COMPAS is excited to welcome new staff member Brittany Keefe! To help introduce Brittany to everyone, we asked her to share a little bit about herself, her experience in the arts, and a lot more!
COMPAS (C): Hi, Brittany! Please introduce yourself.
Brittany Keefe (BK): My name is Brittany Keefe. I use she/her pronouns. I am the new Youth Arts Program Manager.
C: What are some highlights from your professional background?
BK: I was incredibly fortunate to spend the first twenty-five years of my career as a professional dancer. My primary genre was contemporary ballet. I wore a tutu on occasion and also did backup dancing for Miss Gay USA. I lived, worked, and experienced many fabulous places through my dancing career.
A specific highlight was an opportunity to perform a solo improvised show in Germany and Italy. The performances were curated by Italian choreographer Lucca Veggetti, and at one site, an art museum, the score was the remounting of a John Cage score for “artists.” The composition of artists was unspecified, and I was the only mover among a group of musicians. Together, we created the most ephemeral performance of my career. I realized that although I pursued a specific type of artistic experience, the intersection of multiple genres is the most magical to me.
C: What’s your “origin story”? Every superhero has one—what’s the moment that led you to working in the arts?
BK: I began dancing because I had a lazy eye, and my mother, an occupational therapist, was concerned about my coordination and proprioception (how I understood my body in space). I knew immediately I had to keep dancing. A few years later, when my mom was going to graduate school, I knew I wasn’t in a challenging enough dance school, so I used a phone book and located a better place to train. I learned to advocate for myself and work hard at a young age!
C: What’s your go-to fun fact about yourself?
BK: I met my husband at a dance audition. Neither got the job, but we found each other – the audition was still successful!
C: If you could commission (or make) a statue of any artist (living or dead), who would it be, why, and where would you install it?
BK: If I could commission a statue of anyone, it would be of my paternal grandma, who was a painter. I don’t know if she was ever professional, but she always had her easel set up with a new painting. She modeled using art as a way to process the world and keep calm, and she always made time for pie. I would install the statue in her garden. Although our family no longer owns that home, I love the idea of leaving a piece of art as a legacy.
C: If you could describe your personality using musical terms (genre, tempo, etc.), how would you describe your personal opus?
BK: My personality opus would be a Jon Battiste-style classical piece – an allegro movement in a minor key.
C: What’s a creative experience that changed your life?
BK: A creative experience that changed my life was in 2016 when my husband and I started our dance company for young audiences called DanceCo. What changed my life was the realization that we didn’t have the money to hire anyone else to complete the sets and costumes, so I figured it out. I had some basic sewing and scene design skills. I learned I had to overcome some perfectionist tendencies and just get it done! My stitching never looks great up close, but I have created some fun things over the years.
C: You can instantly master any creative skill. What do you pick?
BK: I have always wanted to learn to play the piano. It is so magical that one instrument can do so much in many styles. My daughter has taken lessons for the last six years, and watching/hearing the process is incredible.
C: If your job came with a theme song, what would it be?
BK: Kronos Quartet, Mini Skirt off the Nuevo album. I love anything with human whistling, and the jovial yet unexpected additions are thrilling….over and over again.
C: If creativity were a superpower (which it is), what’s your artistic superpower?
BK: The Super Doer – sometimes you just have to roll up your sleeves and get it done!
