I founded Funsch Dance Experience in 2002 to question representation, narrative, and conventional depictions of gender through deeply investigated, specific movement vocabularies. Central to my work are performances of awkward intimacies and a dismantling of performance clichés such as narrative arcs, large men lifting small women, and work that culminates in group unison. Duration, repetition, and sequencing fascinate me as ways to advocate for multiple meanings in phrase-making and larger organizational structures. Instead of technical, or conventional, virtuosity, I prefer the virtuosity of unguarded vulnerability. I believe in non-commercial and challenging works of art that empower viewers to think and bring their own insights to the experience.

My choreographic trajectory has evolved over time from emotionally-driven narrative pieces (Daisy, 2002), to genre-blending theatrical works (Boy Blue, 2004; To Mifune, 2007), to somatic improvisation (Box Elder, 2009), to an emergent premise process wherein questions drive the creative process (This is the Girl, 2014; Dissolver, 2015, le grand spectacle de l’effort et de l’artifice, 2016). I marked Funsch Dance’s 15th Anniversary in 2018 with two new full-length works: the multigenerational, Mother, Sister, Daughter, Marvel, co-produced by ODC Theater, and Golden Bull, co-directed with longtime dance partner Nol Simonse. In 2021, ODC Theater presented my ground-breaking 12-hour performance work EPOCH that aimed to dismantle capitalism by framing task-based action as devotional practice. During 2022-24 Funsch Dance is researching the impact of grammar on memory in “kid subjunctive” (2022); “pastpastperfect” (2023); and “indefinite pastoral.”  

-Christy Funsch