This week Sandy chats with Rachael Poirier, who has been a renowned dance instructor and award-winning choreographer since 1991. Rachael's choreography has captivated audiences across the world and has won numerous awards for their innovative style and originality. Rachael founded Danzmode Productions in 1994, which quickly established itself as one of Vancouver's elite dance institutions where she remained as Artistic Director until 2017. Her own dance work has been performed on international stages and on screen and television, and many of her dancers moved on to professional careers in world tours and music videos with artists such as Janet Jackson, Britney Spears, Rihanna, Beyoncé, and Jennifer Lopez to name a few. Several of her students have been seen in the Top 40 of So You Think You Can Dance, The Emmy Awards, The Grammy Awards, and numerous have danced with elite dance companies (Julliard, Cirque de Soleil, National Ballet, The Ailey School)…this is all just a tiny taste of the work of this accomplished instruction and choreography.

Sandy speaks with dancer and Choreographer Jeff Dimitriou about the challenge of fending for yourself in the dance industry—of agents and managers and a sustainable career, but then also some of the more distressing aspects of navigating it as a young dancer. Jeff is a seasoned dance professional who has created for film, television, world ceremonies, theatre, live events, and art installations. He is the creator and founder of JDX Creative and has created 6 original theatrical stage presentations that are currently playing worldwide. He has been the head choreographer for such prestigious events as the Pam American Games, The FIFA World Cup and Cirque de Soleil to name a few, and on numerous notable Emmy and Oscar award-winning television shows and movies.

Sandy welcomes career dancer, talent scout and choreographer Rick Tjia to discuss his notable life as a dance professional. From performing with various Ballet companies, to a company member in LaLaLa Human Steps to a Dance Specialty Talent Scout for Cirque de Soleil to developing online dance & choreography resources Rick has run the gamut of what a dancer can find to embark on as a full and exciting career.

Sandy speaks with dance artist and choreographer Sean Smith about the keys to sustaining a career in dance—about being malleable, disciplined, professional and tenacious.

Sean has had a robust experience in numerous dance schools and companies and has continued to be sought after as a performer and choreographer.

Sandy chats today with Kirsten Wicklund, Director of Ballet Edmonton about life in a professional dance company. Kirsten is a lifelong dance artist and her years of training span numerous renowned dance training programs including Pacific Dance Arts, The Goh Ballet, The Royal Winnipeg Ballet and Modus Operandi to name a few and her professional career has had her involved with the Washington Ballet, Opera Ballet Vlaanderen and Ballet BC as a performer and often as a choreographer. At Ballet Edmonton, she looks forward to: “fostering a culture of dance excellence, exploration, and dedication to amplifying diverse voices across Canada and internationally.”

Sandy chats with Menina Fortunato, dance business mentor and podcaster. Menina has been 3 decades in the dance industry involving herself on stage, in front of the camera and behind the scenes on numerous notable productions, tv shows and films—having collaborated with such artists as Brittany Spears, Beyoncé, Pink, Earth, Wind & Fire and many more. She is the mother of 3 and founder of “The Business of Dance.

Over the past month our team has been in contact with our online community & have collected audio recordings from former students, teachers & friends to share with Sandy during this special episode. During this episode Sandy will be answering and asking questions for our listeners so stay tuned until the end.

Sandy chats today with a group of young dancers who are part of a pre-professional dance training program. They’re going to touch on the many opportunities and diverse dance journeys that are available to them and how they are approaching the idea of dance as a career.

Today Sandy chats with a whole family of artists - Linda Arkelian, David & Joylyn Secunda. Linda is involved in Ballet, Contemporary/Modern, Acting/Musical Theatre, David is a Writer|Visual Artist|Theatre Director, and Joylyn is an actor, dancer, mime, and puppeteer. They talk about sustaining life in the arts and how their collaborative work as a family has brought a wealth of creative synergy and unique productions and opportunities.

Sandy chats today with emerging dance artist, Kaitlin Cheung. Kaitlin is a contemporary dance artist who is currently a member of Ballet BC Annex. Kaitlin gives us some insights into the journey of establishing a career in dance. She is a recent graduate from the Modus Operandi Training Program and has worked with many notable choreographers.