The Dance Pod

Dancers, your Christmas list is about to have another item added to it…
I sat down with Co-Producers Kelley Abbey and Louise Telford to ask all of those questions you’re dying to know!
Light The Way Dance Collective is the first of its kind. A documented celebration of Australian dance industry greats across multiple generations and genres. From choreographers, tap icons, ballet and commercial dancers to contemporary industry leaders and creatives. There are over 50 incredible people in this book, including some of the biggest names in the business.

Mother daughter duo Kali & Charlie from Dance Matters Podcast share their journey so far with dance, life and podcasting! Kali has some fabulous tips and tricks for new parents entering the dance world, Charlie shares her love of dance, they let me in on some funny stories they've encountered with guests so far and how they manage work, school, extra curricular activities, cohosting a podcast, starting a YouTube channel, meal planning, family life and MORE!

Want to know how to stay current in the dance world? Paul and I discuss the importance of personal evolution in an ever changing and fast paced industry. Staying true to your core values whilst experimenting with new pathways and concepts to ensure we avoid being pigeonholed and breaking free of mainstream short term trends. Paul has had such a unique career so far and his knowledge/hunger to always be doing more for our industry is like no other.

Paul and I are discussing all issues surrounding payment in our industry and the importance of speaking up. This topic is nothing new, it’s been a battle we’ve been having for years and years that sadly is still not resolving itself. The AFL situation has simply highlighted the need for continuing education in the community.
Exposure as payment from organisations such as AFL is not acceptable.
Our industry needs to be seen as a workplace and not a voluntary hobby. We are not all sitting around waiting for chances to be “seen.”
We rely on our training, experience and hard work to make money. For the majority of us, this is our entire lively hood. So much goes into producing a live performance and isn’t a matter of just getting out there and dancing.
It’s already hard enough to convince others that dance is a viable career path. Requesting free performances for events as big as an AFL Grand Final is such a slap in the face and goes against everything we’ve been working so hard to erase from our industry.
#PAYTHEDANCERS

This episode reminds me of the show ‘This Is Your Life’ Hosted by Mike Munro, except Tash is the one narrating the entire thing. We chat all things QUERENCIA - ‘THE METHOD’ - Which is her mentorship and training program created for female dancers where Tash shares her own knowledge and experiences alongside some of her favourite industry leaders to help inspire and nurture the growth of dancers, giving them the tools they need to be successful and confident for their future.
She has already achieved so much in her career with dancing and choreographic credits including X factor, Now United, Grease, Wicked, Dirty Dancing, Paula Abdul, Jennifer Lopez, Kylie Minogue, Flo Rida, Olivia Newton-john… the list truely does go on. Yet Tash is one of the most hardworking and humble people you will ever meet, reminding us all of the importance of being hungry to achieve your goals and accepting your losses.

Known as ‘THE MUSIC GUY’ in our industry, Aaron has been creating award winning music for choreographers, dancers and brands for quite some time now!
He’s jumping on with me to discuss the launch of his incredible new music production company Worldwide Sounds, which includes himself (Airports Music) and his team of crazy talented music producing friends.
THIS CHANGES THE GAME!!!! No longer do we have to sit through comps or showcases where the same songs (you know the ones) are being blasted out of the speakers for the 1000000 time. Aaron and his team will work with you to create a sound that represents you/your dance school/your show/ your concept. Listen up to hear how.

Acrobatics in the dance world is rapidly becoming the norm for so many competition dancers and the understanding of safe dance practice and it’s limitations has never been more important. Greta Brinsley and I break down the pro’s and con’s of acro in our industry, how it’s impacting competitions, adjudication and a dancer’s training expectations. Greta has her own syllabus training program called ACROLINK which is apart of International Dance Technique and helps dancers find the ‘link’ and balance between dance and acro. I am also a qualified Acrobatic Arts Instructor, so between the two of us we have a lot of knowledge and things to discuss!

This week we're takin a cruise... Not really but IMAGINE how good a getaway would be right now! Instead, we're going to have to live through 3 professional dancers who have been travelling the world working for Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines over the past 5 years. Brittany, Sally, Lily and I discuss the audition process for cruise ship contracts, life at sea, fun facts (as always), travel, relationships and hosting podcasts. This episode is a real fun time and full of ships and giggles.

Ever wondered what goes into the creative process of performances on film and television shows such as The Voice, The Masked singer and Dancing On Ice? Creative producer and choreographer James Maxfield, Talks us through some of his career highlights from being a resident dancer on The X Factor Australia, to Dance captain of My Fair Lady directed by Julie Andrews, Playing a lead role in A Chorus Line and working alongside some of the worlds greatest artists. We also discuss the importance of versatility as a dancer and what a casting director is looking for when they are selecting dancers for film and television.

Nutrition is a vital factor we need to be conscious about as dancers to ensure we have a long and prosperous career in the industry. I sit down with The Holistic Dancer again to discuss the importance of fuelling our bodies with wholesome and meaningful foods as well as the thought process behind our choices and how it impacts our training and performance quality. Jenna Carroll is an ex ballerina turned naturopath and nutritionist with a bachelor of Health Science and Grace Carroll is a full time ballerina who is back in Sydney after returning from The Paris Opera Ballet School due to COVID.