Dance Journey

I met Kaycee Tacata through LA Unbound. It was my first season performing with them and her second. We were in a contemporary piece together, but she was also in five other pieces! This girl can do it all–contemporary, jazz, jazz funk, cheer and pom, musical theater, you name it! So talented not only at dance but also in organizing and administration. She was the PCN (Pilipino Cultural Night) coor...

Christina Wampler is a beautiful dancer. She grew up loving dance, training in dance, and even teaching dance by age 14! She taught mostly ballet and acrobatics, and that definitely shows in the type of choreography she creates today. I met Christina because she started a Christian contemporary class called The Way Dance Company that meets once a month and learns a dance to a worship song. This ha...

Makia Chantel has an amazing dance story, and I can't wait for you all to hear it! Makia and I first saw each other at a free Christian hip hop class put on by non-profit organization Dancing Disciples. Shortly after that class, I ended up dancing in the piece she created for her church's Easter service, which was so fun and crazy! But Makia wasn't always dancing for Jesus. She used to...

I'm so excited for you all to meet Zoe Ortiz! She's only 15, moved to LA about a year ago, and has already booked dance and acting jobs. She takes multiple classes a day, mostly at Millennium and Playground, and she is loving the training here. (Good thing, because she actually convinced her parents to move here from Texas through a PowerPoint presentation and months of persuasion, lol.) I...

He dances, he acts, he sings, but you probably know him best for his creative and unique choreography... it's Paul Sivertsen everyone! (pronounced SEE-vert-sen) Paul moved to LA in 2009 to pursue his performing dreams and plans to continue forever! He loves to create and has now choreographed about 20 shows for LA Unbound, from country musical theater to Mortal Kombat theme to his most recent...

You would never believe that Michelle Shvedov started her dance journey last year because she is flying! She did spend 10+ years of her life doing rhythmic gymnastics where she also learned dance, but it wasn't until this past October that she started taking studio dance classes regularly. Her gymnastics skills shine in contemporary class, and her ability to give 100% effort to everything she does...

Giorgia Bertolotti moved here from Italy about six months ago, and it was so fun to chat with her about her dance experience in LA so far! She grew up doing ballet, lyrical, and contemporary, and her first ever class here was Shelby Fletcher's contemporary class at Millennium! She had no idea what she was getting herself into with all the floor work, flips, and thrashing movements, but she end...

You've probably seen him around at one of the many classes he takes at Millennium, but now it's time to get to know Kam Feiz! Kam grew up playing soccer and wrestling, but he discovered dance as an adult and quickly got hooked. In college, after only taking two dance classes ever, he auditioned for a show and ended up performing in a Latin dance piece, and he loved it! Now, years later, he...

Okay I'm so excited for you all to hear Jess Keene's story because she has been so influential in my dance journey the past few months. I met her at a class she taught for LA Unbound, and since then, I started taking her regular Monday night class, trying all the classes she likes at Millennium, and now I'm in her piece for the LA Unbound spring show! Literally Jess has helped blossom...

I've had the privilege of taking Scarlett Anastasia's contemporary class the past couple months, and WOW. It was a challenge! Her combos are usually over a minute long and full of acrobatic moves and floorwork. But I'm so, so grateful she reached out to me because if she hadn't encouraged me to come, I never would have thought I could do it. She believed in me from the beginning an...

I met Sal through an organization called Dancing Disciples, that gives free hip hop class on Fridays! Sal killed it in the cypher that night, and it's not surprising since he's been freestyle dancing since he was a kid, performing and competing with it too! It wasn't until a couple years ago, though, that he decided he wanted to learn how to pick up choreography as well. He discovered...

I feel so blessed to have been connected with my newest podcast guest Reva Pincusoff, former ballerina who trained with The Royal Ballet and danced with Pennsylvania Ballet (now Philadelphia Ballet), Les Grands Ballets Canadiens, and Eliot Feld's ballet company, among others! It all started for her after watching The Red Shoes at 9 years old, when she asked her parents if she could take ballet...

Lawyer by day, dancer by night... it's Stephanie Law, everyone! Okay, well, maybe she's still in college right now, but that's her current career dream. Stephanie grew up in California and danced her whole life but recently cut back on her 40-hours-a-week dance schedule to focus on her majors at LMU - Political Science and African American Studies. Stephanie is very busy with school bu...

If you don't already know this gorgeous dancer, meet Finn! Finn has had a passion for dance her whole life and is currently majoring in it in college. Learn what it's like to juggle gen ed classes, school dance classes, and studio dance classes... all while choreographing and directing her own piece. And she sews all the costumes too! We also discuss physics, jobs, Harry Potter, and our true feeli...

Catherine Engberg was in town from the Bay Area, and I was so happy to be able to grab some of her time for the podcast! Catherine and I took lots of Zoom classes together from Broadway Dance Center during the pandemic. (The New York time zone was perfect for us Californians to take class before work!) But now we're both back to in-person dancing, and Catherine shares what it's like juggli...

Many of you already know and love her, but this week we get to know Angel Hass a little better. Angel is a dancer, dance teacher, and actress, and she moved to LA from Germany five years ago! Tune in to this episode to learn more about Angel's background, interests, and teaching style; and hear us chat about priorities, time management, and the importance of taking a break sometimes. Angel teaches...

Introducing... Navi Lee! She's new to LA but not new to dance. Her main styles are acrobatics, silks, pole, and lyra (aerial hoop), but she also takes contemporary and ballet, and she is a beautiful dancer! Tune in to the full episode to learn more interesting facts about Navi, like how she grew up in the "circus scene," how she does high school online, and why she moved to LA. Navi also opens up...

It's time to get to know Sophia Moritz! I met her in a parking lot of a ballet we were both going to see, but that 20-minute chat wasn't enough. I also barely knew she was a dancer at the time because she was so focused on hyping up her dancer friends and their amazing projects. Sophia is humble and super supportive and encouraging to others, so I couldn't wait to get the chance to hear about her...

Melissa Briggs became a serious ballet dancer at age 8, knowing without a doubt that's what she wanted to do for the rest of her life. From New York to Rhode Island to Massachusetts to Florida and then back to New York and then finally in California, her parents always made sure there was a good ballet studio so she could get the training she needs to do the thing she was called to do. And it work...

I'm sure you've seen her around at C Spot, LA DanceFit, or FlowMotion Dance Studio (to name a few), but now it's time to get to KNOW this dedicated dancer, Kristen Shaffer! Kristen and I love to take dance classes constantly, and we both post all the videos to our dance diaries (aka Instagram). So we have that in common, but it was even better to chat with her for an hour because she's so fun and...

Who even knows when I very first met Sarah Chan, we've taken so many classes together! From ballet at Westside to Jazz at Millennium to Contemporary at C Spot, we both love to run around the city trying all the different studios. Lately Sarah's been focusing on ballet, contemporary / modern, and heels, and she's in two dance companies! (And if you thought that was a lot, she also works as a dietit...

I'm sooooo glad I got to interview Talyssa Cruz before she moved far, far away to Northern California! Talyssa and I first took class together at Athletic Garage, but then we didn't see each other for a while because I was mostly on the west side, and she was injured for a bit from rock climbing! We followed each other on IG, but it was so nice to start taking jazz and contemporary classes togethe...

It's time to introduce you to Sarina Lowe—a beautiful ballet dancer with one of the strongest drives for dance I've ever seen, plus an amazing sense of humor! I've only taken two dance classes with her ever, but she's one of my biggest dance encouragers, and it was so great to hear her dance story. Sarina loved performing so much as a kid that she used to search out extra dance competitions to go...

This episode is so exciting because I finally got to hang out with Elaine Adolfo, my biggest dance fan/friend/Insta pen pal from the Bay Area! Elaine and I have been chatting on IG and liking each other's videos practically every day for almost a year now, ever since we realized we like a lot of the same dance teachers, but we never met in person until the podcast! Elaine doesn't live in L...

Here she is... our link to so many amazing dance classes and teachers... owner of The C Spot LA... Susan Seletsky!!!!!!! What a joy to get to interview Susan and hear all about her dance adventures. Susan started taking dance classes later in life and retired early to open a dance studio! She embarked on this journey to create community and help herself heal, and she got to be part of my journey a...