Today we’d like to introduce you to Jessica Deahr.
Jessica, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
Well, I’ve been training in dance since I was four so I suppose it all began there! After college, I got to perform with a handful of Chicago companies as well as national and international gigs before I found Chicago Dance Crash. I started as a guest artist with Chicago Dance Crash back in 2007. I moved along from there to company member and then choreographer. After I choreographed the evening length “Gotham City,” I got offered the role of Artistic Director. I’m currently kicking off my 6th year as AD and it continues to be an amazing, ever-changing experience each season. When I was a kid my favorite thing to do was create my own shows in my basement and make the neighborhood come see them. I don’t take for granted that I am lucky enough to be able to do that for a living now!
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
The bumpiest part of the road for me is when we have just wrapped up a production that we poured everything into and we have to start at ground zero with a brand new project. The process really is like reinventing the wheel each time because we don’t like to do something similar to what we have done before. It’s all worth it when you eventually look at a finished production you’re proud of and just think about how it got from A to Z. Biggest challenge besides that is always time. We are a not for profit company with set studio rental hours and show date deadlines that must be balanced with the flow of creative juices and the outside gigs we have to complete as well. But being busy is always a good problem to have in the arts world.
Please tell us about Chicago Dance Crash.
Part of the Chicago Dance Crash mission as a multi-disciplinary fusion company is to blur the line between art and entertainment. We want our work to speak to a seasoned critic as well as Joe off the street who has never seen dance. Crash is known for athletic movement that draws from breaking, acro, and contemporary. I’d say I’m most proud of the variety of talented dancers I get to work with. We want our dancers to be very unique individuals that don’t fit a similar mold with each other. That and our focus on hip hop sets us apart from a lot of concert dance companies in Chicago. One night we may host a late night, audience voted dance battle (google KTF Keeper of the Floor) and the next night we are doing an evening length Oz themed hip hop prequel show with LED bricks that light up on command (check The Bricklayers of Oz). The variety is really fun for myself, the dancers, and I hope the audience!
If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
There are entire pieces and shows I’ve created that I would wipe away from existence if I went with my first impulse! But on second thought, I wouldn’t have created some of the work that I LOVE if I hadn’t had those not so perfect ones. Part of growth, success, and finding your voice is learning from the stuff that you gave your all to but it just didn’t click for whatever reason. Its motivation to go onward and upward.
Contact Info:
- Address: 2530 w Argyle #2
Chicago IL
60625 - Website: www.chicagodancecrash.com
- Email: jdeahr@chicagodancecrash.com
- Instagram: @chicagodancecrash
- Facebook: @chicagodancecrash
- Twitter: @dancecrash
- Other: @jessicadeahr Instagram
Image Credit:
Ashley Deran
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