Dance Real Podcast

Season 5 of The Dance Real Podcast comes to a close. In this short final episode, Kate Histon reflects on the conversations that shaped Season 5 and looks ahead to what may be coming in Season 6. This episode is being released one week before Kate presents her workshop, "Trauma-Informed Leadership in Competitive Dance Training Environments", at the International Association for Dance Medicine &amp...

Season 5: Ep:11 Does starting ballet at a very young age really increase the chances of becoming a professional dancer? In this episode of the Dance Real Podcast, Kate Histon is joined by dance educator, researcher and studio owner Dr. Kaitlin Hague to explore what current research tells us about talent identification, early specialisation and long-term dancer development. Drawing on her doctoral...

Season 5 Ep:10 Where is dance heading? In this episode of The Dance Real Podcast, Kate Histon is joined by former dancer and studio owner, adjudicator, and Performing Arts High School Director, Ryen Ryals, for a thoughtful conversation about the future of dance education. Together they explore the growing pressure created by social media, the rise of trick-focused training, and why strong technica...

Season 5: Ep:09 In this solo episode of the Dance Real Podcast, Kate explores the deeper psychological structure behind a dancer’s mindset and why confidence, anxiety, pressure, and self-doubt are often far more complex than they appear on the surface. Rather than approaching mindset as “positive thinking,” this episode examines how dancers continuously interpret experiences, assign meaning, form...

Season 5 Ep:08 What does it take to build a lasting dance community across generations, cultures, and competitive environments? In this episode of Dance Real Podcast, Kate sits down with Belgian dance educator, choreographer, studio owner, competition organiser, and international judge Dimitri Covent. Together, they explore the realities of leading a family-run dance studio, the evolving culture o...

Season 5 Ep:07 How do predators gain trust? What are the early warning signs of grooming? And how can parents, teachers and dance studios create safer environments for young people? In this episode of The Dance Real Podcast, Kate Histon speaks with Australian survivor advocate and founder of Grooming Recognition, Louise Edmonds. Drawing on lived experience and years of advocacy, Louise explains ho...

Season 5 Ep:06 In this solo episode of the Dance Real Podcast, Kate explores the growing conversation around oversexualisation in dance and the responsibility shared across the wider dance community. Drawing from her perspective as an international adjudicator, former studio owner, educator, and mentor, Kate unpacks the difference between genuine artistry and adult-coded performance being placed o...

Season 5 Ep:05 From World Champion to Dance Educator: Marco Behal on Creativity, Failure and Originality In this episode of Dance Real Podcast, Kate Histon sits down with Swedish dance educator, choreographer, adjudicator and studio owner Marco Behal for a deeply reflective conversation about artistry, identity and the realities behind a life in dance. Marco shares his journey from a young competi...

Season 5 Ep:04 In this episode of the Dance Real Podcast, Kate Histon sits down with psychologist, former dancer, and performance specialist Dr. Chelsea Pierotti for a grounded and insightful conversation about the psychological realities of dance training. Together, they explore perfectionism, performance anxiety, burnout, competition culture, identity, emotional resilience, and the evolving conv...

Season 5 Ep:03 In this solo episode of the Dance Real Podcast, Kate explores what happens when a dancer’s sense of identity becomes heavily tied to talent, performance, achievement, or external validation. Within high performance training environments, dancers are often recognised very early for their ability. While this can create opportunity, motivation, and belonging, it can also quietly shape...

Season 5 Ep:02 In this episode of the Dance Real Podcast, Kate speaks with Jess Spinner, founder of The Whole Dancer, about body image, food, perfectionism, and the psychological pressures many dancers quietly carry throughout training and professional life. Jess is a former professional dancer and holistic health coach who specialises in supporting dancers with nutrition, emotional eating, body i...

Season 5 Ep:01 In this episode of The Dance Real Podcast, host Kate Histon sits down with one of Australia's leading commercial choreographers and creative directors, Stephen Tannos, for an honest conversation about creativity, resilience, authenticity and longevity in the performing arts. From performing in Cats and So You Think You Can Dance to choreographing for television, major artists and co...

Welcome to Season Five of The Dance Real Podcast. This season explores one central theme: authenticity. In an industry built on excellence, discipline, and performance, how do we stay connected to who we are? Throughout this season, we'll have thoughtful conversations about leadership, identity, high performance, studio culture, wellbeing, and the experiences that shape dancers, teachers, parents,...

Season 4 of the Dance Real Podcast, Going Global, explored what it really means to move through the dance world across countries, cultures, and life transitions. Across this season, Kate Histon spoke with dancers, educators, and leaders about relocating overseas, adapting to new systems, identity beyond performance, positive leadership, and the cost of unsafe dance practices. A reflective finale t...

Season 4 Ep:11 In this episode of The Dance Real Podcast, Kate Histon sits down with Finnish dance leader, educator, and international adjudicator Marco Bjurström to explore what it means to lead, teach, and judge with integrity in the global dance landscape. Marco reflects on his early beginnings in Finland, from discovering dance through popular culture to building Step Up Company and Step Up Sc...

Season 4 Ep:10 Behind the Adjudicator’s Desk: What I Look For in Dance Competitions In this solo episode of The Dance Real Podcast, international adjudicator and mindset coach Kate Histon offers an honest and educational look behind the judging desk. Drawing from her experience adjudicating across Australia, Europe, and South Africa, Kate explains what truly matters on stage and how dancers, teach...

Season 4 Ep:09 In this episode of the Dance Real Podcast, Kate speaks with physiotherapist, researcher, and former dancer Dr Melanie Fuller about the growing physical demands placed on young dancers and the rising conversation around injury prevention in dance training. Dr Fuller has spent many years working with dancers across recreational, pre-professional, and professional settings. Her clinica...

Season 4 Ep:08 In this episode of Dance Real, Kate Histon speaks with former principal dancer Jenna about the long-term impact of a professional ballet career on the body, identity, and life beyond the stage. Jenna reflects on her early training, leaving Australia on scholarship, and the realities of entering elite ballet systems at a young age. She speaks candidly about homesickness, injury, and...

Season 4: Ep 07 In this episode of Dance Real, Kate speaks with Finnish dance educator, studio owner, and international adjudicator Suvi Salmi about studio leadership, the realities of running a dance school, and the evolving culture of dance training in the age of social media. Suvi shares the story of how she moved from being a dedicated performer into teaching and eventually opening her own stu...

Season 4: Ep:06 In this episode of Dance Real, Kate explores nervous system regulation as a foundational element of high performance in dance. Drawing on lived experience as a dancer, teacher, and studio owner, she explains how performance, confidence, creativity, and leadership are shaped by the nervous system rather than effort alone. This episode looks at why pushing harder often leads to burno...

In this episode of Dance Real, Kate speaks with Spencer Bloomfield, an 18-year-old dancer from regional New South Wales who has relocated to Germany to undertake full-time tertiary dance training at the Palucca University of Dance Dresden. Spencer reflects on what it has meant to leave home, family, and familiarity at a young age, and to step into adult life in a different country, culture, and la...

Season 4 Ep: 04 In this episode of Dance Real, Kate Histon is joined by intimacy director and educator Nicole Perry for a grounded conversation on consent, power dynamics, trauma-informed practice, and psychological safety in dance and performance training. Together, they explore how consent-forward practice applies not only to intimacy and partnering, but to everyday teaching environments across...

Season 4: Ep: 03 Effective leadership in a dance studio requires more than management skills. It requires emotional intelligence, clear communication, strong boundaries, and systems that support psychological safety. In this solo episode of Dance Real, Kate reflects on over 23 years as a dance studio owner and leader. She explores what effective dance studio leadership actually looks like in pract...

Season 4 Ep:02 In this episode of the Dance Real Podcast, Kate Histon speaks with Co-Founder of Otoxia Productions John English, who co-director of Unbound, a powerful film following a group of professional ballet dancers who are also survivors of abuse within the ballet system. Unbound documents the formation of Ballet de Barcelona, a radical new company created by dancers who chose to walk away...

Season 4 Ep:01 The Dance Journey of Adam Scown Choreographer, Educator & International Dance Adjudicator In this episode of the Dance Real Podcast, Kate Histon sits down with Adam Scown for an open, reflective conversation about building a sustainable career in dance across countries, cultures, and career stages. Adam shares his journey from training and working in Australia to establishing hi...