KIA SMITH
Chicago, IL
Founder/Director of Vision and Strategy for South Chicago Dance Theatre
Choreographer: My Island Highway
Biography
Kia S. Smith is a Chicago native and is the Founder/Director of Vision and Strategy for South Chicago Dance Theatre. As a freelance choreographer, her recent and upcoming commissions include Madison Ballet (2021), Chicago Repertory Ballet (2022), Houston Contemporary Dance Company (2023), Chicago Opera Theater (2022, 2023), University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (2023), Giordano Dance Chicago (2023), Western Michigan University (2023), New Dance Partners (2024), James Madison University (2024), Columbia College Chicago (2024) and Opera Laguna (2024).
Her works have been presented at the historic Auditorium Theatre of Chicago, the Harris Theater For Music and Dance, at Sons D’Hiver Jazz Festival in Paris, France, Art Ez University in Arnhem, Netherlands, in Bogota and Medellin, Colombia, Grand Valley State University, University of Wisconsin-Whitewater and others.
Kia’s first evening length work Memoirs of Jazz in the Alley was lauded a “tour de force” by See Chicago Dance and she was recently named a “rising star” by Chicago Magazine and one of Dance Magazine’s 25 to Watch for 2024. Kia is grateful to Emily for the opportunity to create a new work for Resilience Dance this season!
Interview
Tell us a little more about your background. What moments shaped your dance and choreographic career?
When I was 12 years old, I joined an organization called Music Theater Workshop (MTW) in Chicago. MTW brought young people from a diversity of cultural backgrounds and socioeconomic statuses from around the City of Chicago to create and perform original theater works together. This was my introduction to dance and theater making and it was important to me because some of the core tenants of the MTW's programming (diversity, accessibility and authenticity) have become a part of who I am as a maker and organizer.
What's important to you in a creative process?
It is important to me that the artists trust themselves, are comfortable in their skin and recognize the inherent value in their individual voices. I make my best work when I do not spend a lot of time preparing for a process. I chose the music and created the movement on the spot during my residency.
From inside the piece: Chrissy Clair on dancing in Kia's work
This piece will take you on a journey! My character begins in the space alone, isolated in a empty dreamlike world. As the others join, the world begins to shift; though it remains ethereal and dreamlike, it also evolves to welcome quirky, dynamic, and multifaceted realities. The stark moments of chaos and intensity contrast with quieter, more delicate moments that offer space for reflection. The rhythm of the dance, ever-shifting between extremes, mirrors the complexity of the human experience.