Ongina speaks and performs at Colorado Health Network’s 40th Anniversary Gala
3 years ago
United States Jody Kuehner, known as Cherdonna Shinatra, is a Seattle-based dance artist, director, and drag queen recognized for her unique blend of contemporary dance, drag, and performance art, offering brands a distinctive and thought-provoking artistic collaboration.
Cherdonna Shinatra performs her brand-new show, "Cherdonna's Favorite Things," at the Intiman cabaret. Jody Kuehner, as Cherdonna Shinatra, utilizes dance, drag, theater, camp, feminist traditions, absurdity, and subversive commentary in her art.
Jody Kuehner developed the Cherdonna character, initially in partnership with drag king Lou Henry Hoover (Ricki Mason). This collaboration, known as "Cherdonna and Lou," was a significant part of her early career, with Cherdonna debuting alongside Lou Henry Hoover in 2009.
FringeArts featured Cherdonna Shinatra's persona and company (which encompasses all works choreographed and created by Jody Kuehner) in a digital playbill for the production 'Clock That Mug or Dusted', described as part bio drag queen, part contemporary dance, and part performance art.
Cherdonna Shinatra was mentioned in "The Inexplicable, Fascinating Cherdonna Shinatra" by The Stranger, detailing how Cherdonna and Jackie Hell performed together multiple times before anyone realized Cherdonna wasn't a biological male.
Jody Kuehner, known as Cherdonna Shinatra, fundraises through Fractured Atlas for her work, which incorporates dance, drag, theater, absurdity, and subversive commentary. This platform supports her artistic projects and development dating back to her arrival in Seattle twenty years prior.
SeattleDances featured an interview with Jody Kuehner, the creative force behind Cherdonna, discussing her upcoming show 'DITCH', the evolution of her performative work, and her insights into clowning and drag, following her 2017 DanceCrush award for 'one great, bright, brittle alltogetherness'.
Cherdonna Shinatra's 'DITCH' ran from January 28 through April 28, 2019, at the Frye Art Museum. This project involved a full gallery installation with live performance, exploring identity and political themes.
Jody Kuehner, born in 1979, is an American dancer, drag queen, and performance artist based in Seattle. She earned both a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of South Florida. Kuehner developed the persona of Cherdonna Shinatra, an atypical drag queen who combines abstract movement with contemporary clowning. This character explores themes of exaggerated femininity and challenges gender perceptions, often leading to audience interaction that blurs the lines between performer and observer. Cherdonna’s unique style has been described as a “female impersonator impersonator,” where a female-bodied person presents as a male-bodied person presenting as a female.
Throughout her career, Kuehner has gained significant recognition for her innovative work. She was awarded the Stranger Genius Award in Performance in 2015 and was a recipient of the Velocity Dance Center’s Artist in Residence in 2014, as well as the Spotlight Award in 2010. Her choreography has been showcased at prominent contemporary dance venues across Seattle, including On The Boards, Velocity Dance Center, Bumbershoot, CityArtsFest, Northwest Film Forum, Henry Art Gallery, and Frye Art Museum. In 2014, Kuehner received a Grants for Artist Projects (GAP) award, which supported the creation of a custom costume by Seattle fashion designer Mark Mitchell for her show, ‘Worth My Salt’. This production exemplifies her approach of merging bio drag queen performance art with contemporary dance.
Kuehner’s work has received funding from the New England Foundation for the Arts’ National Dance Project for her two-year, three-part project, ‘one great, bright, brittle alltogetherness’. This project involved collaborations with the Henry Art Gallery, Velocity Dance Center, and On the Boards, with components touring across the United States. She was also the Production Coordinator and Assistant Director for Dayna Hanson from 2010 to 2015 and danced with the Pat Graney Company from 2007 to 2016, where she assisted with Graney’s KTF Prison Project. As Cherdonna, she has performed alongside international sensations such as Kitten N’ Lou and BenDeLaCreme. Kuehner is also an educator, teaching Professional Contemporary Dance at Velocity Dance Center and having instructed at Strictly Seattle and the Seattle Festival of Dance Improvisation.
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