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This week we feature, Courtney Ortiz!

Courtney Ortiz, a native of,Baltimore, MD, is a 2007 youngARTS award winner in Modern Dance. Her professional career has allowed her to travel the world performing and teaching in places such as: Dubai, Canada, Alaska, Mexico, Spain, Germany, Australia and France. Her career spans from stage to screen with credits including: Company Member with The Chase Brock Experience, Choreographer and Dancer on Youtube’s hit web series "The Key of Awesome", Backup Dancer for PSY and Chris Brown on "The Today Show", Dancer for Heidi Klum at Madison Square Garden in "Macy’s Fashions Front Row" on E! Network, and The Radio City Christmas Spectacular. One of her favorite and most memorable credits was performing throughout Europe on the International Tour of the classic musical West Side Story as a Jet Girl and the Assistant Dance Captain. 

Some of her most recent credits include the 1st National Tour of the Broadway Musical Finding Neverland, Lin Manuel Miranda’s In The Heights, and the first ever revival in 30 years of Jerome Robbins’ Broadway at The Muny’s 100th Season in St. Louis, MO! You can also catch Courtney’s feet tap dancing in FX Network's hit series, “Fosse/Verdon”, where she was the dance double for Young Bob Fosse! Outside of performing, she is on faculty with REVEL Dance Convention, a national/international guest educator and also a full-time competition judge. You can even see her behind the judges table on Lifetime’s “Dance Moms” in Seasons 2 & 3. Currently, she resides in New York City, is repped with The Movement Talent Agency, and is the owner of Impact Dance Adjudicators! Follow her @courtney.ortiz and tune in to her dance podcast - Making the Impact - A Dance Competition Podcast! 

Career Highlights: 

- Faculty at Revel Dance Convention  

- Guest Faculty at Steps on Broadway NYC

- Young Bob Fosse Dance Double - FX’s "Fosse/Verdon”

- West Side Story - International Tour

- Finding Neverland - National Tour

- Jerome Robbins’ Broadway 

- Lin-Manuel Miranda’s In The Heights

- The Radio City Christmas Spectacular

- Judge on “Dance Moms” - Seasons 2 & 3

- Owner of Impact Dance Adjudicators 

- Podcast Host - “Making The Impact - A Dance Competition Podcast"

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Season 3 kicks off with the incredibly talented, Will B. Bell!

Will B. Bell began his formal training with the dance competition circuit at the age of 15 in the Baltimore area. After high school, Will attended Towson University where he received his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Dance Performance. During his collegiate years, Will had the opportunity to train in prestigious summer programs such as the Ailey School and the Lines Ballet School. During his training at Towson University, he studied heavily and worked under Linda Denise Fisher Harrell (former Ailey principal dancer), Vincent Thomas (VT Dance Director), and Runqiao Du (former Washington Ballet principal dancer).

After college, Will moved to LA to pursue his career in commercial dance, where he has worked with TV and movie choreographers such as Michael Rooney, Ryan Heffington, Kitty McNamee, Keither Young, Denise Faye, Melanie Williams, Tony Gonzalez, Michael Rooney, and more. Through these choreographers, he has worked with Hugh Jackman, and can be seen on ABC's General Hospital, SciFi's Face Off, a music video with Arcade Fire's Will Butler featuring Oscar winner Emma Stone, and an AT&T commercial, among others. He has also performed in productions with the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra at the historic Walt Disney Concert Hall.

Over the past few years, some of Will's contemporary ballet choreography has gone viral, and has been recognized internationally on many major platforms. Some of his work has been set at collegiate institutions such as Towson University, AMDA, The Studio School (formerly known as the Relativity School). Will had the opportunity to perform with Japanese pop icon Koichi Domoto in Endless Shock, The Musical in Tokyo. He was also seen dancing and acting in Hairspray Live on NBC alongside Derek Hough, Ariana Grande, and Jennifer Hudson. 

Will had the opportunity of performing in Bejing and Scotland in a production called Apologue 2047 (a show about the endless possibilities of what happens when dance meets technology), directed by iconic Chinese movie director Zhang Yimou, and choreographed by international choreographers Lisa Keegan and Emma Seward. Recently his contemporary ballet work was featured in Son of a Bishop's music video Love Left Me Lonely. 

Currently Will is on faculty at Millennium Dance Complex, Edge Performing Arts Center, and Movement Lifestyle, and teaches jazz, contemporary, contemporary ballet, and modern internationally. 

You can follow Will on Instagram @willbbell

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Thank you to all of our wonderful guests that shared with us this season!  We are so lucky to have such wonderfully talented, educated and humble artists willing to share a little of their personal stories and the journey that got them to where they are today.  We hope you enjoy a recap with Joe and Michelle

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Jam Fam, this episode is incredible.  Thank you to our guest, Lainie Sakakura, for lending your knowledge, humor and memories to this episode.  We were honored to have you as our guest.  
LAINIE SAKAKURA is a NYC based writer, director, choreographer, educator.

Most recently directed the new musical, Corner of Bitter and Sweet adapted from New York Times Best Seller, Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford. Book by Lainie Sakakura, Music and Lyrics by Paul Fujimoto. NYC 29 hour Equity reading co-produced by the 5th Avenue Theatre, Abingdon Theatre Company. Writers, Sakakura and Fujimoto attended the 2020 Goodspeed Musicals Johnny Mercer Writers Grove following the reading. 

Award winning choreographer - 2015 Joe A. Callaway Award Outstanding Choreography for the Off Broadway show, Red Eye of Love in collaboration with Alex Sanchez. 2002 Joseph Jefferson Award Best Choreography for Damn Yankees, Marriott Theatre in collaboration with David H. Bell. 2003 Joseph Jefferson Nomination Best Choreography for Hot Mikado. Currently a Choreography Advisory Board Member for New York Theatre Barn.

Fosse Reconstruction - worked on approximately 70 Bob Fosse numbers from 1994-1999 with Gwen Verdon and Chet Walker. The original onstage Dance Captain starting with the 1996 workshop through Broadway. Dance Reconstruction and onstage Dance Captain for Ann Reinking in the 1999 Tony Award Winning Best Musical. Other Fosse reconstruction work includes Big Spender starring Chita Rivera and Ann Reinking for Cy Coleman's Memorial, Majestic Theatre (ASCAP). Mexican Shuffle, Gwen Verdon memorial tribute at BCEFA Gypsy of the Year, Palace Theatre. Currently, Verdon Fosse Legacy instructor.

Broadway - Ms Sakakura was offered original casts of 8 Broadway shows, but ultimately accepted 6 including: Fosse (dance reconstruction and onstage dance captain); Chita Rivera The Dancer's Life; Flower Drum Song (2002 revival); Tommy Tune's The Best Little Whorehouse Goes Public; The King And I (1996 Lou Diamond Phillips, Donna Murphy revival), The King And I  (2015 Ken Watanabe, Kelli O-Hare revival). Recorded on 4 Broadway cast albums including 2015 Grammy Nominated, The King And I.

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Diversity and inclusion - Co-founder/Co-chair Rockettes of Color Alumnae. In 1994 Sakakura became the second AAPI RCMH Rockette hired following Setsuko Maruhashi, who was not only the first AAPI Rockette but also the first Rockette of color. Previously 7-year Co-chair of PS 87 Culture & Community Committee, producing and directing almost 30 multicultural performance events for a NYC public school of nearly a thousand students. 

Educator - 32 years teaching experience. Guest teacher and/or choreographer in countless programs across the country including: New York University Tisch - New Studio on Broadway (Adjunct Professor), Carnegie Mellon, Chapman Univ, Sam Houston State, American Ballet Theatre, Jacob's Pillow, Joffrey Ballet, LINES Dance Center, Pace University (Adjunct Professor). Private program, Sakachez™

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Another great episode with another fantastic guest!  Thank you Rory Freeman for sharing your time with us and sharing your incredible journey as an artist.

Rory Freeman most recently performed with recording artist Rita Ora at the People’s Choice Awards. He was a Principal Dancer with  Shaping Sound on the brand new show “After The Curtain.” He has toured with the company for the past 5 years across the nation as well as performing on The Ellen Degeneres Show.  Rory had the honor of performing in Sonya Tayeh’s first full length show in New York City called “You Still Call Me By Name.” You may have  seen him as a Featured Dancer on the hit television shows America’s Got Talent Season 11.  He has worked with some of the top music artists such as: Taylor Swift, Rita Ora, Paula Abdul, Earth, Wind, & Fire, and Jack Wagner.  Music video credits include: Taylor Swifts’ “Shake it Off’ and Paula Abdul’s’ “Check Yourself”. In 2014, he was part of the skeleton crew to create a number as part of the Opening Ceremonies for the Winter Olympics. Rory is blessed to have been able to perform all over the world with the world renowned dance company, MOMIX. Before his career started he proudly earned his BFA in Modern Dance from SUNY Purchase (NY) in 2010. This gave him the opportunity to perform pieces by Bill T. Jones, Paul Taylor, Bella Lewitsky, and Luca Veggetti.  At the age of 18, he received the prestigious Silver Award in Modern Dance from the National Foundation for Advancements in the Arts (NFAA).  Rory is a part of the faculty and judges for various national conventions and competitions. He is proud to be YPAD (Youth Protection Advocates for Dancers) certified. He has taught & choreographed at numerous studios across North and South America. He is honored to also be a CLI Studios choreographer. Rory is also the Co-Founder and Co-Director of Move: The Initiative, a 4 day Dance Intensive based in Rhode Island.

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Such a fun episode with the incredibly talented, Dylan Pearce!  Dylan has done a bit of everything and is a highly sought after choreographer.  Thank you Dylan for spending some time with us and the Jam Fam!

Based in New York City, Dylan Pearce has over 21 years in the industry with credits as a dancer, choreographer, director, educator, entrepreneur, and artist. Dylan is Associate Choreographer for the world-renowned, Radio City Rockettes. Over the past 12 years with The Rockettes, Dylan has held roles as both a performer and choreographer for stage, television, and digital content, including collaborations with artists like Dua Lipa, Abba, and Pit Bull, and in 2021 choreographing for the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and Christmas in Rockefeller Center. Most recently, Dylan was the director and choreographer for Kate Spade’s 2021 Summer and Fall campaigns, where he led the creative vision, celebrating the vibrance of New York City through dance in digital, print, out of home, and social media formats.

Dylan’s distinctive choreography has been featured in music videos for Amy Lynn & The Honey Men and the 2021 Broadway Bares (“Closet Diva”), supporting the non-profit, Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. He has choreographed for studios and universities across the country and is the founder and co-director for DEViATE Dance and The Process, a new kind of dance convention and competition that recreates real-world professional experiences to help students grow as artists. Using social media as a stage to share uplifting content during the pandemic, Dylan conceived, choreographed, and directed a series of short dance films, one of which was the inspiration for the summer Kate Spade campaign.

A lifelong student, Dylan continues to learn and grow as an artist. Since the age of 6, he has studied at schools in the New York/New Jersey area, including the prestigious Joffrey Ballet School. As a performer, Dylan danced in televised and staged productions including Off-Broadway in Shea Sullivan’s ‘Dancing on a Dream’, WNBA All-Star Halftime Show, Miss New Jersey, Miss New York, and The Miss Florida pageants, The Michael Awards, Trump Plaza, Equity Fights AIDS, Bravo Summer Showcase, Knicks City Dancers, Tri-State Youth Invitational, RayBan and Rite Aid industrials, The Nutcracker as well as the International Dance Festival in NYC. Dylan was a backup dancer for International Recording Artists, Tina Ann and Brenda K. Starr, and a company dancer in the modern company, Momix. He also served as dance captain for the Walt Disney World’s “Twas The Night Before Christmas,” and toured the world, performing and setting shows for Princess and Norwegian Cruise Lines.

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We are excited to share with you this episode featuring our guest, Anna Harsh!  A new topic to the show, we touch on World Dance, what it is and why it important to add to dance curriculum

Anna Harsh, an award winning dancer/ choreographer and Artistic Director of Allegro Dance Company, is the author of La Danza - Conflict, Passion, and Healing. With over three decades of research and teaching experience, Anna offers a unique and refreshing voice in the Italian-American community on how to preserve Italian traditional dances for the next generation. She holds a Master of Arts degree in Communication from West Virginia University, a Bachelor of Arts degree in Dance from Slippery Rock University, an RYT200 in yoga, and is also a certified Pilates Instructor. She has traveled extensively throughout Italy to research and study dances from various regions. Her adventurous personality and passion for her Italian heritage has taught her unique life lessons. Her work has been featured in magazines such as: Fra Noi, Ambassador, and Dance Spirit. Find more information and classes with Anna at www.AnnaHarsh.com.

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Many of you watched her and her sisters on World of Dance and we are so happy to have Madeline Mihacevich as our guest this week

Madeline Mihacevich is a dancer, teacher, and choreographer based in Los Angeles, California.  Born and raised in Brunswick, Ohio, she grew up dancing with her 2 sisters and training under her mom, who was her first dance teacher.  Along with dance, Madeline began choreographing and teaching at age 13.  

When Madeline was 17, she competed with her two sisters on season 1 of NBC's World of Dance, featuring her and her sisters choreography.  Following the airing of the show, the Mihacevich Sisters performed their original choreography at various World of Dance events, toured with the first ever international WOD Live Tour, and taught at the WOD DX convention.  Madeline also got the opportunity to judge and perform solo at World of Dance Events.  

Madeline moved to LA when she turned 18.  Since then, she has danced with Jennifer Lopez in her music video “Medicine”and in her NBC’s New Years Eve performance in 2019, Derek Hough at the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree Lighting, Sofia Carson at WE Day in NYC, Karol G at the Billboard Music Awards, and multiple artists at the 2021 Latin American Music Awards.  She has also worked with Rudy Abreu’s “RAdiance” on season 3 of World of Dance and later with Tessandra Chavez’s "Unity LA”.  Other credits include assistant choreographer for the “Kissing Booth 2” movie, AJ McLean’s “A Boy and a Man” music video, a commercial for Mario World at Universal Studios in Japan, and Season 2 of “High School Musical: The Musical: The Series”.  

​Some of Madelines teaching credits include The House Dance Complex, Titans of Dance VIP All Access Program, Wild Dance Intensive, WOD DX, and LA Establishment.  She is also a faculty member at TMilly TV is Los Angeles, California, and has multiple classes on their instagram and website.  

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Another episode with a fabulous guest!  Wonderful stories about the professional life at an early age and where she is now.  We hope you enjoy Rachel Kreiling!

Rachel Kreiling began performing at 18 as a featured dancer at Tokyo Disney. She performed throughout Europe as the featured adage team and aerialist/contortionist on a luxury cruise line. Rachel has worked extensively with Alison Chase, the founder of Pilobolus & Momix, as well as Rasta Thomas' ROCK - The BALLET and served as the dance captain for the US tour of Revolution.

Also in her credits are international commercials, corporate industrials, NYC based contemporary companies, Dance Spirit & Dance Teacher Magazine features, assistant to renowned choreographers and much more.

Rachel choreographs and teaches guest workshops across the US, Costa Rica, and Mexico. She is a Corrective Exercise Specialist, holding a B.S. in Kinesiology & Neuroscience, and teaches movement education programs for dancers focusing on proper technique, conditioning, alignment, biomechanics, injury prevention, and rehabilitation. She recently founded FreeBody, a unique and fresh approach to physical training, movement education, and performance enhancement. Rachel is also proud to serve on the prestigious faculty of the New York City Dance Alliance

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A Valentine's Day release with two incredible artists, Jody Reynard and David Bushman!  Immensely talented and incredibly humble, our guests this week talk about the road to Broadway for each of them.  

JODY REYNARD has been dancing non-stop for almost 30 years!!  He has taught musical theatre/Broadway dance classes at dance studios, intensives and educational institutions around the country.  He attended the Cobb Center Excellence for in the Performing Arts outside of Atlanta, GA and graduated with a dance major.  He then earned a BA in Theatre with Music minor from Kennesaw State University (where he also helped to establish the first dance ensemble, Wings) all while performing with The Atlanta Shakespeare Tavern, The Atlanta Opera and Georgia Ballet.  From there, his regional theatre career began with dancing roles in the Radio City Christmas Spectacular, On the Twentieth Century at the Goodspeed Opera House in East Haddam, CT and Mame at the Papermill Playhouse in Millburn, NJ.  Soon thereafter he caught the eye of the late Ann Reinking at an open audition and made his Broadway debut in Fosse, dancing featured specialties such as “From the Edge,” “Rich Man’s Frug,” and the “Take Off with Us” adage.  Other credits include the Broadway companies of Summer: The Donna Summer Musical, Legally Blonde, Taboo, Saturday Night Fever and the national touring companies of Camelot, Kiss Me Kate, My Fair Lady, Memphis and Chicago.  He served as swing and dance captain for the new musical, Roman Holiday, in its pre-Broadway tryout at the Golden Gate Theater in San Francisco, CA.   Jody has worked as an assistant choreographer for Denis Jones, Josh Prince, Alex Sanchez and Darren Lee.  He can also be seen dancing behind six-time Tony Award winner, Audra McDonald, in the movie musical, Hello Again! Some of his favorite roles include Darren in Take Me Out, Paul Happiness in Thoughts of a Colored Man, Ken in Smokey Joe’s Café, featured dancer with the NY Philharmonic, Omaha Symphony & South Dakota Symphony Orchestras AND substitute instructor of jazz & tap at Wagner College in Staten Island, NY.  Jody is also a proud Core Company Member of Quick Silver Theatre Company.

DAVID BUSHMAN began his professional career in classical and contemporary ballet. He received a BFA in Dance from University of North Carolina School of the Arts.  While still studying there, David was asked to join the professional company, North Carolina Dance Theatre (NCDT, now known as Ballet Charlotte).  He traveled the country with NCDT and danced leading roles in works by the great George Balanchine and the company’s director, Salvatore Aiello.  He was then invited to audition for FeldBallets/NY (now known as Ballet Tech) and was hired into the company. For the next three years, he was featured in the vast repertoire of Eliot Feld.  David then went on to dance for Les Grands Ballets Canadiens in Montreal, Canada.  There, he danced works by renowned choreographers Jiri Kylian, Nacho Duato, Ohad Naharin and many others. Since retiring from concert dance, David has been associated with the hit revival of CHICAGO since 2003.  He performed in the first French speaking productions, in Montreal and Paris, and the US National/International touring company. In 2013, he was invited to set the choreography for the US Tour and continued to do so until 2019.  He has also set the CHICAGO cho

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