Chicago-based tap dancer, Tristan Bruns, has been on the scene since 2004, becoming a founding member of Chicago Human Rhythm Project’s BAM! dance company. With CHRP from 2004-2020, Bruns performed works by Michelle Dorrance, Ted Louis Levy, Daniel Borak (Switzerland), Guillem Alonso (Spain), Jakari Sherman, Lane Alexander, Martin “Tre” Dumas III, Lisa LaTouche and (the) Lou Conte. After joining M.A.D.D. Rhythms (2009-2022), Bruns continued to train under and perform works by Bril Barrett, Starinah “Star” Dixon, Jumaane Taylor and Donnetta “lilbit” Jackson, appearing on television (“The Steve Harvey Show,” “Super Dancer Born Tonight” (Japan)) and in theaters across the country and overseas. In musical theater, Bruns was a featured soloist and male dance captain for “Sophisticated Ladies” (Porchlight Musical Theatre, Jeff Award-winner, 2020) and was a featured soloist in the recent reimagining of “42nd Street,” choreographed by Jared Grimes (Drury Lane Theatre, Jeff Award-winner, 2018), and has performed as a featured soloist at theme parks (“Celtic Fyre,” Busch Gardens; “Showboat Branson Belle,” Silver Dollar City). Bruns is Director of Tapman Productions, LLC, producing original works by Bruns and modern dance company, The Modern Marvels, and supplies affordable dance floors for Chicago dance companies and visiting artists. Bruns is Managing Editor and critic at SeeChicagoDance.com, with the goal of prioritizing diversity of coverage, and a contributing writer to Newcity Magazine. “What I’ve learned from tap dancers like Michelle and Bril,” says Bruns, “is that there is no one way that a dancer should move, and it’s the unique ways our individual bodies move that make us special. It’s this ethos that I try to embody in my work and my class.”
