Community Jazz Dance Festival - Workshops
PE1 - Gymnasium, Evert B. Person Theater
May 1, 2025,
10:00 am
May 1, 2025,
2:00 pm
May 2, 2025,
10:00 am
May 2, 2025,
2:00 pm
Laura Ann Smyth
For Laura Ann Smyth, dance is a celebration of diversity. It draws together people of all races, ethnicities, and cultures and gives them a voice. She believes that dance has the rhetorical power to champion social justice in a world that desperately needs it. And she’s dedicated her life and career to inspire change through the arts.
Laura began her journey as an artist at the age of four, attending the Edmonton School of Ballet in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Her training focused on R.A.D. and Cecchetti ballet, as well as theatrical jazz and classical modern techniques. Laura obtained her BA in Sociology from The University of Calgary and holds a Journalism Certificate from Mount Royal University. After performing and teaching for many years in Canada, Laura migrated South to pursue a graduate education. After receiving her MFA in Dance from The University of California, Irvine, Laura performed professionally in modern, contemporary, and jazz genres with a variety of highly-acclaimed companies including: Regina Klenjoski Dance Company, Donna Sternberg and Dancers, JazzAntiqua Dance and Music Ensemble, and Brockus:RED.
In addition to performing, Laura has extensive and diverse experience in choreography. She’s crafted work for faculty dance concerts at Cornish College of the Arts, Santa Monica College, Long Beach City College, Golden West College and Loyola Marymount University. And she’s found particular joy choreographing theatre productions at Pepperdine University and Loyola Marymount University. Laura has also been a Pure Barre instructor for over 10-years and is the face of Steezy Studios online Intro to Jazz Dance Program.
Laura is currently a PhD Candidate in Dance Studies at Texas Woman’s University and serves as a full-time instructor in the dance department at Loyola Marymount University. She’s deeply proud of her Canadian heritage, joyous spirit, and technical precision, and she’s committed to creating art that promotes the beauty of cultures and experiences through dance.
Workshops
Contemporary Jazz Dance
Thursday, May 1 & Friday, May 2
With a focus on musicality, this contemporary jazz class will honor the African American vernacular foundation of jazz dance while sampling from contemporary dance practices. This class will push its participants to perform, find musical precision, and fund the joy of storytelling through movement.
Sekou McMiller
At the forefront of a new movement in the dance world. Sekou’s of Afro Latin dance rich with Afro - Caribbean (Salsa/Mambo, Cha-cha-cha, Rumba, Yoruba, etc...) with urban dance, modern, jazz and contemporary styles combined with his explosive energy on and off stage, has earned Sekou broad recognition World-wide. Sekou has performed and choreographed for Top latin artists such as Gilberto Santa Rosa, Willie Colon, Cheo Feliciano, Johnny Pacheco, Tito Rojas, Tito Nieves, PitBull and the pop icon MADONNA. A recent recipient of fellowship with The Alvin Ailey Foundation’s New Directions Choreography Lab for Winter/Spring 2017 and the City University of New York (CUNY) Dance Initiative winter/spring 2017, Sekou’s choreographic works have been featured throughout North America and abroad in over 30 countries.
Sekou has received certificates of training from both the prestigious Danza Contemporanea de Cuba in Havana, Cuba and Ecole de Sables in Toubab Dialaw, Senegal.
Sekou can be seen in the Warner Bros theatrical feature "In the Heights" (2021) directed by Jon M. Chu and in the newly released documentary "Uprooted: the journey of Jazz Dance". Currently Sekou is a faculty member at Marymount Manhattan College, The Ailey School, Joffrey Ballet School, Ballet Hispánico, Steps on Broadway and Broadway Dance Center. In addition to being a Curator and Project Director at the National Jazz Museum in Harlem.
Over 20 yrs Internationally performed/choreographed/instructed in over 20 countries and over 120 cities including New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Dakar, Seoul, Tokyo, Beijing, Singapore, Mumbai, Shanghai, Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal, Quebec, Manchester, Warsaw, Mexico City, Puerto Rico, Rome, Paris, Istanbul, Monaco, Brussels and many other international hubs of dance.
Workshops
Afro Latin Jazz and Soul Experience
Thursday, May 1
Sekou’s "Afro Latin Jazz and Soul Experience" takes a rhythmical journey through the African American, Afro Latino and other African cultures looking at varying similarities, past intersections and exploring new and exciting fusions. Deeply rooted in the Caribbean dance and music culture (Salsa/Mambo, Cha-cha- cha, Rumba, etc...) while blending with African American Jazz, African modern dance as well as other traditional and social dances from West Africa, the Caribbean and the US. This class will explore the fundamental elements and movement principles of Embodied Africanist Aesthetics while recognizing the varying similarities, past intersections, current and future fusions with other cultures.
Afro Latin Jazz Fusions and Techniques
Friday, May 2
At the forefront of a new movement in the Afro Latin dance world, Sekou’s unique and exciting style of Afro Latin Jazz introduces Latin rhythms and techniques deeply rooted in the Caribbean and club dance and music culture (Salsa/Mambo, Cha-cha-cha, Rumba, Orishas etc...) while blending with urban dance, modern, jazz and contemporary styles. A marriage of technique and rhythm.
Structurally derived from traditional Afro Cuban /Jazz/ African classes and pilates practices, Sekou's warm-up guides the dancers through breathing and fluid movement exercises that strengthen technique, musicality and flexibility. All the while breaking down the intricacies of Afro Latin Dance rhythms, body movements and attitude. The across the floor combos gets the dancers moving with turns and jumps using authentic Afro Latin moves and Jazz promoting spacial awareness, power and presence. Class choreography includes movements covered during class fused with various mainstream styles from urban to contemporary dance.