Co-MISSION Works-In-Progress Fall 2024
Our Fall 2024 Co-MISSION Residents offer a split bill Co-MISSION Works-In-Progress showing featuring Amanda Maraist, Dani Oblitas, Selena Lasley, and Kevin Michael Wesson (Theatre Nobody).
Maraist, Oblitas, Lasley, and Wesson present to audiences what they have been investigating and exploring while incubating in the white box studio since September.
ABOUT THE ARTISTS
From left to right: Kevin Michael Wesson, Amanda Maraist, Dani Oblitas, and Selena Lasley
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Theatre Nobody is a radical free theatre outfit based in Chicago.
Kevin Michael Wesson (he/they) is a proudly unrepresented puppeteer/playwright based in Chicago. Originally from Tampa, FL, he received a B.A. in Theatre Arts from the University of South Florida. His recent credits include: Where We Go Together or The Flashlight Play (Theatre Nobody), Dog or Cats; Augmented Body (Steppenwolf LOOKOUT), House of the Exquisite Corpse (Rough House Theater), All is Blue & Yellow (Collective Summ), CHRISTMAS PAGEANT (Hot Kitchen Collective), Elements of Style (The Neo-Futurists), and The Dr. Seuss Experience (Kilburn Live). His works have received mention in American Theatre Magazine, NPR, No Proscenium, & nomination for the National Puppet Slam. Currently, he is an artistic associate of the Chicago-based puppet theatre company, Rough House Theater, a founding ensemble member of the performance art company, Stop Motion Plant, and an ensemble member of the physical theatre company, Theater Unspeakable, and the voice of the experimental free theatre company, Theatre Nobody. -
Amanda Maraist is a movement deviser + improviser from the Texas Gulf Coast and co-directs bim bom studios. Her movement work exists as both dance-making and physicalized space-making towards supporting a holistic performance and movement community. Through authentic movement practices and meticulously rendered improvisational scores, she engages in playful, process-forward work with a do-it-together demeanor.
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Dani Oblitas, originally from Houston, Texas, is a dance artist and educator currently based in Chicago, IL. Dani is passionate about the intersections between movement, sovereignty, environment, and justice, as well as making movement accessible to all. Since graduating from St. Olaf College, Dani has collaborated on a dance film for the UW Madison P.O.W.E.R. Collective CYPHER performance for restorative justice and they have additionally worked with Liz Sexe Dance, KLJ Movement, We Are Collective, and 773 Dance Project.
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Selena Lasley (She/They) is a Chicago based artist originally from D.C and Temple Hills, Maryland. They are a graduate of Columbia College Chicago with a BA in Acting (2019). Selena also studied Modern, West African, Vogue Aesthetics, and Improvisation. This will be their first residency at Links Hall.
Art of Rehearsal Workshop Series Coaches
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Meida Teresa McNeal is Artistic and Managing Director of Honey Pot Performance. She received her PhD in Performance Studies (Northwestern) and her MFA in Choreography & Dance History (Ohio State). Awards include an Illinois Arts Council Fellowship in New Performance Forms, Field Foundation’s Leaders for a New Chicago, 3Arts Award in Dance, Chicago Dancemakers Forum Lab Artist, and the Links’ Hall Co-Missions Fellowship. An Independent Artist and Scholar at the intersection of performance studies, dance, and critical ethnography, Meida also teaches at University of Chicago and Columbia College Chicago. Meida also works with the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs & Special Events' Executive Administration team as the Senior Manager of Arts & Community Impact Investments building and implementing artist recovery programs and creative placemaking grantmaking initiatives. Prior to this role, Meida worked with the Chicago Park District as Arts & Culture Manager supporting community arts partnerships, youth arts, cultural stewardship, and civic engagement initiatives.
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La Mar Brown is thrilled to be a Co-Mission Artist Coach for the second year with Links Hall, and to co-lead the Art of Rehearsal process this year. He is an arts manager, producer, dancer, and singer. He currently serves as the Operations Manager for Chicago Dancemakers Forum, where he manages functions to support administrative, fundraising, and programming activities. After relocating to Chicago from Dallas, TX, he completed his Master of Arts Management at Columbia College Chicago in 2016. He also is a 2022 Leadership Institute cohort member of YNPN Chicago. La Mar’s other administrative credits include Project Coordinator, The Ruth Page Center for the Arts; Box Office Supervisor, Writers Theatre; Company Manager, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago; and Associate Patron Services Manager, the AT&T Performing Arts Center (Dallas, TX). His performance credits include Dallas Black Dance Theatre, The Ruth Page Civic Ballet, Porchlight Music Theatre, Dallas Metropolitan Ballet, Uptown Players, Garland Summer Musicals, and The Dallas Opera.