Intimacy
I offer intimacy directing and consulting services for theater and performance. Based in Cleveland, OH, I have directed moments of touch, romance, and sexuality for a variety of productions and focused on methods to create compelling work consensually and ethically. I have worked for venues from California to New York to the Midwest including Columbia University, Left Edge Theater, Convergence Continuum, Stanford University, and Oberlin College. My work is informed by years of PhD research and training with other leaders in the field like Claire Warden, Tonia Sina, Chelsea Pace, and Laura Rikard.
I offer best practices including:
Tapping in and tapping out (methods for actors to get in and out of character)
Boundary practice (a method to articulate boundaries for physical touch)
Consent talk (30-second consent check-ins before choreography)
Choreography and vocabulary (elements to compose stage intimacy)
Placeholders/adjustments (in the event of illness or accidents)
Sexual script analysis (a focus on the story being told)
Intersectional approaches centering race, gender, sexuality, and social justice
Clear language for audition notices, employee contracts, and intimacy riders
What collaborators are saying:
”I loved the balance of helping establish what felt right for our characters and taking those ideas and merging those into one choreography. I like knowing exactly what I’m going to do and knowing exactly knowing what’s going to be done to me, and that was what made me feel safe.” — Performer
“It was really helpful to have Kari come in and look at scenes that I’ve been looking at for weeks and weeks . . . being very specific about where the left arm is placed and where does the hand go, which as a director I wouldn’t have concentrated as much on. It was helpful to have an intimacy director facilitate the nuance of that.” —Director