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Cherdonna Shinatra to Perform at Velocity Dance Center this Month

Seattle's Cherdonna integrates feminism—and dessert—with drag

A woman in a yellow costume posing on a blue background.
A woman in a yellow costume posing on a blue background.

This article originally appeared in the June 2016 issue of Seattle magazine.

Cherdonna Shinatra, the “drag/dance bio-fem” creation of Seattle-based dancer, choreographer and performance artist Jody Kuehner, is one of a growing number of drag personas nationwide performed by women. Rather than striving for catty perfection, she aims instead for discombobulation.

Staggeringly tall in her platform heels and lop-sided, sky-high bouffant, and adorned with costumes and makeup that exceed the farthest parameters of the genre in their disruptive flamboyance, the comic Cherdonna displays a vulnerability and impulsiveness on stage that inevitably gives way to heartbreak and regret.

Clock that Mug or Dusted, a new work commissioned and produced by Velocity Dance Center’s new Made in Seattle dance development program, is the second part of her three-part suite titled one great, bright, brittle alltogetherness. While Cherdonna’s work has consisted of pure gender-bending physical comedy, this is described as an homage to feminist performance artists such as Janine Antoni and the avant-garde dance artist Anna Halprin, who used the body as a canvas for social change, rebellion, community and personal expansion.

The performance— which will result in cake smeared upon a huge canvas—promises to combine classic feminist ideals with present-day queer drag vision. 6/2–6/5 and 6/10–6/12. 7:30 p.m. Prices vary. Velocity Dance Center, Capitol Hill, 1621 12th Ave.; 206.325.8773; velocitydancecenter.org

 

SENSORIUM Takes on Our Screen Addiction

SENSORIUM Takes on Our Screen Addiction

Dance, drag, and immersive art collide in an eight-week exploration of our phone-obsessed lives, with a few surprises along the way. 

What do drag queens, smartphone addiction, art installations, and an old luggage shop have in common?  According to longtime Seattle choreographer Alana O’Farrell Rogers, a lot.  “There’s no dead time anymore,” says Rogers, explaining how the proliferation of smartphones fills the empty spaces that once served as time for rest or connection. Where we snuggled…

Salt-N-Pepa on Breaking Barriers and Staying Power

Salt-N-Pepa on Breaking Barriers and Staying Power

Ahead of their performance at Seattle’s Museum of Pop Culture gala, the hip-hop pioneers talk about creative ownership, connecting with new generations, and the songs that still resonate.

The Museum of Pop Culture (MOPOP) will host its annual ICONS of Pop Culture Gala in Seattle on October 22, honoring five artists and institutions whose work has helped shape entertainment and culture.  This year’s honorees are martial arts and film legend Bruce Lee, fashion designer Jeremy Scott, the video game franchise Halo, hip-hop pioneers…

Studio Sessions: Christopher Paul Jordan

Studio Sessions: Christopher Paul Jordan

Drawing on childhood memories, neighborhood history, and salvaged materials, Christopher Paul Jordan’s latest show at Cornish’s Behnke Family Gallery explores how the past stays with us.

Start in the middle. It’s good advice for telling a story, and a way into Christopher Paul Jordan’s paintings. By the time you encounter them, their materials have already been something else, and who knows what they might move on to become. The Tacoma interdisciplinary artist works with salvaged objects, including screens, picture frames, canvas,…

Rearview Mirror: Wedding Bells, A Furniture Launch, and the Symphony’s New Look 

Rearview Mirror: Wedding Bells, A Furniture Launch, and the Symphony’s New Look 

Things I did, saw, ate, learned, or read in the past week (or so).

WEDDING BELLS I’ve been a bit absent from this column lately, but I think I have a pretty good excuse: I got married! It’s already been three weeks since my September 19 wedding, but I’m still reflecting on the magic of the day. My fiancé, well husband now (I can’t get used to saying it!),…