About us
Our HISTORY
Tapman Productions, LLC began in 2012 when its first production, The Adventures of Tapman, premiered at the Skokie Theatre. Since then, TMP has gone on to produce original dance programming in a variety throughout Chicago and across the country. Our organization is home to two dance companies, The TMP Tap Dance Company (Tristan Bruns, Artistic Director) and Modern Marvels Dance Company (Kate O'Hanlon Bruns, Artistic Director ). Both companies produce new and original work and have frequently collaborated together to create pieces that integrate tap & modern/contemporary dance. Both Tristan and Kate have been recipients of the Individual Artists Program Grant through Chicago's DCASE, and TMP has been recognized locally & nationally for outstanding choreography and performance (Spirit of the Fringe 2014, Dance Chicago 2014, IndyFringe Best Dance Show 2019).
Production Highlights
2013: Tap Battles! (Dance Chicago Festival)
2014: The Adventures of Tapman Tour (Atlanta, St. Louis, Minneapolis, Washington, D.C)
2015: The Adventures of Tapman and La Raison d'Etre (Athenaeum Theatre)
2016: THRUST!, co-produced with Subject:Matter of Boston, MA (Stage 773), Modern Marvels Dance Company (Hamlin Park Fieldhouse Theatre)
2017: Modern Marvels Dance Company II (Hamlin Park Fieldhouse Theatre)
2018: INFJ/Self-Centered, co-produced with That Untitled Project (Links Hall, Chicago)
2019: What It's Like to Be Human (Link Hall, Chicago), INFJ and WILTBH (Athenaeum Theatre, Chicago)
2021: Back Story (Virtual Performance)
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TMP Portable Dance Floor
Tapman Productions, LLC also provides support to other dance organizations through rental of the TMP Portable Dance Floor. The TMP floor was developed in response to what became an obvious need after years of entering performance venues with slippery, dangerous, and otherwise inappropriate floors for professional dance. TMP founder Tristan Bruns constructed a safe, affordable, portable dance floor suitable for all styles, which is now available for rental to dance companies in Chicago and around the country.
Our TEAM
Tristan Bruns
Director
tristan.r.bruns@gmail.com
Tristan Bruns is a Chicago tap dancer who has received training under Donna Johnson, Ted Louis Levy, Sam Weber and Martin “Tre” Dumas III. Tristan has been on faculty at the Circle City Tap Festival (Indianapolis) and Rhythm World (Chicago) and is currently a member of M.A.D.D. Rhythms directed by Bril Barrett, and the Chicago Human Rhythm Project’s resident ensemble directed by Artist In Residence Daniel Borak.
Tristan is the Director of Tapman Productions and has produced two seasons of performances in Chicago, including The Adventures of Tapman, THRUST!, and La Raison d’Etre. Tapman Productions has provided production assistance to dance artists Ian Berg (From The Top), Jumaane Taylor (Supreme Love), Kate O’Hanlon Bruns (Modern Marvels Dance Company), Kendra Jorstad (Jorstap) and the Elgin Ties Dance Festival (Elgin Taps). Tapman Productions is currently in their 3rd season in Chicago and is developing a new series, "Sketchy," which premiered in November 2018 at Chicago's Athenaeum Theatre and will be continually updated throughout the performance season.
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Tristan has performed locally, nationally and internationally with notable performances at the Beijing International Dance Festival, the Reus (Spain) Tap Dance Festival, The Poznan(Poland) Jazz Festival, Rhythm World Tap Festival (Chicago), 42nd St. choreographed by Jared Grimes (Drury Lane-Oakbrook, IL), Supreme Love choreographed by Jumaane Taylor (Chicago), Celtic Fyre (Williamsburg), the Detroit Jazz Festival, The Steve Harvey Show, The Inside/Out Stage at Jacob’s Pillow and performs annually at local Chicago venues. Tristan has performed with other Chicago dance companies such as the Cartier Collective, Chicago Dance Crash and Matter Dance.
Kate
O'Hanlon Bruns
Operations Manager
Photo by William Frederking
Kate O'Hanlon Bruns is a Chicago-based modern/contemporary dancer and choreographer from Cleveland, Ohio. Her training includes work with Michelle Petruzzi Gacom, Poppy Dinse, Gregory Daniels, and Sara Whale. Additionally, Kate studied & performed as a Trainee with Inlet Dance Theatre (Cleveland, OH) before relocating to Chicago in 2011 and continuing modern & contemporary dance studies at Visceral Dance Studio, Lou Conte Dance Studio, Dovetail Studios, and The Rooted Space.
Kate's performance credits include work with local companies and independent choreographers including Core Project Chicago, Matter Dance Company, Perceptual Motion, Gloria Mwez, and Jessica Kick. Her work has been presented in Chicago and across the country. Highlights include Dance Chicago, Kaleidoscope Dance Festival, and Fringe Festivals in Atlanta, Indianapolis, Minneapolis, St. Louis, and Washington D.C. In 2021, Kate was awarded an Individual Artists Program Grant through DCASE (City of Chicago) for the presentation of her autobiographical work, BACK STORY, which chronicled her experience as a dancer with scoliosis.
Kate currently performs as a Company Member with Lucid Banter Project and serves as the Artistic Director of Modern Marvels Dance Company.
In addition, Kate is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) and Registered Dance/Movement Therapist (R-DMT). She holds an M.A. in Clinical Mental Health Counseling (Northeastern Illinois University—Chicago, IL) and B.S. in Psychology with a Minor in Dance (Baldwin-Wallace College—Berea, OH).
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Modern Marvels Dance Company is a project-based modern/contemporary dance collective that elevates the creative voices of its dancers in order to develop performance art that is honest, beautiful, and accessible to all audiences.