20 Grains of Rice by Kate Kamo Mchugh curated by Bageshree Vaze

[Dancer/choreographer Kate Kamo McHugh sits on a suitcase with her head bowed in profile. She is seated in front of a series of wavy lines projected behind her made by Meghan Cheng]

[Image Description: Dancer/choreographer Kate Kamo McHugh sits on a suitcase with her head bowed in profile. She is seated in front of a series of wavy lines projected behind her made by Meghan Cheng]

Curator Bageshree Vaze selected Kate Kamo McHugh's project '20 Grains of Rice' for a technical residency and development period.

Kate and her collaborator Meghan Cheng integrated projection mapping, storytelling and dance to tell the story of Kate's family history with the Japanese interment camps in Canada.

The team worked with dramaturg Intisar Awisse, creative instigator Andrea Nann and outside eye Denise Fujiwara.

This residency was supported in part by The National Ballet of Canada’s CreativAction Open Space program with additional support from The Region of Waterloo Arts Fund and Green Light Arts.

Photo by Colin Boyd Shafer 
 

Choreography & Performance: Kate Kamo McHugh

[Image Description: Kate Kamo McHugh, a Japanese-Canadian woman, looks off into the distance. Her hands are in her pockets and her black hair is draped over a white collared shirt]

[Image Description: Kate Kamo McHugh, a Japanese-Canadian woman, looks off into the distance. Her hands are in her pockets and her black hair is draped over a white collared shirt]

Kate Kamo McHugh is a dance and theatre artist from Kitchener, Ontario. She is interested in artistically exploring concepts such as migration, belonging and the intersection of art and care - all themes she feels intimately connected to in her everyday life.

Recent highlights for Kate include an artist residency with MT Space and the National Arts Centre, a collective research project TBD (To Be Danced) with CanAsian Dance, and performing Theatre for Early Years with Cosmic Fishing Theatre.


Currently she is working on her show 20 Grains of Rice: Seeds of Reclamation, an exploration of Japanese Canadian identity - cultural loss, retention and creation. Kate holds a BFA from Toronto Metropolitan University in Theatre Performance Dance. 


Photo by Colin Boyd Shafer 

Projection Mapping and Sound: Meghan Cheng

[Image Description: Meghan Cheng wears a black V neck shirt and looks directly into the camera]

Meghan creates artwork in the form of light sculptures, projection mapping or screen-based work for festivals, concerts, galleries, and retail businesses.  Her work is interactive and data based, in that she takes real world elements such as audio, motion and web and social media activity and uses that data to drive visual elements.  

Meghan aims to make digital content that feels tangible, relatable and natural through the use of hand drawn images, photography, acoustic instrumental music as well as generative forms.  She uses programs such as TouchDesigner and Unreal Engine to integrate the data with the visual content.  Meghan has a master's in fine arts from York University (Toronto, ON) and a bachelor of music from Berklee College of Music (Boston, USA).

She has worked with artists like Thin Edge New Music Collective, Francesca Gaza, Sasha Berliner and provided immersive installations for ArtworxTO, Light Up The Square Mississauga, Women From Space Festival, InterAccess’ VectorFest and several other concerts and live performances.  She has been fortunate enough to receive the Ontario Arts Council Chalmer’s Professional Development grant and the Daniels Artscape Foundation Bursary.