Chicago, IL – June 2024
Jayde Kief makes her directorial and choreographic debut at Chicago’s oldest running Fringe Festival, RhinoFest, with her original work “WO.MUN” at Facility Theater in Humboldt Park. The ambitious four-act contemporary dance theater piece explores the celestial connection between woman’s power and the power of the moon, performing June 12, 14, 16, and 19, 2024.
“WO.MUN” challenges and expands upon the traditional “Three Faced Goddess” archetype by presenting the Four Faced Woman—Babe, Youth, Adult, and Elder—who gazes down from her throne in the sky. “At midnight the seed of life bursts forth into a fragile, magic creature,” Kief explains. “As woman pushes through time, she evolves, discovering her inner-power and cycling through vitality over and over again.”
The production weaves together contemporary dance, spoken word, and theatrical ritual, featuring texts by Dr. Clarissa Pinkola Estés, Sylvia Plath, Mary Oliver, and Lady Mary Wortley Montagu. Each of the four talented dancers—Josie Starr (Youth), Karah Thompson (Babe), Nic Steffensen (Adult), and Emma Raney (Elder)—contributed to their own solos, creating a collaborative exploration of the feminine life cycle.
As a multidisciplinary artist who spent her formative years studying Ballet, Modern, and Dance Science in Los Angeles and performing with The Wallis Studio Ensemble at the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts, Kief brings a unique perspective to this deeply personal work. She performed Panorama at CSUN, opening for the Martha Graham Dance Company, garnering a deep appreciation for classic modern dance. Since relocating to Chicago in 2020, she has focused on dance education while developing her choreographic voice, currently mentored by Deborah Byczkowski in RPM with an emphasis on dance anatomy.
“This piece processes my experience of growing up and stepping into my womanhood,” Kief said. “It explores cycles, transformation, and the divine feminine—both the moon’s influence and our own infinite possibilities for rejuvenation and discovery.”
Kief served as Director, Choreographer, and Producer, with Josie Starr as Choreographer’s Assistant. Production photography by Samantha Boehlen captures the ethereal quality of this groundbreaking work.
RhinoFest, celebrating over three decades of showcasing innovative performance art, provides the perfect platform for Kief’s boundary-pushing exploration of feminine power and lunar wisdom. “WO.MUN” invites audiences to witness a raw, celebratory embodiment of the complete cycle of womanhood.
Tickets and performance information available at RhinoFest.com.
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Jayde Sunburst 
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