Today we’d like to introduce you to Kate March.
Hi Kate, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstories.
I began dancing when I was 3 years old. Even from that young age, it was clearly my destiny. I never believed I could make a career out of dance so, alongside my extracurricular pursuits as a child and teenager, I thought I would be a doctor. In my youth, science was always a passion for me as well. I went to Connecticut College with the intention of studying neuroscience and dance. My love of the creative process, choreography, and performance thrived at Conn College and after studying in Denmark my junior year, I came back with the clear aspiration of choosing dance as my professional path. Following graduation, I received my Master’s Degree in Choreography in London, England where I created my first evening-length work: An Evening of Meat (which is still to this day one of my most “commercially successful” works). I moved to Hong Kong for an opportunity and lived there and in Asia for almost 7 years. I started an immersive performance company there called I AM Concepts. I travelled all over the world with my performers and collaborators producing, directing, creating, and performing. I have performed/presented work in Hong Kong, Taiwan, China, Australia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, the Maldives, Portugal, England, and all over the US (to name a few). I returned to the US in 2016 to be with my now-husband Paul. Althought I was back in the US, I was still traveling internationally for my work almost 150,000 miles per year. A few years later, I rebranded I AM Concepts to the March Art House. I also began getting more and more painting commissions (where I paint large-scale works with my body). When I returned to America, I began visiting my best friend Liz Barry quite a bit in Charleston. My husband and I loved this city and decided to purchase a place here in 2018. We were living in Brooklyn and it was our goal to move down to Charleston at some point…But, this goal swiftly became a reality when the pandemic first hit. When offices closed in NYC, we came down here and now, since we both can work remotely, we have made South Carolina our full-time home. I gave birth to my son Simeon in 2021. So, between the pandemic, pregnancy, and a new baby, I am just now getting back into the mindset of performing again in public and in “real life” rather than just virtually. I am also working on a Ph.D. with my Master’s alma mater which explores female pain using an embodied creative practice. I’m hoping with my Ph.D. to be able to weave my interests in women’s studies, feminist theory, feminist disability studies, and performance studies into something I can then share with both audiences and students in the future.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Haha. No, not a smooth road. But what fulfilling path is always smooth?
I think particularly in the last few years it’s been really difficult. I create art for a live audience to experience with and alongside me. I really believe in the magic of dance and live artforms because both audience and artist are co-creating a unique moment in time and space. Live presence is so special and in my mind, is irreplaceable. It’s been challenging, to say the least, to safely produce my art for live audiences, in the time of covid.
Generally speaking, being an entrepreneur and an artist, the road is never smooth per se… it’s always an adventure and pushes you to enjoy challenges as opportunities. I have always enjoyed being able to focus on finding solutions rather than consider anything as a struggle.
In general, the arts are not valued much in society especially American society. It’s been a hard transition back to the states after finding at least a little more value and appreciation abroad. Perhaps it’s slowllllllly changing…
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
My artistic identity has always been difficult to define succinctly. I am definitely a multi-hypehnate artist. Dancer, Choreographer, Poet, Director, Painter, Writer.
I am at my very core: a dancer and performer. Moving my body and using my body to create art in order to evoke emotions in other people is what I do best. Sometimes my art takes shape as an immersive performance experience, a choreographed dance work, a conceptual art experience, a film, poetry, or paintings. I would say I am most “known” for creating immersive dining concepts and also, my solo work which entails creating large paintings by dancing on canvas or wood with paint.
The particular piece of work I would say I am most known for in particular is my immersive dining concept “An Evening of Meat” More information on that: aneveningofmeat.com. I am most proud of that work because of the longevity and the level of deep development it has had over a decade.
I am also proud of my collection of poetry that has manifested in a poetry book: Thirst of Pisces. I did a TEDx talk in Hong Kong which I am also quite proud of: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4nsGaCnEhgM … And finally, anytime I am commissioned to create a painting with my body I feel so proud to share my inspiration with others.
My work is unique in that it’s always underscored with the use of the body with a focus, in particular, on a woman’s body. Also, I really always consider my interaction with the audience. Pre-pandemic, my performances, and conceptual experiences focused on an intimate proximity between artists and audience. I rarely use the traditional relationship between performers and audience with a stage. My work tends to be in unique places and contexts. Finally, I really use improvisation at the heart of my work; trusting in spontaneity and the intuition of both artist and audience.
So, before we go, how can our readers or others connect or collaborate with you? How can they support you?
I am so nurtured by creative collaborations. Whether it’s showing my visual art in a local store or gallery; performing at a hotel or restaurant during a brunch or happy hour, or reading my poetry over zoom to local community; I am always inspired to be a dynamic part of the fabric of my community. I love showing that even the most abstract or experimental of art, when presented with care and consideration, will somehow inspire and move people when done well.
I always look for spaces to perform or share my work. I always seek artistic collaborators of all forms. Simply sharing my work with others is the best way to support me. My websites are katemarch.com (the hub of all my solo work), outpour.art (visual art); thirstofpisces.com (poetry); aneveningofmeat.com (the immersive dining concept) and marcharthouse.com (my group work)…
Yes, I have a LOT of websites to peruse haha.
Contact Info:
- Email: info@marcharthouse.com
- Website: katemarch.com; marcharthouse.com; outpour.art; thirstofpisces.com
- Instagram: @iam_katemarch @marcharthouse
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/katemarchliveart
Image Credits
Elizabeth Barry
