Meet Katie Burks | Founder + Executive Director

We had the good fortune of connecting with Katie Burks and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Katie, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
I wish I could say there was an immeasurable amount of thought – that I planned everything, researched business strategies, and even educated myself on the best ways to facilitate creating and maintaining a successful organization. In reality, the process (in thought and in action) was the exact opposite. There was exceptionally little forethought or question of, “Are you sure you’re prepared to start a business?” Or especially, “Do you know how hard it is to run a business!” That said, there was an insurmountable necessity in creating Artists Sans Frontières: at the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, I couldn’t find any other organization in the world bringing dance, music, and theatre into active war zones. Without much consideration for the exceptional amount of time and effort that doing so would require (much less starting and maintaining a business that specializes in providing programming that does so repetitively) the organization somewhat started itself. But it was never the incorporation status or the many legal requirements that truly made this organization a business. From the start, ASF was – and still very much is – the dear friends, family, mentors, and volunteers providing aid and assistance to those who need it most, myself included. Without them, Artists Sans Frontières certainly wouldn’t exist at all.

Can you open up a bit about your work? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more.
Russia and Ukraine had been at war for three months when I hopped on a plane and flew into Warsaw, Poland on pretty much a hope and a prayer that things would work out in my favor. I didn’t speak the Polish language, nor could I say more than a few words in Ukrainian. Thankfully, I’d memorized a handful of words that dear Ukrainian friends in Texas had been kind enough to sit and help me articulate onto little flash cards for the kids. Words like “slow” “fast” “big” “small” “good job” and “try again” were all I had to work with, nothing more. And I’d become so distracted by the logistics of organizing a thousand other variables that I had forgotten perhaps the most pertinent information to learn: how to count in Ukrainian so that I could say “and five, six, seven, eight,” when I taught dance classes. Not only wasn’t I hyper-prepared for arrival, I was soon arriving into Eastern Europe (and quickly planning to make my way into a country at war, nonetheless) with an entire suitcase stuffed full of tutus, tambourines, scarves, capes, and toys. “Oh this is definitely going to go well,” I thought to myself. Three months later, I could proudly say that it did.

Beginning Artists Sans Frontières allowed a group of dancers, musicians, theatrical artists, and more the ability to share dance, music, and theatre classes and the privilege of performing for refugees and displaced families and individuals across Poland and in Ukraine. None of the group of ragtag artists (myself included) that banded together to serve the refugees impacted by the Russian invasion assumed wholly that dance, music, or theatre was the succinct answer to conflict and crisis. If anything, we were the foremost individuals asking, “But is it even appropriate to bring dance into an active war zone?” before any donor, financial contributor, or patron asked the same. Apparently, it’s not only warranted, it’s needed.

Coming from a post-pandemic mindset, I held steadfast to the idea of the arts being essential, but I can’t say I fully grasped the magnanimity of the concept until witnessing firsthand the ability of the performing arts to heal and to spread love. After joining a humanitarian response team to provide relief work following Texas’ Hurricane Harvey and Florida’s Hurricane Irma in 2017, I spent years searching for ways to implement volunteerism back into my life. But at the same time, I had somewhat put on my blinders, so to speak, in order to pursue a dance performance and choreographic career full-time. So it feels fitting that by the end of 2022, I am proud to state that Artists Sans Frontières has provided performing arts outreach, education, and entertainment to over 745 individuals in four locations and across two countries. And we’ve only just begun. Our organization supports the recovery and resolution phases of disaster relief and humanitarian response and we work to normalize environments impacted by war and disaster – all through sharing dance, music, and theatre with the world. I’m especially excited that our small operation has expanded to include programming such as in-school scholastic enhancement on top of our humanitarian outreach. We even have future plans for a domestic and international performance company, and I couldn’t be more excited about that. But for the time being, I stay continually, and incredibly, grateful – that I took the risk to answer my own, “Is this even worth it” question, and that I hopped on that plane at all.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I love this. I left Dallas when I was eighteen and have been incredibly lucky to live and work in what feels like one billion other cities – NYC, Portland, and London being three of them – but after recently moving back to DFW, I’m genuinely thrilled get to be Dallas-based for the first time in my adult life. I’m probably more, if not equally, excited to play tourist as anyone that comes to visit. And so much has changed in DFW over the course of the fifteen years since I’ve been away, I’ve racked up quite the list! Here are my favorites:

If someone has never visited Texas state, I tell them to come visit in late September-early October so that they can experience The Great State Fair of Texas. There’s truly nothing else like it, and it’s a full day’s event at the very least. My father was a master electrician for the State Fair, so when I was a child, I knew all the ride owners and executives by name (much less grew up spoiled rotten with a behind-the-scenes upbringing). I always park at the back gates on Fitzhugh because that’s where the shop is – where Big Tex used to be stored off-season. If you come in around Gates 11 and 12, you can book it straight to the Chevrolet Test Drive station and drive their Corvettes and Camaros. (Fill out the waver online before you enter so you can skip the line and go straight to the breathalyzers.) One of my favorite shows to see is the SOAR birds show. I also love finding a good spot on the esplanade grass at night to catch the Illumination Sensation/Mattress Firm fireworks and live performance. But my hands-down favorite (and requirement of all who visit) is experiencing an old dark ride built in…I want to say the late 60s, but it could be the late 70s, I’m not sure. It’s the only permanent ride left on the State Fair midway. It used to be called Illumilusion, and was owned by a man named Mr. Charlie Nolan. They’ve since sold off the ride and I think they’ve repainted to just call it “Scary House” now, but the illusions and the ride seats haven’t changed since the day they were made. (I suppose the adage, “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” remains the thought process, and the number of tickets continually sold annually the validation that adage is true.) My favorite part of the experience is a surprise at the end of the ride that gets every single person that goes through it, and anyone can experience it and ride the ride (so long as they’re tall enough) no matter their tolerance (or lack thereof) for rollercoasters. It’s a blast.

On the theme of spooky (which is forever a theme in my world) there is a year-round haunted house in Plano called Dark Hour Haunted House. I take any visitor and guest to visit that can stomach a special kind of excitement. If you want a nice dinner before you scream your lungs out, I recommend making a reservation close to the attraction at a stellar restaurant called Texas-Beef•Fish•Fowl that has some of the best food, best people, and best service that Texas state has ever experienced. After dinner, when you get to Dark Hour, be prepared: they’re incredible. The Haunt Director and absurdly talented Head Designer, Allan Hopps, is a legend in the haunted house industry and was kind enough to help me with a considerable amount of my master’s research on fear. I cannot say enough wonderful things about the level of artistry and innovation that Dark Hour demonstrates with every show. They’re spectacular.

After a full day at the Fair and another day of food and scary fun, we’ll sleep in and spend a day at home before spending the evening experiencing Dallas’ nightlife. Typically, I’ll choose between taking a friend to Deep Ellum or taking them to Bishop Arts. The choice between the two is never dependent upon age, but rather contingent upon the level of rowdiness of the individual– Bishop Arts is a nice evening. Deep Ellum, no matter what, will be wild. I will only endure parking near Bishop Arts if a shop called A J Vagabonds is open and I can find some fun adventure stickers. (They have the best Texas-themed souvenirs I’ve found so far.) I will only endure parking in Deep Ellum for a cup of vegan chocolate brownie ice cream from a place called Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream. (For friends who don’t eat dairy, you’ll never know the difference. It’s super yummy.) But if I can coerce my Texas guests into staying away from either neighborhood, I’ll drive to Uptown and find a live band playing at The Rustic (park at MUTTS in the lot across the street. The parking is free and you can leave your car there until at least 3am without a problem, tried and tested) and then we’ll grab our last drinks at the Canopy by Hilton Uptown Village. They’re the best rooftop view of Dallas I’ve found so far – but I’m always looking for a better one. That said, the perks of ending the night at the Hilton Canopy rooftop have yet to be outweighed: if you get in before midnight, they’re still serving hot cookies on their late menu.

And as if dragging people through the State Fair, a haunted house, and out for the night isn’t enough adventure already, I have two other requirements: seeing a live Dallas dance show and walking through the city on a ghost tour. I was the last class of Booker T Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts students to attend the arts magnet at the old 2501 Flora location, pre-restoration and rebuild. I was also one of the first class of students to return to the new beautiful building that the school encompasses today, so the Arts District holds a special place in my heart. It’s truly incredible to me to walk around Dallas Arts District and see the massive expansion that the city of Dallas has undergone, from walking through Klyde Warren Park to touring the exterior (and interior, oh my goodness is it gorgeous!) of the AT&T Performing Arts Center. Just walking into the Winspear to view McDermott Hall is better than most tourist attractions – and if you can carve out a Dallas visit in time to attend a live show inside the venue… oh y’all. It’s worth every dime. I like to bring friends along to a TITAS/Dance Unbound live dance show, whether it’s at ATT PAC or at another beautiful venue, like The Moody or Music Hall at Fair Park. In my opinion, TITAS presents some of the best dance programming this nation has to offer. There is always something everyone can enjoy, and their seasons are always incredible. Highly recommend.

Significantly less incredible (but oh so amusing) is a walking ghost tour of Dallas. There are two I recommend, dependent upon age/how many libations your guests desire alongside their ghosts. For adults, Nightly Spirits offers a pub crawl alongside a historical ghost tour of Dallas. It’s a fun and informative evening for all, even if ghosts aren’t a sense of amusement. For those who don’t (or can’t) drink, however, Dallas Terrors is significantly more spooky… dare I say soberingly so. It’s also historically led, but if you’ve got a friend or kiddo obsessed with ghost detection and EMF readers and ghost hunting shows, they’re the tour to choose. Just watch out… you might go from skeptical to seeing something by the end of the walk!

At any rate, Cheers to enjoying all Dallas has to offer.
I hope all experience just an ounce of why I love this city, and choose to call it Home.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
There are so many people, I can’t choose just one! I thank God as far more than a little credit and recognition is deserved in His name for all I am able to achieve. I have to extend my next biggest love and gratitude to my Mom, Donna, who taught me fierce independence, bravery, and kindness. My family and dear friends are too many to name, but their love, care, and support grants my sheer privilege and wonder of waking up and getting to share dance, music, and theatre with the world. I owe them my whole world in return. Sue Darrow, the president of my Board of Directors, thank you for teaching me how to run a nonprofit the right way, and Kristi Ellis, the best sister an only child could ask for, thank you for forever answering your phone at all hours of the night to help with ASF operations and research.

As for a true dedication and shout out, I’m a proud Dallas native and an even more proud graduate of Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts. I am honored to have begun a Dallas-based nonprofit, and there are two individuals for which I have an immeasurable amount of respect and admiration because of how they each run organizations that quite literally change the city of Dallas for the better. To Lily Weiss, former Artistic Director and Chair of BTWHSPVA’s Dance Department and current Executive Director of the Dallas Arts District, thank you for all you do in support of the performing and visual arts in Dallas. An even bigger thank you for introducing me to my first and truest love: concert dance, and to the wonder and magic that is a career in showbusiness. To Charles Santos, Executive Director of TITAS, thank you for bringing world-class dance to the Dallas Ft Worth metroplex and for continually curating some of the most well-crafted dance programming this nation has to offer. Personal thank you for providing a world-class arts education to this public-school student, who was able to volunteer backstage and meet her idols, dance with world-class dance makers, and perform with world-renowned names, all because you two worked day and night to make the arts accessible. Thank you both.

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Other: Artists Sans Frontières is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization operated by the generous support of donations and contributions. All donations are tax exempt and gratefully accepted. Please visit our website or contact us to donate today. Thank you for your support.