An Oral History Of Columbia College Chicago Nana Shineflug It is June 4th, 1998, and this is an So this is a program that was other dancers in her company for a interview with Nana Shineflug of the independent but also, in a sense, while. And then, I’ve always had Interdisciplinary Arts Department. connected with several institu- this school called the Chicago tions. Did the other institutions Dance Center, and my partner at So the program here is [how have any problems or did the Chicago Dance Center said, old]? students have problems? “You’ve got to come see the space. Well, the Interdisciplinary Arts Somebody stuck here, about to It’s so beautiful you could just die.” program, which was originally get a degree from Loyola and It was just above the Biograph started under a group called the suddenly discovers that the Theater on Fullerton Avenue, on Consortium of Universities, which program had been bought by Lincoln and Fullerton. And so Bill was DePaul and Loyola and-what Columbia? said, “Quit that job. Let’s go look other schools where in that? There Oh no, that wasn’t a problem. Our for another studio, a really big were like four universities and they students, for the most part, have one.” So I went over to open up my were work programs that no one been here for what they can get for studio again, I had my dancers still university wanted to sponsor at a it as a human being, and some of dancing over there or teaching over graduate level but people wanted to them were in there to get a Masters at the other studio. And then even do, so they banned together and degree so they’d get more money. the Inter-Arts Department was they would teach these single We have a number of people who purchased by Columbia so then I courses. And you would shift are art teachers, you know, and it’s came back, but just in the Inter- around from one school to the not stupefied their thought and Arts Department. And then my other. Our students would get a made them go stony, in a comatose studio went bankrupt and I fooled degree from Loyola but, you know, state, get your Masters degree. So around for a while in the upper we’d be teaching at a complete they didn’t care where they got it, Northeastern area. different facility. There were just they just knew they needed it. So, programs like that. So at Columbia, no, they were fine. So you were teaching at Columbia when they started a grad program, until 1975, and then you went off we were perfect for this school Let me go back to that. Is that on your own above the Biograph because we were interdisciplinary your first connection with Theater? arts, graduate, hands-on, and Columbia College? Right, opened up a studio. Then in taught by faculty doing the things Actually, no. I was a full-time that they were teaching. Obviously faculty member in the Dance we had been a stepchild, the people Department from 1973 to ‘75. I’ve that were in the Consortium they always been a dancer in Chicago. would, you know, close the build- I’m in the era of Shirley Mordine, ing and turn all the lights out and so there were basically three of us you’d still be there because they’d that actually started the active forget about you, you know. So it dance community in Chicago: that was really nice for us to be with was Maggie Kast, Shirley, and people where we were part of the myself. When there wasn’t any real whole thing. We were definitely a dance community, we were the ones reflection of the whole entire who went like, “Hey, I want to College. And so they brought us dance so I guess I gotta to get some because we were already accredited people around me because I can’t and legitimate, and had a student do it by myself.” So we would all body and had a reputation and had basically try to collect stuff and all the things, so it was just perfect make things happen. And then for us. So Columbia just brought when Shirley’s company had a big our program, brought it in. explosion over there at the Dance Center and they left and formed Moming, and I became one of the 507 An Oral History Of Columbia College Chicago Nana Shineflug ‘83, Larry Edwards who owned the wrong, which actually was a great would be exhausted. So it’s a great Biograph said he wanted to open blessing. I was totally shocked by gift to me to be able to work in the movie theaters and kick us out. some of the stuff that happened in Theater Department. It’s also And we tried to move over into the process of doing that. So I taught me a ton about what basi- Rogers Park. It was at that time applied for, actually that was the cally the gods have been pushing at where it would be cool to move first time I ever applied for a job me ever since I remember. I got a into an old power station. So we was in my life. Because I’ve had chance, because in dancing there’s found an old power station in this life where, you know, people this overlay of the action of the step Rogers Park, very ‘70s, opened up, have always said, “Would you like and the type of technique that it hadn’t been used for twenty to do this?’ And I go like, “Yeah, you’re doing, you know, whether or years, raised eight thousand dollars sure, why not.” Then somebody not you’re doing Cunningham or to build these floors, so we did else will come up and say, “Would someone else and how complex the amazing things; we opened up this you like to do this?” And I say, combination is and are you work- new studio in Rogers Park, but not “Oh, OK, I don’t mind. That ing on your arabesque and can you one of our students followed us. would be fun.” So most of the time do this kind of turn; so that’s all Well, they didn’t want to go into I’ve just gone and done whatever it overlay. Whereas in the Theater Rogers Park. If I looked around the was to do. I mean, I did make a Department, all I had to do was try neighborhood I would have realized choice to have a dance company, to teach them to be charismatic, it had no character and I wouldn’t that I did choose to do. But I never you know? So I got a chance to have done it, you know? Because really tried to find a job. People really learn, in a really deep sense, there’s nothing that, at that time, just asked me if I wanted to work. what I know. had any real statement about Except this time, I actually applied anything, and people just didn’t for a job. The Body Movement I wish we were videotaping this want to go into Rogers Park. They position in the Theater Department because I’d like to ask you to liked North Avenue a lot, they opened up. So I actually put in an demonstrate. liked Wicker Park, it was like, application for a job, I interviewed, Well, the information that has “OK...” So we sort of lost it at that actually I didn’t interview. I walked come to me over the years, and point. We didn’t have a lot of back- in the office and Charley said, “You actually I’ve always been able to see ing at that point, we didn’t have a don’t need to talk to me. You’ve people’s energy flowing through lot of money in the bank to last got the job. Just fill up this piece their body. I used to say, I’m used very long. So we just folded up in of paper and go away.” I went, to talking about it in terms of August. “Fine.” water, which I found out relatively soon along the line is what a lot of That was ‘83? Did he know you already? the martial arts people use, because ‘83, right. And then I taught one Well, he knew Suzanne, and he it’s a primordial image that’s in class a year at every single studio in knew me. I had been around your lizard mind. So if you use the city of Chicago, which was very Chicago a long time and I have a water images the body responds so, interesting. And then I went over reputation with a lot of people and because basically what you’re trying to the Dance Department at I knew a lot of people in the to do in teaching anything with the Northeastern; took a sabbatical department. And I actually know body is get visual images that the leave and I did that for three years. something, the gift that the gods body will respond to. Because the But I got into trouble over there have given to me, which is perfect body has a natural, kinesthetic because I stood up for the students for our Theater Department. And intelligence, unlike what Howard against the department chair, which it’s also perfect for me to have a job Gardner thinks about it, which he is always a lethal thing to do.