Honoring the people who support us, shape us, and stay with us.
A Dependent Species began as Leave the Light On, a play built from interviews with the caregivers in our lives: parents, grandparents, therapists, pharmacists, librarians. Those interviews became monologues. Now they become conversations, as each creator introduces themselves and the person who inspired their piece. Here are the people bringing those stories to you.
Listen on –
Katelyn Boerke
Katelyn Boerke is a Chicago-area stage manager whose work ranges from mainstage productions to the concert hall. She is one of the original creators of Leave the Light On: An Anthology of Care, where she served as production stage manager, and is a host of A Dependent Species. Katelyn graduated from Lake Forest College with a BA in Theater, with a focus in Stage Management and Properties Management. There she stage managed seven mainstage productions, including The Visit, She Kills Monsters, Blithe Spirit, and, most recently, Noises Off, managed props across all eight shows she worked on, and assistant directed the world premiere of Ester, Frog Queen. She served as President of the Garrick Players and on the Theater Department Advisory Board, and received the McPherson Prize for Excellence Scholarship in Theater and the Golden Screwdriver Award for technical theatre. Katelyn has also stage managed jazz, chamber, and classical voice concerts as a program assistant for the Steans Institute at Ravinia Festival.
Kirsten Robinson
Kirsten Robinson is a multimedia storyteller and designer based in Northwest Indiana and the Chicagoland Area. Her work spans across sound design, graphic design, live event production, and documentary video. She is a three-time Crystal Pillar Award recipient from the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, Chicago/Midwest Chapter. She is the Director of Marketing at Community Advocates of Northern Indiana. Kirsten is currently pursuing a Master of Communication in Digital Media and Storytelling at Loyola University Chicago. Her work centers on the stories of everyday people and the places that shape them, and on building the spaces where those stories can be heard.
Chloe Johnston
Chloe Johnston is a performer, writer, director, and teacher in Chicago and an Associate Professor of Theater at Lake Forest College. She is a director and devisor who facilitates collaboratively generated performances on professional and educational stages. Chloe is a long-time ensemble member of The Neo-Futurists, writing and performing in their late-night cult shows, Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind, and The Infinite Wrench in Chicago, New York, and throughout the country. She holds a PhD in Performance Studies from Northwestern University. Her research interests include theatre for social change, activist performance, and the aesthetics of care. Her work has appeared in Theatre Journal, TDR, Liminalities, Theatre Topics, and Performance Research. She is the co-author of Ensemble-Made Chicago: A Guide to Devised Theater, with Coya Paz Brownrigg, published by Northwestern University Press.