OUR STORY
We are a passionate team of stage combat performers, teachers, and choreographers who are eager to bring new training opportunities to the Chicagoland area. Our mission is to provide high quality accessible stage combat and movement training in our community.
The spirit of Open Gate Movement Arts was born one evening when Nicky called Mikey while driving home from the National Stage Comat workshop in Ruston, LA. They talked about what it could be like to have a new hub and home for actor combatants in Chicago. They also noted the need in the Chicago market for more accessible opportunities to train in physical forms of theatre, especially stage combat. Nicky and Mikey brought their ideas to their friend Dave, who happened to be looking for an artistic base through which to start offering SPT courses. The group found they were aligned with their values, goals, and standards... and so, Gate Movement Arts was born! Since then, we’ve been committed to helping students and our staff pursue a career they love. Open Gate Movement Arts provides a unique and highly personalized method of learning. We establish our classrooms as environments to nurture, educate and encourage creative individuals to achieve their highest level of success. |
OUR APPROACHIn our early days, we focused exclusively on stage combat education through the Skills Proficiency Test (SPT) system as sanctioned by the Society of American Fight Directors (SAFD). Shortly after, we expanded to include continuing education in the form of a summer series of workshops with guest artists and instructors from around the continental US.
In 2024 our initiatives include continuing to branch into other forms of physical storytelling (such as Alexander technique, motion capture performance, and intimacy performance) and launching a series of Fight Labs, to further discovery and development amongst the local artists in our community. Our programming breaks down into three categories: SPT courses, Continuing Education workshops, and Fight Labs. |
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LAND RECOGNITION
We acknowledge that our classes are located on the unceded lands of the Peoria, Potawatomi, Myaamia, and Kickapoo people and the area built using enslaved labor.