Kate Henry [00:00:00]:

Welcome to Honing In, a podcast for creative thinkers where we’ll hone our skills, explore our passions, and nurture our dream projects into being. Hi, everybody. Welcome back to Honing In. I’m very excited about today’s episode. I’m actually reconnecting with someone who I knew way back in the day from when I was in Pittsburgh time, and that was when I was in college. And today, I’m interviewing Kalin Morrow. So Kalin is an American actress and dancer based in Europe. She earned her BFA in performing arts from the University of Oklahoma before further studying acting at the Mulholland Academy in Amsterdam.

 

Kate Henry [00:00:50]:

In 2023, she was honored by her alma mater with the Arts Luminary Award in recognition of her contribution to the arts. Recently, she garnered critical acclaim for her role as the hooded woman in Neon’s film, Cuckoo, directed by Tillman Singer, and now works internationally in film, TV, and commercials. Beyond acting, Kaylin is a professional dancer with over twenty years of experience. She continues to perform while also teaching workshops and repertoire internationally for companies and schools. In 2024, she was awarded the prestigious Swan prize for most impressive performance at the Dutch days for her role in the previous owner by Dunja Jotsic. Hi, Caitlin. I’m so excited to chat with you. How are you doing today?

 

Kalin Morrow [00:01:43]:

I’m great. And I’m yeah. I’m so excited to to see you and and here and yeah. I I’m good. I’m good. It’s a little bit of sun here in in The Netherlands, which very rarely happens. So I’m good and happy to, yeah, be chatting with you.

 

Kate Henry [00:01:59]:

Oh, I love this. It’s a little rainy here today, but it’s washing away the snow. And this morning, I actually went outside, and there was turkeys everywhere. Like, this is a Boston thing. People who are listening, who are from Boston, there’s just, like, turkeys in the city. And there was a turkey on our roof. We have, like, a two story townhouse that we rent, and it was, like, I don’t know, had to be a hundred feet in the air. And then there was a turkey, like, 200 feet up in a tree, and, like, all over our neighbors’ like, house.

 

Kate Henry [00:02:29]:

It was so wild that there was just turkeys everywhere. And then they flew down and they walked away.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:02:35]:

That’s amazing. They travel in packs, apparently.

 

Kate Henry [00:02:38]:

They do, I guess. It was wild. We were like, oh my gosh. Come out. We were making coffee, and we were like, you have to come see the turkeys. You know? It’s the Boston turkeys.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:02:47]:

There’s a there’s a place I teach in that has like, you have to pass through the main park of the city to to go on to where I teach, and they yeah. There’s just always chickens. And I it’s like the best part of of the teaching days. I’m just like, oh, look at it. There’s there’s 40 chickens just wandering around. Oh my gosh.

 

Kate Henry [00:03:04]:

I love it. So cute. Well, what a fun way for, you know, me to start my day. Yes. I wanna dive right in. And so this is a podcast where I’m interviewing creative thinkers about their creative projects. And I’m really fascinated with the idea of a project, but I know that other people have different frameworks that work for them. And I’m really curious because, like, I’ve talked to authors and, you know, artists, and you’re a dancer and an actor.

 

Kate Henry [00:03:30]:

So I’d love to hear if the framework of a project, quote, unquote, aligns with your experience with creating, or is there a different way that you think about, like, individual creative projects that you’re producing or participating in?

 

Kalin Morrow [00:03:46]:

It’s such an intricate question there. I think and, of course, it depends if if we’re talking about the dance world or the acting world because, you know, there’s, like, a different attempt of framework in in each world. But definitely, I’m I mean, most of my life is projects. I’ve been a freelancer for so long, but I feel like I’m mostly in other people’s projects. So I have to, you know, really think about what just works for the project. And I wish that I could choose specifically what I want, but often that isn’t the case. Things get, you know, presented and and you choose to participate, but often it isn’t necessarily the way that you would want to be making things. I wish I had more of, you know, more autonomy in in that realm, but oftentimes I’m coming in after something is kind of structured already.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:04:34]:

So whether that be that grant proposals are already written or someone has already begun to make some of the movement that I have to learn. And yeah. So I’m I think I’m kind of constantly redefining that for myself. And and as I go on in my career, when perhaps I’m kind of refocusing what I wanna be working on. I think, yeah, a lot of my career wasn’t the type of framework that that I wanted it to be, which is more participatory. But I also I know that oftentimes the the hierarchy in the space and how how things are built up, it really can be a good thing if somebody’s going, no. This is really what we need, and and I’m giving it to you, and you don’t have a lot of a lot of thought process that you have to put into it. And, of course, I’m offering maybe my body or something like that in the dance world.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:05:29]:

But I think for me, when I’m building projects or when I feel like I have more of an individualistic participation in in this is yeah. It’s on paper, and I’m spread out, and I’m like, alright. I have no idea, like, if I have ADD or ADHD or whatnot, but I’m definitely, like, I I have I feel like I have pockets. And so I just I’m on my computer. I’m on paper. I’m printing everything. Maybe that’s very millennial of me that I actually have a printer, but, yeah, I I think I have to kind of dive in and let my brain wander around, and I think that that’s when the most comes out of me, whether I’m teaching work that that I’ve been in and I can really dive in with students or giving workshops and whatnot or if I’m making something from scratch. And I love being able to have the freedom of movement between projects.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:06:22]:

So I try not to be busy with one thing at a time. I try to spread out, and I think that that busyness makes me feel a little bit more at ease. When I’m bored, I am anxious as hell and trying to figure out, okay, how do I how do I start to get into something? So I’m I’m always trying to to be in in projects that even if it’s if it’s like student student films or whatnot, I’m I’m trying to just keep my mind busy. And I really like things that help me organize my brain, but oftentimes I even forget that they exist and have to go back and be like, oh yeah, I started that to do list like three weeks ago. And that was for this that I completely forgot. And I think that just the act of writing it down will help me move through it.

 

Kate Henry [00:07:06]:

Is the work that you do as a dancer and an actor, like, mainly working with folks who are like, here is the project that I’m envisioning, and I’d like you to help me produce that. Like, how much of the work do you do is that? Do you have opportunities now to be like, oh, I’m developing this choreography, and I am like like, when you’re teaching, is that something that you’re like, no. I want to teach folks to, like, learn these foundational skills or, like, the the students are developing their own dance. I’m curious, like, are there opportunities for you right now in your life where you’re like, I’m gonna just do this whole thing on my own and see what happens? Or or is it mainly, like, more collaborative just because of the place that you’re at, the state that you’re at in your career now?

 

Kalin Morrow [00:07:56]:

Yeah. I think it varies from year to year. A few years ago, I was in the midst of making a film, but also making my own work at the same time. So I was very much split between listening to exactly what needed to be going on and also creating something from almost scratch and working with another dancer, but in a different field. And so that brought up a lot of new things for me, which I I thought was just fantastic that not only was I working interdisciplinarily with another form of dance, but I was able to kinda say, what do I really wanna do with this? And what do I wanna say? But in performing arts, I do think it is important how these things are received. So how the audience is going to perceive something. So that was a nice change for me because I, for a long time, I was like, I don’t think I wanna be a maker. That’s not really maybe my role.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:08:51]:

And I kind of fluctuate between if I want to do that or not, if I want to really be making things on my own or if I feel more that my participation in something gives more value. At this moment, I loved it, and it’s done. And I was like, okay. That project is is now over. I think I find myself more at ease in the, yeah, the production side of things. So assisting others bring their thing into fruition. And whether I’m performing in that or not, I I I do prefer to perform in something that I’m helping to to work on. At the moment, it’s it’s a lot of, like, I’m also assisting a lot.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:09:32]:

So it’s work that exists already that I’ve been in and been maybe doing for a year, two, three even, and I get to then share that with other students and kind of help them find their path in the learning process. But I’m also, yeah, teaching a lot of, you know, basic stuff as well, like morning classes because dancers need that in the morning. So I’m teaching a lot of ballet. There’s improvisation. How do we find our way to be able to warm ourselves up in a sense for a full hour and a half as a professional? Because sometimes you don’t get morning class and they go, here. You get an hour, figure it out, come in ready to go. And a lot of students have no idea how to do that. You know, you’ll see them laying on the floor for a long time, and it’s like, hey.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:10:17]:

You gotta you gotta get moving. So giving giving them tools to be able to do that is really satisfying for me and that requires my own research. So it’s a lot of time in the studio on my own and over the years just kind of collecting and collecting and collecting information and I have just an, like, ridiculous amount of books of writing. Yeah. What works, what doesn’t for me personally and then that allows me to let, you know, give them ideas of framework to be able to go in and pull away stuff that they wanna take home with them, like toolbox essentially. And, yeah, I think that that’s kind of where I wanna be right now is is offering more toolbox stuff than making something on my own because I often feel that other people’s ideas are yeah. I mean, I’m gonna be totally honest, stronger. So if they come in with a really strong proposal and I can essentially help shape it, then I prefer to be in that that position.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:11:18]:

So whether that be in dance or in acting.

 

Kate Henry [00:11:21]:

Oh my gosh. Yes. Oh, I’m so inspired hearing you talk about this. I’ve been just very inspired because I’ve been to to prep for our interview, I’ve been just watching lots of videos of you dancing. And, like, even like like, last night, I was like, oh, maybe I should go like, I I’m practice a lot of yoga, but I feel like, oh, I feel like newly inspired to go just, like, practice in the evening alone and just try things out. And I’m like, oh, maybe this is because I’ve been watching you just, like, practice. It was very cool. I’m like, oh, this is great.

 

Kate Henry [00:11:47]:

But I hear you on, like, working with other folks’ ideas. Like, I work with a lot of folks as a coach on their writing. So I’m, like, just learning about so, like, people are writing books or articles, and I’m like, oh my gosh. I learned this thing about computer science. I learned this thing about public health. I learned this thing about theater. It’s, like, so satisfying to, like, work with other folks who are experts in, like, their particular thing that they’re doing. It’s really fun to, like, bop around that stuff.

 

Kate Henry [00:12:13]:

So

 

Kalin Morrow [00:12:14]:

Yeah. Absolutely.

 

Kate Henry [00:12:15]:

I feel like this leads into the next question I wanted to ask you, which is thinking about, like, the sort of the behind the scenes, not like behind the scenes labor that goes into preparing for performances, but, like, I know that you are putting in hundreds of hours into, you know, the prep and, like, the rehearsals and choreography, learning that. And, obviously, we would think, like, us non dancers would be like, wow. That must be so physically tiring, but I know there’s, like, mental and emotional just from watching videos of you dance. Like, this has to be an emotional experience as well. So I’m curious how you prepare for dance performances or acting if you wanna share about that too, like, physically, mentally, emotionally as well.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:13:00]:

Yeah. I think it it’s taken me decades to figure out what I like, and half the time, it doesn’t work. So, you know, it’s really depends on the on the work that I’m doing. If I’m doing something more technical in dance, for example, I’m going to try and warm myself up in a technical manner, whether that be taking daily classes or giving myself ballet or something like this that has a bit more structure. And then, yeah, it it’s it’s about a lot of the stuff I’ve been doing lately has been kind of requiring, this sounds so silly, but a bit of an out of body experience. So I have to have a lot of trust in the room, whether that be in acting or dancing from from the director at the front of the space, and they have to, you know, give me enough trust to be able to try things and to fail and to kind of explore on my own and to also be able to go, hey. That that really that didn’t work at all. So how do we how do we move on from here? How do we find something? But what that does is it kind of establishes a lot of layers that I can attach to before I perform.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:14:11]:

It’s a lot of stamina, whether it be in acting or whatnot, so a lot of vocal warm up as well. But if I can get really deep in something and as scary as it can be, whether it’s an exhausting dance piece or if it’s a ton of text or, you know, a full full hour play, it’s a matter of, I think, knowing that I’m gonna drop in as soon as the music starts or as soon as my my colleague on stage says their first line and has to draw me in. It’s I’m not here anymore because I’ve layered up enough information that I can latch onto it to let myself go into whatever character that I need to be in. And then it happens, and whatever happens, I used to get so upset if something would go wrong on stage. And I feel really happy now that that it isn’t such a torture event. It’s live, you know, that and I mean, different, of course, in film and TV, but those you get edits. So people can come back and choose what what you did well. And but, you know, when it’s live, there’s something so thrilling about the fact that that what you’re doing at the moment is going to be witnessed once ever, perhaps.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:15:29]:

And and if it, in a sense, fails for somebody, it it’s it’s live. It’s life. And and I think that that’s a really cool thing. I lose myself. My brain gets activated in a different way, and then you bow and I’m back. And it is just the strangest thing to to come back and be like, woah. Okay. That just happened.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:15:49]:

And not a pat on the back moment, but, like, to know that you’ve put in the work to be able to trust yourself, to lose yourself among other people on stage or with the music or whatever if that’s a solo. So, yeah, I think that’s that’s kind of the work I’m doing. I also really like to read a lot when I’m preparing for things. If I’m doing, like, a lot of character research for acting roles, it’s it’s about watching stuff and and really getting, yeah, allowing myself to get inspired, kind of spurring different ideas so that it’s like, oh, you know what? I never thought about that for this person before, because perhaps this this person’s maybe a bit far away from my own experience and and watching other actors try things and, you know, it’ll just it’ll cause me to go, okay. Woah. This is something I wanna sit in for a little bit and try it. And maybe it is completely outrageous and everybody in the room is going, that’s not it. But that’s okay.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:16:47]:

You know? I I think allowing myself to just get inspired by other by other art is is really important. That’s kind of the prep. Yeah.

 

Kate Henry [00:16:56]:

This is lovely hearing you talk about this. I feel very inspired. And also in as someone who is often like, I’ve never tried improvisation. I feel like it would make me squirm. You know? Like, I’m I’m very like I know how to do things really well, and I do those things really well. You know? So I’m also inspired by, like, the maybe this just is, like, a natural part of your personality, but also the, like, muscle that you have strengthened to, like, try things and be like that this is part of, like, improving the art, you know, to just give it a try. And if it goes well, cool. If it doesn’t, that’s fine.

 

Kate Henry [00:17:31]:

Like, so I’ve just that’s cool to hear you talk about that.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:17:35]:

But definitely try improv. I think that that that’s some of the the neatest, most authentic things that come out are when you’re given a, a, you know, a, a tight framework, like this is, this is your partner and you have been together this long and you’re splitting up and you found out this way and you just, you even set it up with your partner and it’s, it’s, it’s nobody else’s business. And it is just, it’s so cool. It’s it’s like being a kid, you know? And I, I love that. I love being able to pretend I’m not myself because sometimes I can get really bored with myself and it, yeah. It’s I’m loving it.

 

Kate Henry [00:18:09]:

I love that. I don’t think I’m gonna try improv, but my spouse, Chris, and I, we do like, we both are very funny people, and we’re constantly trying to, like, say the funniest thing of the day. So we’re both, like, super quippy. You know? So, like, that is that is a skill I have to, like, pull just, like, randomly very funny, snarky things from, like, the depths. Right? So that that will be how I practice that.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:18:31]:

Totally. Absolutely.

 

Kate Henry [00:18:33]:

It’s so lovely hearing you talk about this stuff, and I know that I’m obviously not the only person who thinks you’re doing a wonderful job. So congratulations on winning the Swan award for your role in the previous owner. That’s huge. And I heard you talk in an interview about how this was particularly special to receive this award because it was, you know, chosen by other dancers as well. So I’m curious how you mentioned a little bit earlier, like, audiences, but I’m curious, like, how is your audience for particular performances, for dance or and or for acting? How does that influence, like, not just, like, the way you perform, but is there something in your mind when you are, like, learning a choreography or practicing for acting, like, that is influenced by the audience? Like, that’s kind of a broad question, but I am intrigued by that idea because I assume like, I am not a dancer, but I watch your dance videos and find them beautiful. And also, like, you know, folks who are judging for the Swan Award who know dance very well, like, are watching the previous owner and having a different experience or noticing things I wouldn’t notice. So I’m curious. Do you think of multiple audiences, or do you not think of audience at all when you’re preparing for a piece?

 

Kalin Morrow [00:19:50]:

At the beginning, in research, it’s good to go with your intuition, to go with, you know, you’re reading a lot among the group. There’s sometimes a drama charge that’s coming in and bringing in a ton of their own writing or encouraging you to read about a particular subject. And so I think it’s good to keep the audience a bit at a distance there because you’re you’re starting to just gather information and begin to kind of, let’s experiment with this information here, and let’s see if if this is on the line. Again, it’s it it seems to always, in a way, be a taste issue, and taste is always tricky, but it can, you know, vary within a group if you have a lot of participants. But at some point, a decision is made that’s like, this is depending on the choreographer, depending on the director, this is gonna push the audience more than that. And I I really like working with people who choose that route, who go, you know what? I don’t I don’t wanna placate. I I think people have brains, and I I want them even though maybe in the dance world, it’s a little bit harder to interpret the things that are presented because, you know, maybe the the education isn’t as common as words, obviously, but people aren’t stupid. And I I think it’s it’s fantastic when somebody at the front of the room goes, yeah.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:21:19]:

Let’s choose the harder one. Because then I’m like, okay. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Let’s do that. You know? And there there have been times where it’s scary when you do that because you don’t know how the audience is gonna react. I think one of the first experiences I had within dance was when I had a monologue within dance, and it was about the Me Too movement.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:21:41]:

And so that was extremely emotional for me and extremely, in the end, emotional for the audience, but I had no idea what to expect. I mean, there were a lot of people in in the audience who I’m going, this could be taken as as directed at them. I don’t know how they’re gonna, you know, receive this information. And in the end, it is really cool the energy that’s brought from live people in front of you, and it really informs how you say things. And and I don’t I can’t describe it. It is such a weird energy when you’re when you’re standing up there and and you feel something coming back at you, whether that be like they’re utterly quiet and listening to, you know, the utmost that they can to hear you breathe even, or if they’re engaged and they’re laughing at something that’s supposed to be funny or awkward. And there were times when the previous owner because it was just me on stage for an hour. I have I’ll just set up the premise since I don’t know if anyone will ever see this piece again, but it’s the premise is this old man is dying and he purchases a younger body, and he uploads his brain to my body, essentially.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:23:02]:

And I have an iPad that’s hooked on via a costume on my stomach, and there are a ton of moments within the dance work where I have to engage with the audience, where I’m I I choose one person at the beginning of the piece, and I I have to look at them at the same moment every time. And and it can be where I’m I’m talking to them or I’m trying to seduce them, which is extremely awkward for an audience member who did not come, didn’t know they were gonna get chosen, and I’m I’m I’m staring them down every single time. I’m not picking somebody else, and I I that can be really confrontational. I’ve had people completely just close their eyes. I’ve had people look to their partner next to them and be like, what’s what’s happening? I’ve had people stare back at me as intently as I was staring at them, and that is the coolest thing because it’s it’s it’s happening in the moment, and they don’t know how I’m gonna react on stage based off that, which was always a really thrilling thing. Like, I’ve had people ask me so thanks for asking about the audience. Because people ask me, like, what is it like performing for an hour by yourself on stage, but never about about the audience. And there were times where from the very beginning of the work, I could feel that there was, like, a supportive thing happening at the front of the room.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:24:24]:

And when the lights go down and come up, they’re in it with me from the beginning to the end. And, yeah, it you know, often, of course, maybe there’s colleagues in this in this space, so they’re more engaged in a way. But I I adore the fact that whether people get something or not, they they can find themselves in in an art form. And whether that is that they’re relating to the piece in a total manner or if they find a character within a play that they’re like, god, I just what a weirdo, and I’m also such a weirdo. And and I find that comforting and, you know, what what’s being, you know, what’s being chosen by the by the performers. So I love that. It’s also kind of what makes maybe film and TV a little bit more difficult is that isn’t there per se. But, yeah, I I think it is in a sense.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:25:22]:

I mean, there’s always there’s always the idea of an audience with with work in mind.

 

Kate Henry [00:25:27]:

Thanks for sharing all of that. It’s so cool to hear your thoughts on this and your experience. This makes me think, like, as I was watching the videos, like, I tried really hard to find a full recording of the previous owner and was just, like, piecing it together through clips that I saw and stuff. It was like, oh, like, I it made me wonder about, like, your experience with like, is there a difference in your experience when you are, like, preparing a performance that might be performed, like, like, once or performed live, and then there will be no video of it versus, like, something that you’re like, oh, this whole thing will be videoed. Like, I imagine you’re like it’s in such a state of a present flow. Like, you’re not thinking about, like, well, this will be recorded and put online. Like, I I don’t imagine that has that much of an effect. So I’m more curious about, like, is there a different experience if there’s something that you’re like, no.

 

Kate Henry [00:26:20]:

This might be I don’t know. If there’s something performed at, like, a gallery opening or something performed where it’s really just like a like an is there, like, an ethereal, like, individual experience? Like, you’re there and you see it, or you’re not and you miss it. Like, is that something that ever happens with your dance?

 

Kalin Morrow [00:26:37]:

Yeah. I think everything’s very, very hit or miss. Like, you know, depending on how you wake up in the day, it’s very like, this might go really well today. This might suck. And sometimes, you know, from the first first step, the first word, whatever comes out of your mouth, and you’re like, oh, I’m not in it or something like that. I do have to say, I I still to this day feel a lot of pressure from cameras even if I’m given a warning that they’re gonna be there. And so, of course, that’s it’s always like so it’s something I’m I’m always dealing with. It’s like, okay.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:27:11]:

Let can we do, like, for acting, can we do a first run and just we’ll just it’ll suck. Like, let’s just say it’s gonna suck. And then we and then we move on and then it becomes a lot more comfortable. For for dance, it always feels like the most unstable show when it’s filmed, and I’m like, ugh. Because when it’s not there, it’s it’s whatever is happening. You control it. But anything that kind of pulls you out, you have to constantly pull your your mind back in. And with a camera, I’m like, oh, there’s that red blinking light, and that little thing will take me out.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:27:40]:

And I I hate that. I it’s like, no. I wanna I’m I wanna be really present. So I I’m getting better about that over time, but it’s it’s always a fight. I wish it I wish it didn’t matter so much, but there’s something about permanence that’s like, okay. Alright. But, yeah, with the acting thing, I’m I’m becoming it’s almost like acting is helping with dance because I know that that permanence is is a is a given. I’m gonna go in, I’m gonna make this film, it’s going to permanently exist perhaps.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:28:12]:

There’s a bit more prep that goes into it, I think. A bit more prep on my own and less in in the studio with someone someone else rehearsing or with a group rehearsing. And with dance, it feels like you’re you’re in you’re in the rehearsal process so intensely or in a in a play, you’re in it so intensely for so much longer. So I really like rehearsing if I’m gonna be making something that’s gonna be recorded. I I like being in a room rehearsing and there’s a lot of times where they’re like, yeah, you’re gonna come in, you’re gonna meet the other actor and then we’re gonna film the same day and I’m like, oh, oh, lord. Give me time. Give me time. And I know it’s beneficial sometimes.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:28:52]:

It’s like, no. We don’t want you to meet because it’s gonna help with the story. And I do believe that too, if there’s a strategy in a way. But I love being able to sit across from people, get to know them so that I have even more thoughts than I came prepared with about the person sitting next to me. And, yeah, so I I love rehearsal. I wish rehearsal was around me constantly and that we got to spend a lot more time in every art form doing that. And sometimes the money just isn’t there. Funding is always a problem.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:29:25]:

But cameras, yeah, cameras, I’m getting, getting better.

 

Kate Henry [00:29:29]:

Yeah. This might have just been a trick of my eyes or, like, just maybe the lighting of the show, but I feel like when I was watching clips of the previous owner, there was, like, a scene where it almost looked like there was, like, a flash camera that took a photo of you. And I don’t know if that was if I don’t know. Just the lighting or whatever. But it was it felt really poignant because the your character in that performance already is sort of, like, losing agency. And it it was, like, an interesting, like, oh, this is, like, a very emotionally, like, fraught moment in the dance, and, like, someone from the audience is potentially or a professional is taking a flash photo. Like, there was this, like, layer of invasion there. I don’t know.

 

Kate Henry [00:30:12]:

It maybe it like, I was, like, putting too much into it, but it was, like, this interesting layer. And I don’t know if that actually even really happened. Like, are were there photographers taking photos, or was this just me?

 

Kalin Morrow [00:30:21]:

No. You’re totally not reading into it. Like, that that I love that piece because it is so layered, and we talked a lot about that. The the details of that work are insane. They were built up over three years with Dunya. And, yeah, there were these strobe lights that were happening. They weren’t coming from the audience, but it was that that piece is so much about and I don’t wanna get into, like, the psychology of it, but in a way, it’s two personalities fighting one another about the ownership of of a mind. And so I was having to consistently switch between these two, this thought of an of an old man who I, of course, don’t have any experience being.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:30:58]:

So I had to spend a lot of time being like, who is this person? And the person on the front of me does exist. So at least I had kind of a voice that I could put to that personality. And then another person that I had chose that, you know, was younger, the basis was, yeah, Eastern European. There’s a film that comes along at the very beginning about her life prior to purchasing it, which yeah. So it was this this constant battle, and those those lights would actually help kind of switch me between the two. It was extremely cathartic because it felt like, I think, you know, as we all age, we we find these these moments of, like, wanting to latch on to to comfort and and what we know and how we can keep ourselves around for longer and we start having discussions about legacy and how we help others. I I think it was a really interesting thing because it wasn’t just about two people. It was about the the progression of age and and how you change from when you’re younger to when you’re older and and how you can kind of what wins.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:32:13]:

Right? Like yeah. So it was ultimately always a question at the end of the piece that is this a good thing or a bad thing? And I I like that because it didn’t it didn’t answer it.

 

Kate Henry [00:32:23]:

Oh, good. I’m glad. I was I was like, oh, this is interesting. This is great. And I’ll link to your your dance reel from your website in the show notes so folks can go and and watch as well. Yeah. That I’m not surprised that your performance won for the Swan award. It was just so really, even just in the clips, I saw, like, really gripping for me.

 

Kate Henry [00:32:42]:

Just like the I don’t know. Well, it wasn’t like, yeah, just, like, me being like, which character is this right now? Like, is this the this older man character who’s, like, kind of taking over and, like, being sort of, like, not sarcastic, not snarky, but just, like I don’t know. It was just very interesting some of the movements that I that I saw in there being like, oh, who who actually is this right now? Like, in the the character. You know? It was very, very cool. I loved it.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:33:14]:

Yes. I’ll I’ll send you the full video.

 

Kate Henry [00:33:16]:

Yes. Okay. Excellent. I love it.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:33:20]:

So you’ll be able to to read it all. Yeah.

 

Kate Henry [00:33:22]:

Oh my gosh. I can’t wait. Alright. Well, another huge congratulations for you. So we just we talked about dance, but I wanna definitely talk about acting as well because you were the hooded woman in Cuckoo, which I’ve been reading reviews of and just, like, folks were like, this was the scariest character I’ve seen this year. This was wild, you know, like, just really praising your performance. And I know that you also you know, that was not the only acting you do. You do other acting and film and television things.

 

Kate Henry [00:33:51]:

So I’d I’d love to hear about your experience in Cuckoo and how how that came about, but also more in general to hear about your decision to pursue acting in addition to dance. So, like, if you could talk a bit about cuckoo, talk a bit about, like, why you pursued acting as well, and then maybe shift to think about, like, how, you know, being a dancer and an actor sort of, like, are they in conversation? Do they feel separate to you or in connection to one another? And if you don’t remember all those questions, I’ll I’ll prompt you.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:34:22]:

Great. Thanks. Yeah. Cuckoo. What a wild year it’s been for me. It was really, I, I think the start of of Cuckoo was in 2020 and Tillman singer, who’s the director of the film, he wrote the screenplay and he wasn’t sure, yeah, if it was gonna be an actress who could dance or somebody with a bit more movement history, somebody who could kind of embody something more because she doesn’t have lines. So they ultimately hired a movement director for the the movie named Nada Morales and I happened to be working with her at the time and she was like, hey, Tillman, just come watch rehearsal. Maybe you find someone for this role.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:35:04]:

And at the time, it was another actress who’s who’s well known in LA, and we had no idea what was going on. We were like, who’s this this random person coming in watching rehearsal? But we had a a run of the full piece, which is an extremely physical work. And I think at the time, I was I was super exhausted, but we chatted after rehearsal. Really sweet, sweet human being. And he told me a bit about the project, and and I was like, sure. Send me the the script. I’m I’m interested. He sent it to me about a week later, and we were in like this I don’t know how to call it.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:35:42]:

It’s like a German castle rehearsing. We’d had a really late night, and I was like, yeah. I should probably read this script now, and I kinda wanna know what it’s about. I started reading it, and I was up really late because I got I got hooked. I I, yeah, immediately sent him a message the next day saying, like, %. I’m in. If you’ll have me, let me know. He was still in the process of casting everything, but, yeah, a couple weeks later, he was like, great.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:36:09]:

I’m gonna send you my first film that I did, Luz. You can take a look, and let’s get started. Let’s do this. So we were supposed to film pretty quickly, but then COVID hit, so everything got postponed. We started filming in 2022, and then with the sag after our strikes and everything that happened, a lot of stuff got postponed, of course, for releasing. And then it, yeah, came out last year in, technically, in Germany in February and then in August in The US. So, yeah, it was a super cool ride. Really, like, I think a highlight of my life.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:36:46]:

I something I really wasn’t expecting, something I hadn’t really planned for, but I’m so happy. It it I I got really lucky, and it was such a cool team. I can only think fondly of it. Lots of late nights in in the German British army base that was abandoned and lots of lots of special effects meetings. And, yeah, what are the weirdest things? Like, I had contacts that were made for me.

 

Kate Henry [00:37:15]:

I was wondering that we actually I can’t really do horror, so I tasked my spouse, Chris, who does. I was like, you have to watch Cuckoo, and you have to write down every time Caitlin’s on the screen. So, like, I have this piece of paper that’s, like, twenty six minutes and blah blah blah behind bike. You know, like, this time in hospital. And so, like, yesterday, we went and I, like, do we just fast forwarded, and I just watched the clips where you were in it, which was great. They were great. And but it was, like, yeah, the contacts, like, the outfit, your eyes, like, the of course, you were, like, perfect for this in terms of the movement. And I’d Chris told me the context.

 

Kate Henry [00:37:54]:

I know the context of the film. I read the summary of it, so it was really fitting. Yeah. Like, huge congratulations to you. This is the that’s so cool. How I was curious, like, what was the like, were your scenes filmed, like, pretty close together, or was it, like, were you there for, like, a longer part of the filming? Like, how long was the the the filming altogether?

 

Kalin Morrow [00:38:19]:

Yeah. I think the overall process, they shot everything in a little over a month, like, maybe a month total for everybody, which was a very quick turnaround. The overall process with, like, the special effects meetings and everything was probably three months or so, but I only had, I think, twelve days of shooting on set. Some of them were spread out, and then and then I had a good chunk that I was there to get to get all the the main stuff in. But, yeah, the rehearsals were super fun. It was it was a lot of, like, how does a bird move and how does how does an insect move when they’re, you know, under threat? And this was great. This was really it felt like something that the path of my career of different researches somehow culminated in that, which was beautiful. It was like, wait.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:39:10]:

I’ve been kind of working on bird movements, and I really love bugs. And so this which was what? How does this happen at this time? Very serendipitous and beautiful. And the yeah. When they showed me ultimately what they were aiming for, there were a lot of mock ups. They did a three sixty photograph of my head and stuff and began to kind of, you you know, I I would get a little bit of costume here and there. And then when I came in ultimately and they chose the wig and the hood finally came on and this little plastic sheet, it was like, okay. Alright. I’m seeing it.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:39:52]:

Okay. You know, because I I had a lot from the script and from discussions with Tillman, but to to be in the thing was a totally different experience. It it was you know, you hear a lot about actors getting into a costume and that’s what helps them kind of then become the character. And this was this was extremely true. I had a lot of people in the crew being like, can you not look at me? It’s really freaking me out. Can you put your sunglasses on? And I’m like, yeah. Totally sorry. Stuff like this.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:40:24]:

So that was that was great, though, because I I don’t have that reaction a lot. Like, I have yeah. I’m kind of ethereal looking in a way, and and to freak people out was like, yes. I am so for this. Please, more of it. So I loved it. Like, anytime I could stay in the costume without coming out, I would do it, which probably really freaked people out when I was eating lunch and, like, my full scars and stuff on on on set. But it was great.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:40:54]:

I I loved it. Yeah. Just having conversations with these contacts and my the special effects team and the makeup team were just remarkable people who made it all the the cooler to see what they do. I have so much respect for them. And, yeah, twelve days, we did a a lot it was a lot of night shoots and a lot of running after Hunter Schafer who’s, yeah, the lead in the film. And, yeah, just really I don’t know. It was it was such a it was my first experience acting in film, really. I mean, I’ve done a lot of dance films.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:41:29]:

I’ve done a lot of, like, tiny, tiny acting when I was living in LA, like, mostly background stuff. And then I’m was sitting on set one day, I was, like, mid mid shoot. Tillman and Hunter were there, you know, we’re just chilling out in the heat waiting for the next thing and Tillman looks over and he’s like, have you thought about doing this? And I was like, what? And Hunter’s like nodding like, yeah, yeah, yeah, do it. And I’m going back and forth with them like, holy shit. This is woah. You know, I had no idea what I wanted to do after a dance career. And and in all honesty, I just kind of take lots of things, but I had spent time watching these brilliant people work. And I thought, am I getting, like, nudged into this? And this is this is I really like it.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:42:24]:

So maybe this is

 

Kate Henry [00:42:25]:

a good idea.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:42:25]:

And things are starting to kind of fire in the brain. And so that yeah. I think that started it. So it’s really fresh for me. That was in 2022 and then I when we were done there, I was super burnt out from all the work of the year, so I took a few months off, but I started researching like, okay. How do I do this? Where where do I go? How do I get a support system going? I got enrolled in classes, like a beginning minor class or something, and I thought I’m gonna I was so nervous, and I was in there with, like, more experienced people, and I thought, this might go really poorly. And I I a lot of people say, like, it’s not so far from dance, but but in a way it is. I mean, when you when you’re not used to perhaps using your voice, I mean, it’s it’s a yeah.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:43:12]:

The body things I I have a lot of body awareness, but being able to project and and memorize and be authentic and, yeah, find your range is is a lot. It’s a lot to come in to as, at the time, as a 38 year old. It’s like midlife crisis in a way. And I I loved it and I I thought, okay, I’m gonna enroll in the full diploma program if I can, and I was welcomed really in a great way by the director. And then I graduated last June, so it took, yeah, about about, yeah, two plus years and, yeah, and I’ve been working in between and I have an agent, which is, yeah, a wild thing that I never expected to happen quickly, but I feel really supported by them, and it’s going great. So, yeah, that’s kind of how how it, like, group was started and how I got into into the acting thing. And now I, like, see beyond, you know, beyond my forties, and and that’s that’s pretty cool to to see that maybe there’s something for me into retirement, which I I knew was never gonna happen with dance because, ultimately, most people don’t keep going. I’ve been really lucky to not be injured, so I’m still here and doing a thing at 39 and happy that I’m able to keep dancing.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:44:33]:

But, also, I I, like, have something else too to keep me busy, which is yeah. Like I said earlier, my favorite thing is to be overworked a little bit.

 

Kate Henry [00:44:43]:

No. I hear you. I like to keep busy too. Oh, this is cool. We’ll start to wind down, but a few final questions. Like, what is on the docket for you in 2025? Like, what like, you might have secret projects you can’t talk about yet, but I’m curious, like, what are your what are you hoping to do this year with with dance and with acting?

 

Kalin Morrow [00:45:03]:

Yeah. Yeah. There’s there’s a few. Yeah. A couple things I can’t talk about, but I’m super excited about them. Stop some a couple things happening in The US. I’m like, yes. And I’m producing for the first time, which is really cool.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:45:16]:

So this is something that I’m kind of, you know, finding my way in, because that is extremely fresh, but I’m doing a project with some friends and we’re, we’re doing a short film and I’m loving where it’s going. It’s very women driven and queer and I’m so so excited about it. I we’re gonna start shooting hopefully midsummer and I can’t yeah. I can’t wait. It’s a huge cast. We’ve got, like, eight people involved and it’s it’s funny and weird and yeah. So I’m I’m excited to kind of find my my footing in that and I really like working with teams that I of people that I trust and love, and these are people I’ve gotten to know the past few years in Amsterdam. And it’s it’s it’s a great, great, weird, psychotic actor team, which which is just the best when you’re you know, sometimes these small projects are really great too.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:46:13]:

They inspire you, and and and they also give you an ability to learn something, like, allowing grace as well, you know, if mistakes happen. So there’s that. And, yeah, some some stuff coming up in the fall. I don’t know. Yeah. Things are happening. It always feels slow to me, so I’m like, okay. Come on.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:46:32]:

Let’s bring on more. But, yeah, I’m happy with how it’s going, and and I’m just impatient, but but happy to be here and be trying stuff and, you know, to have support from people around me and yeah.

 

Kate Henry [00:46:46]:

Oh, I’m so thrilled for you. This is so well deserved, and you worked really incredibly hard for decades and decades to get here. So this didn’t just suddenly fall into your lap. You’ve been working really hard to get here. So

 

Kalin Morrow [00:46:57]:

Thank you. Appreciate that, Kate.

 

Kate Henry [00:46:59]:

Oh my gosh. Of course. Alright. Well, my final question I like to ask everybody is something that they’re honing in on right now. So interpret that however you like, but I’m curious. What do you feel like you are honing in on in your life right now?

 

Kalin Morrow [00:47:14]:

I’m trying to focus more, like, on community in a way. So very driven in the sense, like, I’ve I’ve gotta find something for myself, but I have realized over the past year or so that it I really need to be spending time investing in others as as well. And I and I I I think I I have done that in the past, but I think it needs to be needs to be stronger. So I’m honing in on that. I’ve joined a couple community groups that I I feel are great for this, the actors home, which is an international acting community. And it’s a way to to meet other people, but also to see what’s going on in the industry, watching other people’s work. Just there there’s a weird thing about being a teacher which is realizing that the people in front of you are the next generation in the thing. So and now I feel like I’m kind of at this this in between thing where I’m starting something fresh and I need that support from from actors who’ve been in the business for a long time, but in the dance world I also need to be supporting my students and letting them know that, like, this is now their era and I’m here for questions that they need answered and and how do I come and support the work that they’re making, which they’re terrified to show.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:48:35]:

Right? So, yeah, more of that if if I can be doing that and and honing in on on, like, sucking up any any ego and it’s mostly just fear, I think, of of not knowing how to do something and figuring out how to do it and knowing that there are lots of support groups around you to to ask questions and to to do that. So I think that that’s yeah. That that’s it. I and maybe, yeah, more time with family and friends. You know, the European thing where they don’t work on the weekends. So I’m always like, hello. Hello. Someone answered my my emails, but it’s good.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:49:14]:

It’s it’s good for me to chill. You know?

 

Kate Henry [00:49:18]:

I hear it. We’ve been trying to do a thing where we, like, don’t use tech for, like, half of a day on a weekend, you know, and, like, we’ve been, like, reading a novel to each other. Yeah. Chris and I. So it’s like it’s like little baby things, but I feel you on the, like, okay. The weekend is not just, like, free where free time to work. You know? But the things you’re honing in on sound really nourishing for you and for others, and that’s really I’m really, again, inspired by, like, you are at a stage right now in your career where you can offer, like, support and lift other folks up as well and, like, contrib like, care for community and, like, your students. So that’s really lovely to see that being, like, part of your values and what you’re doing.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:50:01]:

Yeah. I had a few people do that to me. So I I feel very lucky to have had that because I know other dancers and, and actors who just don’t, and they feel like they’re, you know, sweating flies to try, and they’re just grasping at nothing. And I think it’s, yeah, it’s, it’s something everyone has to think about that. Yeah, that that things things can end quicker always than we expect. So what can you do for others that that will keep them going? You know? Because that stuff always, you know, it matters in the end, especially in the art field where there isn’t much always.

 

Kate Henry [00:50:38]:

Oh, so tender. This is beautiful. I know where folks can find you. It’s on your website, which I will link to in the show notes. But I’m curious, are there any other particular things that folks want to learn more about what you’re doing or or stay up to date or, like, particular pieces you would suggest that folks maybe check out if, like I think just watching your dance reel is beautiful, but anything else that you would recommend to folks who wanna learn more about you?

 

Kalin Morrow [00:51:02]:

Oh. Oh, that’s a good question. Yeah. I mean, my website, if I can keep it up to date, which is always I’m I’m so bad with social media and and website stuff. But, yeah, I’m like, I’m on it. I’m trying to do that. And, yeah, I mean, I think I’m always available to be contacted for stuff. I mean, it’s maybe a little yeah.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:51:21]:

You have to go to the website to contact me or stuff, but I think I I I think nobody should be above helping people out. I mean, we all have our limits, of course. You know? There’s there’s a certain limit. It was like I I can’t answer every everybody’s questions, but, like, I am here for people who want a bit of guidance and and who, you know, who are like, how do I move to Europe? Or how do I do this thing? And because I I do think it’s sketchy and maybe I can’t answer questions, but, yeah, I I I’m always up for contact. The website’s good. Unfortunately, Instagram. I try and find, like, a way to get away from that, but it’s it’s perhaps the easiest thing at the moment, especially in the state of the world with, you know, different platforms getting pulled in different directions monetarily. Yeah.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:52:07]:

I think the website’s probably a good realm or on Insta and

 

Kate Henry [00:52:12]:

Well, both of them are just fun to check out. Out. Like, you’ve got all the the videos of your stuff on on your website. So you can spend some people can spend some time there and be moved and inspired just like I was. This is such a lovely treat to to reconnect with you and to just, like, hear like, I’m excited on this podcast to hear from artists and to, like, just hear your experiences, like, a dancer and actor that I think a lot of folks who listen are maybe writers or authors. So it’s just I imagine they’ll see their interesting creativity reflected in in new or, like, curious or satisfying ways in how you talk about your art.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:52:53]:

Yeah. It’s something there’s it’s very universal what we all go through. And and I also, like, think the collaboration, you know, if people are able to work with different fields, there’s always empathy in that in that route, you know, like, what we’re all struggling with or what we’re succeeding with and how to lift each other up in a way. So, yeah, I hope I hope something I said will help people. Because I I know I listened to your other episodes and I’m like, oh my God. Yeah. That’s good. Oh, that’s nice.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:53:19]:

Like, I don’t do that, but I’m totally looking into that, you know, application or, you know, different different stuff that has been mentioned in the past couple episodes. So, yeah, hopefully, that’s the case here too.

 

Kate Henry [00:53:31]:

Well, if anything, I’m inspired to now practice yoga at night when I feel I feel the draw to be like, just go. Just, like, see what comes. Be improvizational. So at least I get that. Well, Caitlin, thank you so much. I just really appreciate you taking time today.

 

Kalin Morrow [00:53:49]:

No. And thanks for asking me. That was very sweet, and I’m super honored to to be here. And it’s a great place for people to find inspiration. So thanks for doing it. Thank you.

 

Kate Henry [00:54:04]:

Thanks so much for joining me. You can learn more about honing in and my work as a productivity coach on my website, katehenry.com. Take good care.