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Kim and Sally talk about Telluride’s Mudd Butts

12 Aug Kim and Sally talk about Telluride’s Mudd Butts

Posted at 10:15h in Old Events, Performing Arts by
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The idea to create a drama camp for kids in Telluride had been blowing in the wind. In 1987, the seed took root:  the Telluride Academy under the direction of  Wendy Brooks became the producer. Sally Davis and Kim Epifano (and John Fago, who is no longer directly involved) became co-directors. Mudd Butts thrived and grew: today, Mudd Butts International acts as a diplomat without portfolio, forging relationships and developing mutual understanding and respect for young neighbors around the globe through the medium of theater.

After 23 years and counting, Davis and Epifano remain the heart and soul of the Mudd Butts, because the two abundantly talented ladies possess childlike wisdom and grown-up teaching skills.

Sally Davis received a B.A. in sculpture in 1976 from the San Francisco Art Institute, where she also pursued studies in mime, painting, music, and East Indian dance. Today she works as a musician, theater director, video artist, and arts educator in Telluride,  and communities around the world. In Telluride, Davis’ regular gigs include The Mudd Butts Mystery Theater Troupe, Circus Holus Bolus and Moving Mountain Theater in Telluride, under the auspices of the Telluride Academy. Davis also conducts story theater and visual arts workshops at the Ah Haa School for the Arts, where she is a member of the Artists’ Circle. She sits on the board of the Telluride Institute, which honored her with its Visionary Award.

 Kim Epifano has a 25-year history as an award-winning choreographer, director, performer, vocalist, educator, and collaborator.  Since founding her company Epiphany Productions Sonic Dance Theater in 1997,  Epifano has choreographed, directed, and created music for 20 evening-length works of “sonic dance theater,” a high-energy, genre-bending blend of dance, theater, music, and vocalization in which dancers, musicians, aerialists, and actors leap from one role to another, weaving together a story on stage.  In the 1980’s and 1990’s, Epifano was a key member of two of San Francisco’s most collaborative and influential dance companies, the Dance Brigade and Contraband.  Her work has been nominated for and awarded several Bay Area Isadora Duncan Dance Awards (IZZIES).  Epifano received her MFA in Choreography from UC Davis and has more than 15 years of experience teaching dance at the collegiate level. 

Between 2007 – 2009, Epifano directed/choreographed Fears of Your Life  for Creativity Explored, Axis Dance Company, The Marsh Teen Troupe and Epiphany Productions. In 2008, the production was nominated for a visual design award by the Isadora Duncan Awards.

Click on the video and listen to the directors talk about Mudd Butts and the current production.

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