Meet Kat Gurley | Dancer and Choreographer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Kat Gurley and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Kat, why did you decide to pursue a creative path?
There wasn’t a clear moment when I decided to be an artist it was more just how I was in the world. It was intrinsic or as some say a core value or part of my blueprint. Creativity has always been at the heart of my engagement with life. It’s been the vehicle for me to engage with the world in the ways I find most meaningful. Beauty, soul expression, connectivity, risk, and spiritual transformation. Art has all those things for me. More specifically, I have always been a dancer from a very young age and my creative pursuits webbed out from that knowledge. I loved performing as well. It felt like it was the only time I was truly seen and for me being seen publicly felt important and gratifying. I have always been a visual artist as well so choreography was a perfect way for me to blend my theatrical self, my physical or dancing self, and my aesthetic self.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I am a dancer and choreographer who currently creates evening-length dance concerts for my dance company, Wild Heart Dance. What this means is I usually pick a piece of music, currently, I am mostly working with whole symphonies and I create a dance to it. We usually perform this work in a theater and it’s usually about an hour long. Sometimes we perform excerpts of the work in other contexts. This aspect of our work is similar to other dance companies. However where we diverge is probably more in the intention, content, and intended impact of the work.

My work is designed to be a soul expression that alters the space and hopefully all the participants: myself, the dancers, and the audience. What the exchange looks and feels like depends on the person and the work at that time. Currently, I feel that my work is life-affirming and life-giving. It usually takes us all on a journey that ends somewhere new however it is not a narrative that follows a specific storyline.

My work also is primarily a felt and visceral experience. It doesn’t follow a specific story line although it does have an arch. People leave talking about the beauty, the emotions, the sensations, and the memories that fleetingly surface. It’s hard to describe but maybe it’s close to a dream that leaves you feeling differently about something or someone including yourself.

I am very proud of the relationship I have with my dancers and the caliber of the work. The choreography, the dancing the costumes, and the lighting design by our talented designer, Shevek Major-Peers all come together to create something truly magical.

I am very excited about our new work, One Lost Song which will premiere at the Nomad Playhouse in Boulder, in April 2024. We just performed an excerpt of it last weekend it was fantastic. I could feel the work land and I understood more clearly the direction we’re headed for April. It’s passionate, sensual, full of life and expression. It feels like a homecoming for me. I love it and I’m very excited for the premiere.

Where I am professionally at this time in my life is due to a lot of work and evolution over time. There is nothing easy about being an artist. I feel like artists say that but unless you are in the field you may not understand how challenging it is. We live in a society that loves to consume the arts but doesn’t love to value them. I of course am not speaking about individuals but rather the pervasive culture. Our culture places the majority of its value and resources into things that make money and in regards to art the kind that entertains. Let me be clear I think art for entertainment has value, place, and purpose just not all the value, place, and purpose. Artists who are valued and given the means to have sustainable careers create beauty and value in people’s lives that goes beyond entertainment. It challenges, encourages, and uplifts. It sustains the parts of us that are more elusive but no less important. Our souls, our dreams, our connectivity to the world and ourselves.

I’m not sure I’ve overcome the challenges of being an artist in this society. However, I do believe deeply in what I do and my purpose in the world. I would love to live in a world that reflects and appreciates all of us in meaningful ways. I don’t know how to change the world other than what I am doing which is creating the caliber and content that I am making and having it ripple out.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I would take them to a dance concert of course. I would take them to one of our concerts or a 3rd Law Dance Theater concert, a New Breed dance concert, or possibly something at the Newman Center.

I would take them out to eat in Boulder at the Dushanbe Tea House because the building is so beautiful and I love three-leaf farms food.

I would take them on a hike in Chautauqua because of the beauty and those mountains feel so welcoming to me.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
In the early years my godmother, Mary always recognized and encouraged my capacity to create, perform, and express myself in the world. I very much needed someone to see that and encourage it and without it I don’t know if I would have stayed the course so to speak. Being an artist is so challenging that I needed someone very close to me to validate my gifts and intrinsic value.

My dancers have played a pivotal role in my development as an artist. They are incredibly gifted dancers but they’ve also been incredibly trusting of me and loyal to my work and my process. They are willing to take the ride with me and give their all. There is a lot of trust and dedication between us and I am very lucky to have them.

My husband has enabled me to pursue the aspects of my career that are most fulfilling to me and not just take any job that comes along. This not only makes me happy but it also frees up a lot of my energy for the creations that I love. I am very lucky to have this. If I didn’t have a partner that supported me in this way my life would look a lot different.

Website: wildheartdance.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wildheartdance/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wildheartdenver

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvdcY43UKm5hdMW9AQmw3OQ

Other: email: wildheartdancedenver@gmail.com

Image Credits
Grace Creative Studios Jamie Kraus Photography Martha Wirth Flavio Soares Pena Heather Gray Photography Ken Kao