Modern dance guru Nana Shineflug has died

Fans of modern dance are mourning the death Thursday of Chicago dancer, choreographer and teacher Nana Shineflug. She was the artistic director of the Chicago Moving Company, one of the city’s top modern dance company since Shineflug founded it in 1972.

The company has performed through the United States, as well as overseas, and is an Arts Partner with the Chicago Park District at Hamlin Park. In addition, for many years, Shineflug taught in the Interdisciplinary Arts Graduate Program and Theater Department at Columbia College Chicago.

Among Shineflug’s many honors were four choreographic fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, a Service Award from the Illinois Alliance for Arts Education, the Chicago Dance Coalition’s Ruth Page Award for Lifetime Service to the Field, the Columbia College Lifetime Achievement Award and the Katherine Dunham Award for Excellence and Dedication to the Arts.

Shineflug graduated from Northwestern University with a degree in mathematics and had an M.A. and Graduate Certificate in Laban Movement Analysis from Columbia College. She had been a guest lecturer at many colleges and universities across the country.