Join us for a very special Side Yard Sounds curated by Sara Zalek!
#244 Lake Street, Oak Park, IL
BYOB
$15 Your contributions help us keep paying artists and keep this program alive!

Love (a short reading by Sara Zalek) followed by Tiny Precious Objects, a work in progress reflection by Christine Shallenberg and Aurora Tabar on the exuberance and banality of motherhood, inspired by fierce mama bears, mouthbrooding fish, and dedicated sand grouse. There will be two solo musical sets by Mabel Kwan and Kim Nucci. 

Tiny Precious Objects is a work in progress reflection on the exuberance and banality of motherhood. We, Christine and Aurora, are two mother artists trying to understand ourselves and the altered state of our lives. We take inspiration from fierce mama bears, mouthbrooding fish, and dedicated sand grouse.

Christine Shallenberg is a teaching artist and mom. Her work ranges in mode from electronic textiles to light and sound installations to participatory choreographies for audiences (and sometimes her child). Her long-time collaboration with Jenn Cooper, JCSpaceRadio, engaged in a casually critical dialogue with frequencies through workshops, performances and interactive installations. Her work has been seen at Links Hall, High Concept Laboratories, Experimental Sound Studio, Hume Gallery, Tritriangle and No Nation in Chicago, as well as Movement Research, Galapagos Art Center, Williamsburg Arts Nexus, and Triskelion Arts in NYC. She also worked as the Lighting Designer for the Merce Cunningham Dance Company for whom she designed Second Hand, Antic Meet, Nearly 902 and more than 30 unique Event performances seen around the world. She continues to design for performance with Every house has a door.

Aurora Tabar is a performing artist, occupational therapist, and multi-tasking mom. Her professional and creative practices examine the process of healing and the potential for transformation. Most recently Aurora had the pleasure of collaborating with members of WATCHTOWER (Rosé Hernandez, Ginger Krebs, Bryan Saner, and Sara Zalek) during a residency at Roman Susan Gallery. Aurora has presented solo and collaborative performances across Chicago including at Elastic Arts Foundation, Prop Theater, Links Hall, and High Concept Laboratories. As a special educator, Aurora is committed to inclusion and helping students build functional skills that they can carry into the future. She lives on the west side of Chicago with her partner, two adorable kiddos, and a cohort of cats. 

Kim Nucci is an Oakland/Chicago-based multimedia artist, composer / improviser, and technologist, performing on saxophones, electronics, voice, and live projection. Nucci's research interests explore the pedestrian cybernetic body, critically examining our relationship with technology and with our instruments. Their performance practice is invested in ritualism and trance states in improvisation. They hold an MFA in Electronic Music and Recording Media, and an MA in Music Composition from Mills College, and a BA in Visual Arts and Music Composition from Bennington College. They have been presented by SFMOMA, Gray Area, Oberlin College, Elastic Arts, Tritriangle, BabyCastles, CCRMA (Stanford), ODC Theatre, Incline Gallery, The Jazzschool, The Center for New Music (C4NM), Dub Club LA at the Echoplex, and many DIY spaces across the US. They have been an artist in residence with ACRE Residency, Zero1, Paul Dresher Studios DEAR, and Counterpulse ARC Combustible residencies. Nucci is the Technical Director of Driven Arts Collective (DAC), head of ACRE Residency's sound department, and an Organizer with Center for Concrete and Abstract Machines in Chicago.

Website: kimnucci.com

IG: @plzsendpzza

video links: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLjuH8blXaOV-ZK1AgHFidSb_MkfYBkyaC&feature=shared

https://vimeo.com/kimnucci

Pianist Mabel Kwan is fascinated by sounds, contradictions, and our perception of what is familiar or strange. She is a founding member of Ensemble Dal Niente, Honestly Same, and Mega Laverne and Shirley. A native of Austin, Texas, Mabel received piano performance degrees from Rice University and Northern Illinois University. She is a 2017 3Arts Awardee, 2018 High Concept Labs Artist, and 2020 City of Chicago Esteemed Artist.

Sara Zalek is a transdisciplinary artist, producer, and curator of events and curious objects. Rooted in physical investigations of trauma, resilience, and transformation, their work is intimate, raw, poetic. 

​Zalek performs often in both live and online situations; The City of Chicago named them an Esteemed Artist in 2022. Through a Curatorial Grant at Elastic Arts Foundation in 2020, they produced Hot Mess!, a transdisciplinary, transgenerational, hybrid online and live performance, ten episodes over three years. They were a Chicago Dancemakers Forum Lab Artist in 2015, 2017 3Arts Make a Wave Awardee, and Ragdale Foundation Fellow. They have performed and curated performances at the Chicago Cultural Center, High Concept Labs, Elastic Arts, Experimental Sound Studio, Comfort Station, Compound Yellow, Links Hall, dfbrl8r, Urban Guild in Kyoto, Japan, and many more.

​Through Butoh Curious, Zalek connects national and international teaching artists with Chicago art makers across genres including dance, butoh, physical theater, experimental and improvisational music. They create opportunities for positive communication and arts integration using workshops, performances, and conversations about personal and collective bodies. Butoh Curious CHI