CJ Day
Staff Writer
Cat Kamrath spends a lot of time justifying her career to other people.
“It’s hard, sometimes, to work in a field that’s so abstract,” Kamrath said. “I know that it can be hard for audiences to enjoy too.”
Kamrath teaches dance and is an assistant lecturer at the University of Wyoming. This is her first year at the university after working with various dance companies in Salt Lake City, Utah, San Francisco and Los Angeles, California, along with holding different teaching positions across the nation.
While she has worked as a performer in the past, Kamrath’s real interest lies in choreography. Recently, she helped choreograph the dance program’s semester dance show “Spring to Dance” and premiered an original dance composition for it. The piece, ‘Alpenglow,’ was her first piece to be premiered at UW, though she has composed a number of other pieces during her career.
Kamrath said there is a lot of confusion as to what exactly a dance choreographer does. In other forms of art, it is clear what the creator does. An orchestra conductor leads the band and a film director calls the shots, but some of the general public are unclear on the role of the choreographer in a dance.
“A choreographer’s job is to imagine and create a new dance work,” said Kamrath. “You create all the movement, but your hands are in everything from the costumes to the music. When you create new work, it’s as much about your personal voice as anything…You have to be a visionary.”
The goal of a choreographer then is the same as any other artist: to express some sort of thought or emotion through their chosen medium.
Kamrath’s new piece is about how individuals craft a community identity. She described how she was inspired by mountains, and how groups of mountains come together to create mountain ranges. While it is easy enough for her to talk about the meaning of the dance, the real test of her skill as a choreographer is whether or not the audience picks up on that intended meaning, she said.
In fields like theater and live music, it is easier for an audience to understand the work. Dance, however, is more abstract and can be harder to understand, Kamrath said. She recommends that those watching dance come in with an open mind and watch for some key ways that choreographers try to convey meaning.
“I’m trying to express meaning through [the] use of space [and] asking how the audience can meet these dancers. The hope is that those watching will see the dancers turning into what they’re trying to signify,” she said.
Kamrath is conscious of the fact that not everyone will draw the intended meaning out of her work.
“I like my audience to create their own meaning, and that funnels me more information about the piece,” she said. “As long as you’re tuning into what you’re seeing and feeling, all takes are valid.”
She recommends the audience not to worry too much about trying to understand the work.
“Dance offers an abstract approach and that can be hard for others to enjoy,” she said. “Think of dance as a metaphor. There’s no storyline to it, it’s all about watching movement take place. I hope that the audience feels [the] energy, and leaves with a different perspective.”
Kamrath’s work also relies on input from her performers. While she said she tries to create something meaningful, UW’s dance program is centered around the needs of its students. That is a good thing, Kamrath said.
“I get to test out my new work on students,” she said. “Over the last year, we’ve become real close.”
Her students are just as happy working with her. Hannah Ellis, a student performer who works with Kamrath, praised Kamrath’s choreographic style.
“She allows us a lot of creative liberty,” Ellis said. “It really feels like she’s our mentor, she’s there to support us.”
Fellow dancer Nina Murphy echoed Ellis’s comments.
“She makes doing dancing enjoyable,” Murphy said. “She expects a lot out of us, but she likes to have fun. It feels like she’s always pushing us to be our best.”
Both students love working under Kamrath, and said they hope she has the opportunity to choreograph many more pieces for the university during her career. While dance might seem inaccessible to the average person, Kamrath has worked to make sure it is enjoyable by both audiences and performers.
