The Dance Podcast

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#140 Josh Assor. Mary Poppins on Broadway. BDC teacher. Tour master. Sep 11, 2019

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Josh is a New York based choreographer and performer. Throughout Josh's career, he has worked some of the most respected jobs in the industry including Broadway, national tours, national commercials, film and television. He has performed in major venues across the world including United States, Canada, Mexico and Europe.

Some of his recent choreographic work includes New York Fashion Week, Audi Ottawa, a commercial for Modos Furniture, Mary Poppins at Arrow Rocks Lyceum Theater and the world premiere of Medicine the Musical, which ran in New York City, Off-Broadway. He was the associate choreographer for the Saturday Night Fever National Tour as well as Kiss me Kate at the Summer Theater of New Canaan. This summer Josh will be returning to the Lyceum Theater to choreograph their season opening, Cinderella.

As a performer, some of his favorite credits include Disney's 1st National Tour of Newsies (asst. Dance Captain), Neleus in Mary Poppins on Broadway and the 1st National Tour, Baby John in West Side story (Stratford Festival), Wizard Of Oz National Tour (Troika), and dancing on NBC's Saturday Night Live with Jimmy Fallon. Josh has been featured in Dance Spirit Magazine, Dance Canada Quarterly, Industry Dance Magazine and Dance Plug Los Angeles. He has taught at Edge Performing Arts Center and is currently on faculty at the Broadway Dance Center in New York City where he has been a guest choreographer for many of their events.

#139 Christina Bodie. Juilliard. Les Ballets Jazz de Montréal. Bodytraffic. Sep 04, 2019

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This episode is all about TRANSITIONS! Transitions in cities, disciplines, roles, and casts. Christina Bodie has had a beautiful career - all of which required a lot of flexibility and adaptability as she transitioned.

Originally from Edmonton, Canada, Christina studied in the professional division of the Royal Winnipeg Ballet School. She went on to graduate from the Juilliard School in New York City in 2005 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts. Upon graduation, Christina launched her professional career dancing with the Koresh Dance Company in Philadelphia for two seasons. In 2007, Christina returned to Canada to join Les Ballets Jazz de Montréal (BJM Danse), with which she toured the world for eight seasons. In 2015, Christina relocated to Los Angeles to join BODYTRAFFIC. In addition to her concert dance career, she has performed in television productions and special events for organizations such as Cirque du Soleil, L'Oreal, Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines and Radio Canada.

Christina is also passionate about teaching and choreographing. She is currently on dance faculty at Loyola Marymount University, Windward School and Marat Daukayev School of Ballet. Christina teaches master classes nationally and has been on guest faculty for the University of Southern California, Regional Dance America, Francisco Gella Dance Works, Idyllwild Arts Academy, Long Beach Ballet, Los Angeles Theater Center and Greater Washington Dance Center. Christina also enjoys rehearsal directing, and in 2017, she was invited by choreographer Barak Marshall to stage his work Monger on the dancers at the University of Southern California's prestigious Glorya Kaufman School of Dance. Christina's love of teaching extends beyond dance. In 2015, Christina completed her yoga teacher training through Yogaworks, and she enjoys incorporating yoga into her dance classes.

#138 Justin Tan. Chiropractor. Health Optimization. Human Potential. Aug 28, 2019

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Dr. Justin is fascinated by movement and is committed to a practice of personal and collective growth. With a passion for continual learning and sharing, he thrives off of cultivating experiences and evidence informed knowledge surrounding movement, self-development, and life optimization.

Graduating with a Doctorate in Chiropractic Medicine (D.C). Justin received the Palmer West Clinical Excellence and Virgil V. Strang Chiropractic Philosophy awards. Accolades which are distinguishing honours reflecting his commitment to delivering a result orientated treatment, optimal client experience, with a focus on community and client engagement and education.

Justin innovated Rollax, a movement therapy system that engages and optimizes the brain-body connection. He is a movement and health legacy ambassador for Lululemon Athletica and Clear Float Spa, is a privileged Instructor for the movement company, Rocktape.

#137 Sarah Rodenhouse. Moved LA. MashUp Contemporary Dance Company. Aug 21, 2019

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Sarah Rodenhouse is the Founder/Movement Leader of Moved LA *and* Artistic Director of MashUp Contemporary Dance Company. Between these two entities, she is quickly becoming a mover and shaker in the LA dance scene. Through Moved LA, she brings movement workshops to working professionals in businesses such as Pinterest - and hosts wellness retreats. Via MashUp, Sarah choreographs with professional dancers and presents performances all of LA including the A+D Museum, Glendale Brand Library, and multiple festivals. www.thedancepodcast.com

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#136 Marissa Labog. Dancer. Stunt Woman. Actor. Aug 14, 2019

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Marissa Labog, nicknamed "Mighty" by her peers, is committed to her strong belief in the transformative power of storytelling. Indicated by her nickname, as an actor, dancer, and stunt woman, Marissa is fearless and powerful in her pursuit for creative adventure earning her awards such as the Lester Horton Award for Outstanding Performer, the Solo Award, and an Ovation Award Nomination.

Commercially, she has worked with artists such as Tina Turner, Christina Aguillera, Justin Timberlake, and Toni Basil. She has also appeared in countless commercials for Nike, iPod, Coke, and T-Mobile. Her TV and film credits include: MTV Movie Awards, the Emmys, Jimmy Kimmel Live, Wolverine,

Dancing nationally and internationally with PCB Ballet and Inland Pacific Ballet, Marissa was urged by her loving mother to take up martial arts to learn to "defend" herself while traveling abroad. Enrolling her in Karate, Marissa excelled and furthered her study with capoeira, and Tae Kwon Do. Curious of her training and its connection to her growing desire to tell stories, Marissa went on to Scripps College where she graduated with a BA in both Dance and English and the coveted Lucille Morrison Scholarship. After graduation, Marissa performed as a principle dancer across the United States, Japan, Ireland, Portugal, Russia, China, Holland, Belgium, and England.

#135 Jeff Dimitriou. Schitt's Creek, Mamma Mia, Phantom of the Opera, Pan Am Games, Cirque du Soleil. Aug 07, 2019

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Internationally Recognized Choreographer & Director Jeff Dimitriou's artistic projects include creating for film, television, world ceremonies, theatre, live events, and art installations. He is the creator and founder of JDX Creative, an entertainment production house.

He has created 6 original theatrical stage presentations that are currently playing worldwide.

Jeff has the rare privilege of working in many different genres of the arts and entertainment industry. From world touring theatre productions, to choreographing and directing for mass ceremonies such as The Pan American Games (Head Choreographer), Parapan Games (Head Choreographer) and FIFA World Cup Opening Ceremonies (Choreographer) to such esteemed organizations as Cirque du Soleil, NHL, MLB, and Mirvish Productions. He also also directed and staged the opening sequence for the 2018 NHL Classic, broadcast across North America.

Choreographing the new film version of Anne of Green Gables, choreography that was featured on the Netflix hit Degrassi, choreographer of Footloose and Mamma Mia, a national art installation campaign for BMO & Cineplex, A Middle Eastern Tour of the stage musical Cinderella, and also choreographed the Opening Piece for the 2016 Cultural Architect Awards.www.thedancepodcast.com

#134 Mark Samuels. Missy Elliott. Mariah Carey. Sho-Tyme. Jul 31, 2019

Show notes

During his teenage years, Mark met a man named Luther Brown (choreographer/judge of So You Think You Can Dance Canada), who was soon to be his mentor, partner and close friend for many years to come. Luther invited Mark to be a part of Canada's first ever Hip-Hop/R&B Dance Agency – Do Dat Entertainment. While dancing for Do Dat, Mark performed with countless Canadian artists, such as Jully Black, Shawn Desman, Maestro Fresh Wes, Victoria Duffield and Nelly Furtado to name a few. He has also performed at some of the industries top stellar events, such as the Juno Awards, The MMVA's, Canadian Idol, Canada's Got Talent and So You Think You Can Dance Canada.

Mark decided to make his next major move: to become a dancer in U.S. He had the opportunity to work with the some of America's biggest choreographers such as Fatima Robinson, Laurie-Ann Gibson, Sho-Tyme and Hi Hat. During his U.S. journey, he danced for artists like Cam'ron, Mariah Carey, Nivea, Missy Elliott, Mary J Blige, Olivia, Kelis and Mario to name a few.

www.thedancepodcast.com

Learn more about the Dance Studio Owners Association:

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#133 Genevieve Carson. L.A. Contemporary Dance Company (LACDC) Jul 24, 2019

Show notes

Genevieve Carson is the artistic director of L.A. Contemporary Dance Company (LACDC). Genevieve's work as a director, choreographer, and performer has spanned across North America, the Philippines, Argentina, Sweden, and New Zealand. Genevieve's work is often focused on the human condition. Genevieve has been a guest artist and instructor at Chapman University, Cal Arts, Cal State Long Beach, University of Auckland, and University of the Philippines. She is on faculty at the American Musical and Dramatic Academy (AMDA), where she teaches an array of classes and directs concerts. Genevieve graduated cum laude with a BFA in Dance Performance from Chapman University.www.thedancepodcast.com

Learn more about the Dance Studio Owners Association:

https://dsoa.com/

https://www.instagram.com/dancestudioownersassociation/

https://www.facebook.com/dancestudioownersassociation/

#132 Ben Johnson. Director of Performing Arts for the Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs. Jul 17, 2019

Show notes

Ben Johnson is currently the Director of Performing Arts for the Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs. In this position he is tasked with relaunching the Performing Arts Division of the City of Los Angeles, which includes overseeing six city-owned theaters, relaunching a festival platform for the city, developing cultural exchange programs with venues and artists in LA, and advocating on behalf of LA artists on a national and international level. Previously, he was the Program Manager at the Center for the Art of Performance at UCLA (CAP-UCLA) in Los Angeles, considered one of the top contemporary performing arts institutions in the country, and where he produced significant contemporary performing arts events throughout Los Angeles. Also previously he was the Director of Programs at United States Artists (LA) which awarded 50, 50K awards to artists in all disciplines. www.thedancepodcast.com

Learn more about the Dance Studio Owners Association:

https://dsoa.com/

https://www.instagram.com/dancestudioownersassociation/

https://www.facebook.com/dancestudioownersassociation/

#131 John Lam. Boston Ballet. National Ballet School of Canada. Jul 10, 2019

Show notes

Lam was born in Marin County, California. Born from immigrant parents from Vietnam, Lam found his passion for life in dance at age 4. Training at Marin Ballet, Lam formed vital relationships that would mold his career and was coached by renowned Svetlana Afanasieva, Cynthia Lucas, and Mikko Nissinen. In 200, Lam began his tenure with Canada's National Ballet School under the directorship of Mavis Staines. Coached by famous Sergiu Stefanschi, Lam developed a foundation that would launch his career in 2003 with the invitation from Mikko Nissinen to join Boston Ballet. www.thedancepodcast.com

Learn more about the Dance Studio Owners Association:

https://dsoa.com/

https://www.instagram.com/dancestudioownersassociation/

https://www.facebook.com/dancestudioownersassociation/

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