Cat Dean
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Born: January 28, 1972
Died: September 21, 2019 Catherine Patricia Dean (“Cat”) grew up in a Foreign Service family and spent her early years in Tunisia, Egypt, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. She graduated high school from Georgetown Day School in Washington DC, and earned a B.A. from Carleton College in 1993 in Women’s Studies with a focus on political science and history. That fall, Cat moved to Chicago joining the vibrant theater scene she loved. Cat joined the ensemble of Stage Left Theatre (Fellow Travellers, Spare Change, Kingsville, Here Where It’s Safe, countless LeapFest festivals, among others). In addition Cat was an Associate Artist at Chicago Dramatist where she had a passion for helping playwrights develop new plays. She also worked with Chicago Kids Company for over 13 seasons bringing original musicals adapted from fairy tales to young audiences. Cat was seen onstage at Infamous Commonwealth Theater, Circle Theater, Fleetwood-Jourdain Theater, Griffin Theater and 16th Street Theatre. She was a member of the Small Fish Radio Theatre. Recently Cat was seen in the web series The Haven by Mia McCullough. Cat was also an aerial dancer/acro-aerial instructor in the Ameba Dance Company (now Aerial Dance Chicago). She choreographed and performed In the Wake, an aerial piece in memory of her mother. She performed on the silks as part of her role in the play Odin’s Horse by Rob Koon at Infamous Commonwealth Theatre. Cat was also a skilled stilts performer. Cat worked a number of non-theater jobs over the years including the Chicago Community Loan Fund (CCLF), Infant Welfare Society of Evanston, YWCA Evanston/North Shore, NDFA, and A.T. Kearney. She volunteered on several political campaigns of candidates for local and state office. Cat loved children, dogs, crosswords and reading out loud with her family. Most of all she loved her friends and family. Her family is grateful for the love, support and help her community of friends extended to her throughout her illness. |