Teach Me: Doug Bentz | Mr. Robert Battle | Elisa Clark | Dr. Rosanne Cox | Sue Darrow | Michele de la Reza | Melissa Glasgow | Mark Haim | Ms. Gerri Houlihan | Dr. Linda James | Peter Kope | Eliza Larson | Garfield Lemonius | Jason McDole | Ariane Reinhart | Kyle Richards | Laura Stilwell | Jeannie Strain | Tony Thatcher | Deborah Weaver | Lee Ann Strain-Whittington | Lily Weiss | Sara Wookey | Jesse Zaritt | and so many more...
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Education (Schools I’ll Be Financing Forever)Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance | London, England Master of Fine Arts in Choreography Programme Leader: Tony Thatcher Point Park University | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Bachelor of Arts in Dance, cum laude 2013 Artistic Director: Susan Stowe Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts | Dallas, Texas Artistic Director: Lilly Weiss
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