Welcome!

Glad you stopped by! We are updating this site, as we speak. Meanwhile, here are some current & recent collaborations I'm honored to be a part of...

All Prisoners are Political Prisoners, #freethemall with Love Resists, June 12, 2020

Loved Ones of Indigenous Federal Prisoners: Better Response Now to COVID-19, #freethemall with UU Ministry for Earth, May 7, 2020

Action of Immediate Witness: Address 400 Years of White Supremacist Colonialism, passed overwhelmingly at UU General Assembly (Woo hoo!), June 27, 2020

Settler Colonialism & Genocide, a surprisingly hopeful workshop presented with Rev. Dr. Clyde Grubbs and Rev. Adam Lawrence Dyer, UU General Assembly, June 26, 2020

Indigenous Resistance: Creating Climate Justice, a love-infused workshop presented with Little Feather Giron (NoDAPL political prisoner) and Leoyla Cowboy Giron (Water Protector and spouse of Little Feather), UU General Assembly, June 28, 2020 (link coming soon!)

Upcoming Gigs

Thursday 8.6.20. Write Letters to Water Protectors. UU Young Adults for Climate Justice. 7 PM central. (Please note: This event is organized by and intended for young adults, ages 18ish through 36ish.)

Sunday 8.9.20. Bumper Sticker Theology. Fargo-Moorhead UU Church. 11 AM central.

Sunday 8.30.20. A UU Vision for the World. Fargo-Moorhead UU Church. 11 AM central.

Sunday 10.11.20. The Incarcerated Body: On Mutual Liberation (working title). UU Society of Schenectady. 9:30 AM central.

Shade Tree Players Perform "Doctor Dragon" for Play in a Day

Thank you to all the actors, actresses, parents, families, and friends who made Play in a Day possible! The kids did a wonderful job bringing a play to life -- in just one day. Special thanks to Amanda Irvine-Perry, director extraordinaire, and Jennifer Tosner, super-manager!

Hello!

Welcome to my website. You'll find pictures of recent events, information about what's coming up, and a little history.

These days, I am very fortunate to be co-facilitating an adolescent girls' creative writing group with Dr. Kathy Blohm. The participants have renewed my sense of hope, so I thought I'd share a bit of their hope with you. Here's a poem we all wrote together. Each different color represents a different person's voice.

HOPE…or
Something That is Broken Can Always Be Fixed
By the Group That Opened the Box, March 2009

Childhood. (meow.)
I talk to myself (meow) when I wish I could cry, but I know I should not.
Remember, I say. Remember...
Do not be afraid of what there is to come.
When you think your timing is off, (meow) ask for it,
for hope, for something so simple and young.
It shall be a gift for the future, a reminder that life is hard, but hope –
hope,
she can go on and on.
(meow.)
You think it’s not your turn
even though it never ends – Remember.
I remember –
a carefree feather,
(twinkle, twinkle)
a bouncy ball,
a knitted thing –
freedom.
I could cry, “Freedom.”
I could cry,
Strength,
Heart,
Joy,
Wish,
Always, Simply…
(meow.)
Do I remember?
I could remember.
It’s time. It makes its way –
this hope, joy, wish, freedom.
It makes its way around.
(meow.)
A reminder –
I remember –
Exact remembrance –
Something that is broken can always be fixed.

Thank you, Dakota West Arts Council and City of Bismarck

I'd like to extend a very special thank you to the Dakota West Arts Council and the City of Bismarck for helping to fund Dragon Jane's newest show! Entitled DON'T WORRY! THE MODERN WOMAN'S GUIDE TO 100% HAPPINESS (OR YOUR MONEY BACK), the show is co-written by members of Dragon Jane and myself. Coming soon to Bismarck/Mandan!

"Arts Dakota Exhibition" in North Dakota

Good news! Let's hear it for the North Dakota Art Gallery Association (NDAGA)!

The NDAGA has finished judging entries for their traveling exhibit, Arts Dakota, which honors North Dakota arts and cultures. I just found out that three of my writings will be a part of this exhibit. These include my children's poem Water, the beginning of my children's play Delicious!, and a monologue from my adult play Ugly Girl.

As the letter of congratulations says, my work has been "printed out, enlarged to poster size, framed, and is on Exhibition."

Mom always said that my writing would be larger than life one day!

Stay tuned for more info on the Exhibition schedule.

News & Reviews

OK, I know. News is supposed to be new. :-) This section is under renovation. More soon! (8.4.20)

* That Takes Ovaries Dakota Stage Ltd., Bismarck, ND, 10-07 * Fall Festival Fargo Park District, Fargo, ND, 9-07 * WomanSong Main Stage, Edgeley, ND, 9-07 * International Peace Festival International Peace Gardens, 6-07

* V-Day Bismarck State College, Bismarck, ND, 2-07 * Live Art in Motion Dakota West Arts Council, Bismarck, ND, 2-07 * Peace Pole Re-Dedication Riverside Elementary School, Bismarck, ND, 1-07 * Late Night Alternative High Prairie Arts Complex, Bismarck, ND, 11-06 * ND Peace Conference Lake Region St. Coll., Devils Lake, ND, 10-06 * Public Performance Urban Harvest Market, Bismarck, ND, 7-06 * Pride-Fest Eagles Park, Bismarck, ND, 7-06 * Eyes Wide Open Exhibit ND Capitol Mall, Bismarck, ND, 7-06 * Public Performance Art in the Park, Mandan, ND, 7-06 * That Takes Ovaries! Dakota Stage Limited, Bismarck, ND, 4-06 * V-Day Bismarck State College, Bismarck, ND, 3-06 * Statewide Meeting ND Cncl. on Abused Women's Serv., Bismarck, ND, 1-06 * Peace Studies Series Sisters of the Presentation, Fargo, ND, 1-06 * Winter Celebration Unitarian Church, Bismarck, ND, 12-05 * Public Performance Urban Harvest Market, Bismarck, ND, 8-05 * Morsels, Movement, & Music Pinwheel Modern Dance Co., Bismarck, ND, 7-04 * Spoken Word Performance Burkhart Studios, Chicago, IL, 2-03 * Spoken Word Performances No Exit Café, Chicago, IL, 1 & 10-02 * Somatic Arts Concerts Naropa University, Boulder, CO, 11-99 & -00

New News HOWASTE RECOGNITION LUNCHEON. Music and movement. Friday April 17, 2009, at 11:45 AM. Municipal Country Club, Bismarck. Benefitting Charles Hall Youth Services. DON'T WORRY! THE MODERN WOMAN'S GUIDE TO 100% HAPPINESS (OR YOUR MONEY BACK) written by Karen Van Fossan and Dragon Jane. Friday, September 11, 2009, at 8 PM. Woman Song in LaMoure, ND. ARTS DAKOTA EXHIBITION. Including "Water" and excerpts from "Ugly Girl" and "Delicious!" by Karen Van Fossan. Traveling exhibit of North Dakota arts sponsored by the North Dakota Art Galleries Association. The year 2009 and ongoing. DEVILS LAKE PUBLIC SCHOOLS RESIDENCY with Dragon Jane. Devils Lake, ND. April 20 -- May 8, 2009. MANCHESTER HOUSE RESIDENCY with Dragon Jane. Bismarck, ND. Week of June 1, 2009. CREATIVE WRITING GROUP FOR ADOLESCENT GIRLS. "The Group That Opened the Box." Chambers and Blohm Psychological Services. Bismarck, ND. Spring/Summer 2009. WEST RIVER HEAD START "SCHOOLS AND ARTISTS AS LEARNING TEAMS" RESIDENCY with Dragon Jane. Mandan, ND. 2008-2009 School Year. CHARLES HALL YOUTH SERVICES PROGRAMMING. Bismarck, ND. Spring/Summer 2009. Recent News (Fondly Remembered) BLOOD MOTHER: THE WILD WOMAN'S GUIDE TO MASS MARKETING AND OTHER MODERN (MIS)ADVENTURES, written by Karen Van Fossan and Dragon Jane. PrideFest, Summer 2008. YOUTUBE. Dragon Jane is there. But can you find us??? PEACE PARADE. Monday, September 1, 2008, at 1 PM. Minneapolis/Saint Paul, MN. TUMBLEWEED CABARET: THE MYTH OF THE GOLDEN THREAD. The Lowry Theater, 16 West Fifth Street, St. Paul, MN. Monday, September 1, 2008, at 7:30 PM. TALENT NIGHT. Frances Leach High Prairie Arts and Science Center's Imagination Theatre, 1810 Schafer St, Bismarck, ND. Saturday, September 6, 2008. Social, 7:30 PM. Talent Show, 8 PM. ROOSEVELT ELEMENTARY SCHOOL RESIDENCY. Bismarck, ND. Beginning October 1, 2008. CREATIVE MOVEMENT FOR THE STAGE. Workshop at Shade Tree Players Children's Theatre. Bismarck, ND. March 21, 2009. List of past performances/presentations below. Read the not-so recent BISMARCK TRIBUNE article about Karen Van Fossan. (She prefers to be called "Karen Van Fossan." But she'll answer to "Karen Von Fossan" any day!) Reviews "An outstanding creative writer." -- Susan Campbell Bartoletti, 2006 Newbery Honor Award Recipient "I thought I was in New York!" -- Michelle Steinwand, Founder, WomanSong

"Phenomenal! Karen Van Fossan demonstrates a degree of excellence that truthfully is not often seen." -- Ryan Kennedy, director, Embracing Life's Dance, Denver, CO