Retrace Your Steps

This could not be a more perfect episode to close out Season 3, y'all! Happy New Year! Today's guest is none other than Professor Bernard Brown. Step in to this warm, thoughtful space and we discuss many common threads between us including the Los Angeles native experience. It's going to get honest, intimate, vulnerable...and maybe even naked as we Retrace the steps of this beautiful B...

We are nearing the end of the season, and we have another amazingly talented Queer Black Woman to uplift...trumpet sounds...Britta Grant. Britta has had an upward slope in her career and has worked with the likes of Zendaya, Cher, and even muvva, herself...Beyonce! We dive into those experiences and stories on this episode, as well as her humble beginnings in the nightclub scene. This incredible y...

I know I say this every time...but THIS is a special episode! I have been trying to get Tinaiya Tank to sit down for a chat on the pod since the beginning! She did not disappoint. Ms. Tank shares her experiences with navigating through the world of Pro Dance Team, opens up about growing up in Lompoc, CA, reflects on our young sleepover nights, and even gives me some tips on becoming a plant parent...

This has been a season of a lot of firsts, and this episode is no exception! This week we have our first double-guest session with the 2 creators of the CRay Project. Try to keep up because this 3-way dialogue moves fast! Chatiera and LaRonica share stories of growing up in Ohio, their separate challenges in their undergrad program at Kent State, and how they cultivate an inclusive, welcoming spac...

It's our 2nd Re-Retrace, and we're throwing it back again to an artist from yesteryear! True to form...we're keeping it Black! In 2021, we recorded this conversation where Gia Calhoun opened up about her struggles with finding her place in the dance world as a young light-skinned Black girl. She is poised, well-spoken, and elegant...but this chick has a silly side, too. She, also, has...

On this very special episode, we have a late night recording, appropriately, with Burlesque royalty, Kirby La Brea. We discuss an array of topics including his training at Debbie Allen Dance Academy, Queer Black representation in mainstream entertainment, his appearance on the OutTV reality competition "Gogo For The Gold," and highlights of his concert dance career. It's all family here, so we get...

It's our first Re-Retrace episode! We're throwing is back on this Thursday to Season 1, but staying on theme and keeping it Black! Travel back to the year 2020 with Ariana as she goes on location to the San Fernando Valley to visit Zantino Bustos during the height of the COVID-19 Shutdown. These two alumni of CSU Dominguez Hills discuss topics like Male Privilege in the Dance industry, the...

This is quite an episode. I hope y'all can keep up! Curtis T. Lassiter aka Finessa Jawn and I sit down and reflect on the impactful experience of working with the one and only Miss Peppermint. We have a little trouble staying on track, but this is truly a special conversation. We share our struggles with being able to express our gender in the professional Dance World, and even get a little emotio...

It's an all new season of Retrace Your Steps and we're opening STRONG with James McQueen. In this episode we discuss the difference between the East and West Coast approaches to rehearsing, how James feels about "Shuckin' & Jivin," and his travels overseas. It's nothing but great energy in this conversation, Retracers, so make sure those laces are tied tight! Thank you, 5! James McQueen: IG - @the...

Welcome Back for Season 3! I've been hard at work; curating a line up of amazing Dance artists to sit down and chat with. I'm so excited to share with you all of these fantastic conversations. This season is PREDOMINANTLY artists of POC and Queer experience. Enjoy this tidbit with James McQueen, who checks all of those boxes!

The Season 2 Finale is upon us! I can't think of a better way to take our bow than with the person so many of you have come to hear stories about. Today, I'm sitting down with none other than the one and only Doris Ressl-Acosta! She has been a very important figure in several peoples' lives, including mine, and you will definitely hear me gush about it. Doris not only is the Chair for the Dept. of...

This episode was truly a pleasure and a joy! What more could I ask for, as we head into the end of Season 2?! My dear friend, Mayra Pedraza, has lived quite a life and she gets very vulnerable as we Retrace it with her. We talk about her intro to Dance and the training experiences she received while growing up in Mexico! She divulges what it was like when discovering as a young adult that she is a...

I am so impressed with this week's guest for making this happen under such short notice. Nhan Ho is a busy person with faculty positions at both studios and college campuses, as well as a company to run! He is such a breath of fresh air. He shares his experiences growing up in dance environments where he was often one of few male participants.  We tackle topics like Male Privilege, Cultural A...

This busy lady was a tough pony to lasso! Linnea Snyderman and I danced and toured together a few years ago, and I've been relentlessly pursuing her to stop by the Pod for quite some time now. She has a fascinating story that starts at the San Francisco Ballet and ends in a swimming pool. She's got a strong will and a commitment to technical training like I've never seen before! Listen in as we ch...

This guest might have a voice that's better suited for Audio than I do! I am talking about the pleasantly poised Gia Calhoun! We got to catch up, reflect on times when we danced together, and chuckle a little over the way our Artistic Director titled ballets. She shares the insights of a young light-skinned dancer of color that grew up with the struggles of finding her place in the Performing Arts...

Make sure you're warm before walking into this Master Class! Try to keep up as I chat it up with friend, fan, and patron of the pod: Sarah Cashmore-Hummel! Most of the of time we stay on topic, but not always. Sarah shares her mission to bring more focus, awareness, and importance to Cultural Dance. She, also, lets me in on the duality of teaching both college students and small children. I may ha...

You're catching the Final Run of this episode! Morgan and I had an accidental Dress Rehearsal when our first recording did not go great in the editing process. So, it's opening night! Listen as she gushes over the amazing people that she's been blessed to receive instruction from. We dive into the need for Ballet to catch up to present day, the normalization of Directors that exhibit mental health...

In our very first Zoom recording, I reconnect with Delaney Zieg. She's a highly talented dancer, and prime example of pushing yourself to your limits. We chat about the first time she saw The Nutcracker on stage, her tight-knit relationship with her Dance partner, and her growth as she owns more of her body over time. We relate on so many levels...including our taste in Canadian comedy. Join in on...

Melanie Kushida is a fellow Toro, class of 2014! She and I spent a lot of time together in our Undergrad program at CSU Dominguez Hills...but real life came along and took us in different directions. I got her to take a long drive out to Long Beach from Temecula, CA and we had our chance to catch. Listen in as we share our thoughts on Commercial Dance, Type Casting, and ACDA. Cackle along with us...

The time has come! Season 2 is just around the corner, so tell a friend! We'll be chatting at you soon!

It's heeeeere! We are going out with a bang! It's a Grande Adagio with this extended episode! We are rejoined by our VERY first guest, Marco Carreon, but this time he's leading the Master Class. Ms. Ari is in the spotlight on this good day, and we are Retracing HER Steps before we go on off-season. She shares her many firsts in her Dance career including her first performance for Multi-Cultural we...

It's our last episode before the finale! What better way to go out then with a fun and fresh conversation with Josh Alvarez? For such a young person, Josh has a lot to offer the Performing Arts world and he's on a mission to share and experience it all! We discuss his cross sectionality in his ethnic culture as a Latinx, Filipinx, and Japanese American. He opens up about sketchy scenarios that he'...

Welcome back to the Sequel! We're completing our conversation with Kistina Pressler. We start with Dance Appreciation and our dear Mrs. Pressler spills about the long list of reasons she loves and appreciates Dance in her life. We finish with Dance Perceptions, and she brought sooo many goodies for me to rifle through, and y'all know I'm nosey! We really open up and share our experiences about cho...

Well, Retracers, we have arrived at another Saga. This time, we sit down with Kistina Pressler, a friend and colleague. In this first part, we only get through our first segment! Kistina shares her connection with Judaism, her guilt about observing discrimination take place, and her deep desire to make those around her feel comfortable and taken care of. As much as she thinks heavily about the wor...

Welcome back to 2nd part of this Saga! We're finishing up our conversation with Ashley L. Jones. We discuss the values that she hopes to impart on her students, the differences in our experiences and relationships with Ballet, and her desire to see more female Dance artists in positions of leadership.  Are you ready to keep up with THIS Jones? You better tape up those toes and head to barre.....