Katie Burton
trained at Unitec and graduated with her Bachelor of Performing and Screen Arts
majoring in Contemporary Dance in 2001.
Katie is a freelance choreographer, dancer, teacher and artist
coordinator based in Auckland, New Zealand.
This year Katie was an artist
liaison on the NZ International Arts Festival in Wellington, working as part of
Amy Sinclair’s team.
In 2009 Katie received the
Tup Lang Scholarship from Creative New Zealand, enabling her to travel to the
University of North Carolina to work with Larry Lavender. Katie also spent time in New York City
completing an internship at the Movement Research Centre.
Also in 2009, Katie presented
dance work as part of ‘Self Portrait’, in the NZ and Auckland Fringe
Festivals. Katie choreographed a
work ‘Carry The Boy’ for Footnote Dance Company and ‘after zero and before two’
for the first year dance degree students at Unitec. Katie also undertook the role of cast and crew coordinator
for the WOW World of Wearable Art Awards Show, having previously worked on the
show as Assistant Choreographer since 2003.
Over the past nine years,
Katie has choreographed commercial dance work for Fifa, BMW, The Bledisloe Cup
and TVNZ. Katie has choreographed
her own contemporary dance work for Footnote Dance Company, NZ, and Dunedin
Fringe Festivals. Katie is a
glowing robot dancer for Vospertron, performing at various venues in NZ,
Australia, Spain and India.
Katie was a founding member
of Vacuum PACT Dance Company, both choreographing and dancing in their Creative
New Zealand funded workshop (2005), The Lens (Tempo 2003), Roam (Hamilton
Garden Festival 2003) and their Vacuum Packed National Tour (Auckland, Christchurch,
Nelson, Dunedin 2002).
Katie is a regular
contemporary technique tutor and choreographic advisor for the Unitec School of
Performing and Screen Arts, The Performing Arts School of NZ, and Marian
McDermott School of Dance.
Class Description
I am interested in utilizing technique
class as a way to move the body in an organized and efficient way. I follow a traditional class structure,
moving from the floor, to standing alignment work, locomotive phrases and
generally a large jumping sequence to finish. My class is phrase based, and all are choreographed
carefully to music. I love moving
fast and pushing through space.
Feedback from students/peers about my class usually involves the word
‘fun’. I think it’s important to
have a good time!