Phillip Haddad

Phillip has been dancing for about 13 years, and is notorious around the globe for his funky “poppin & lockin” style of hip hop. He has performed on stage and television around the world in all sorts of locations; on a 50cm wide podium in the middle of China, a cruise ship in the middle of the ocean, and in big stage musicals such as Grease, Countdown, Shout!, Oh What A Night and High Society. In addition to his funky hip hop groove, Phillip is highly sought after as a choreographer. He is trained in jazz, tap, classical, flamenco and contemporary dance. And he can sing too! He is our own renaissance dancer.

 

Trish Rodgers (nee Squire)

As a 2 year old clinging to her Mothers leg during classes Trish Squire knew she wanted to dance. For the next 16 years Trish learned every discipline of dance and was eager for more. In 1996 Trish completed her Diploma in Performing Arts at Bartuccio’s and has never looked back. The heavy demand as one of Melbourne’s leading Dance teachers is testament to her amazing style and energy. Trish’s performance credits include the feature films “The Wog Boy”, “The Beach” and the Austalian Mini-Series “Kangaroo Palace”. Trish was a principle dancer for the Channel 9 series “Starstruck” and has featured in numerous television productions, corporate and gala events. Trish’s talent & artistic flair as a choreographer has been recognised by leading companies such as: Loveable Lingerie, Siemens Top K Awards with “Human Nature” and “Taxiride”, Crown Casino’s Annual NYE Extravaganza 2004, 2005 and 2006 , Resident Choreographer NICA (National Institute of Circus Arts) 2003-04, You Got Served Hip-Hop Show, Robbie Williams Tribute Show, Assistant Choreographer for “Pirates of Penzance” 2001-2002 Australian Tour Fashion parades for “Think Pink Foundation” and other leading organizations. Numerous overseas productions for various International Corporations in Malaysia, Dubai, & Japan


Kim Adam

Little Kim, as we like to call her, started her dance career as a tiny 3 year old ballerina in a surf life saving club in Adelaide. She has now moved on from those days and is a successful commercial dancer, with some of her credits including The Footy Show, a Carlton Football Cheerleader, and a dance double in the Australian movie “Bad Eggs”.

In addition to her talents in Jazz, Tap and Hip Hop, Kim has also studied Indian dance, Greek dance and Bellydancing. Her passion for dance has taken her to LA to train as a scholarship winner at The Edge, many corporate gigs, and a special hallway show that her mum and dad will never forget. Kim especially loves doing pirouettes (anything fast!) and has fond memories of her favourite costume – black hot pants, pink leotard and a cropped jacket with fringing. Essential style when dancing to Kylie Minogue.


Paul and Donna Brotherson

Little "Paul" has been dancing for over 15 years and is a master in his own right. Using his background in many different partner dance styles,
Paul's lead is legendary and his stunning moves are a must for any serious male dancer. Paul is a winner of many titles and his smooth
style is a real treat to watch.

Donna "The pocket Rocket" starting dancing in the UK 12 years ago, and enjoys many different styles of dance. Donna claims Modern Jive is her
favoiurite closely followed by Hip Hop. Those of us who have had the privilege of seeing Donna booty shake might have something to say about
that! Seriously, though Donna is more than a match for her fabulous husband Paul and together they grace the floor with their smooth style
and their enraptured enjoyment of the dance and each other.

They've been dancing together for 4 years and love to tear up the floor.

 

Paul and Dana Tanuvasa

Paul and Dana Tanuvasa are dance weekender fanatics, this year will be their third year running. They loved it so much, Dana went home and started LE BOP NEW ZEALAND, now Paul and Dana are fully fledged Le Boppers and loving it. They'll be bringing it to this years Weekender! Paul is undoubtedly one of New Zealand's most exciting Modern Jive talents He is known for his style and his ingenuity, flow and mastery of dance combinations. He's been dancing and teaching for over 10 years now and his wifey lovingly refers to him as a 'MASTER JEDI'.
And Dana well she's just really stylish! Dana has dabbled in a little Spanish dance, a little Belly dance, a little Swing dance and a lot of Modern Jive. She's fast gaining reputation for her stylish shizzle on the dance floor.


Allan & Holly Skinner

Allan and Holly are co - directors of Le Step on the Coast in Queensland. The two have been dancing for over 6 years, teaching together for around 3 and have choreographed numerous team and cabaret routines. They have won and placed in various freestyle, cabaret and team events and enjoy experimenting with new and funky styles and moves. The guys enjoy traveling, competing and getting to meet and dance with interstate dancers. Most of all, they are passionate about modern jive and are excited about the development of the dance all over Australia.


Kathryn Hickman

Kathryn is an all round performer. She has extensive experience in dance, singing, acting and modelling.  Kathryn started classical, jazz and theatrical based training in 1998.  She currently teaches Salsa and Latin Amercican dance classes at The Space Dance & Arts Centre.

 

Anthony Wheaton & Sarah Farrelly

This dynamic duo have made swing dancing their passion since they each started dancing in late 1999. Anthony & Sarah joined together as a partnership at the end of 2002 and since then have worked hard to develop themselves as both dancers and teachers.

In terms of influences, these two consciously embrace the history of Lindy Hop with both their preferred music and dance style. They’ve studied dance footage from the 20’s right through the golden years of swing and aim to reflect the original styles in their own dancing. Through fast dancing, Aerials and Charleston, Anthony & Sarah are well known for their ability to ‘fly’ at faster tempos. With a love for 20’s hot jazz and 30’s big band swing, individually they’re also quite adept at solo Charleston and jazz dancing.

Aside from their weekly classes together in Melbourne, Anthony & Sarah have a wealth of workshop experience having each taught numerous workshops and classes in Victoria and interstate, including Sydney (including Sydney Swing Festival), Brisbane, Canberra, Hobart and Perth. Their teaching experience also extends to major USA events such as at Camp Jitterbug in Seattle, The Boston Tea Party and for Carla Heiney’s Swing Central in San Francisco.

For those of you that have already learnt from Anthony and Sarah, you’ll know that their classes revolve around building solid foundations in Lindy Hop technique with an unhealthy focus on fun. They emphasise feeling the music and adapting your dancing accordingly, using great partner connection, clear lead/follow communication and creativity. Anthony & Sarah have an extensive knowledge of general dance principles and use these to give their students a clear understanding of Lindy Hop and it’s evolution.

 

 

Emma had been dancing with Le Step in Brisbane for about two years after discovering the modern jive dance style while on a night out with her Ballroom group! One look at the sexy moves and smooth style had her itching to learn and shortly after, she became heavily involved in teaching, choreography and performing. Emma now lives on the Gold Coast and is an integral part of the Modern Jive scene.

Emma has been instrumental in choreographing winning rouintes for "Team Events" for Modern Jive across Australian competitions since 2002, as well as choreographing a number of routines taught on both the Gold Coast and Brisbane. She is currently the Masters Champion (the highest level nationally), after taking out 1st Place in Sydney and Melbourne with her dance partner Clint Glasgow from Sydney in June and July 2007.

Emma (and her dance partner Kent) has been a finalist and ‘place getter’ at the Masters Level at National Modern Jive competitions. Emma frequently judges at national competitions and teaches at various dance congresses and workshops throughout Australia. She is well known for her enthusiasm and love of both dancing and teaching and her love of Modern Jive is infectious, drawing an eclectic group of wonderful people to her classes. Her style is relaxed, fun and easy to follow while concentrating on technique and timing.

Emma understands that people learn to dance for so many reasons and she strives to turn out quality dancers who know how to have fun on the floor.


Shauna Dark

Shauna has been dancing for 18 years with an unstoppable passion & teaching for the past 10 years. Originally learning Modern Ballroom & Latin American styles in Sydney, Shauna competed in many Australian Dancesport titles and has travelled overseas thoroughly enjoying teaching at many different dance studios.

Picking up Modern Jive at age 14, Shauna competed in modern jive competitions and won the Advanced Classical freestyle section with Clinton Glasgow in 2002. Shauna has choreographed multiple routines and now coaches couples in private lessons.

Shauna studied ballet, contemporary, jazz, tap & hip hop whilst attaining a BA in Creative Arts (Dance). Shauna has also studied a Diploma in Remedial Massage & Sports Therapies and ran her own dance school in Sydney for two years before moving to Melbourne in 2007. Shauna is currently studying Sports Kinesiology to refine her skills and become a ‘movement impairment specialist’ and can’t wait to apply her new techniques within the dance industry to stretch the current boundaries of injury rehabilitation and of dancers reaching optimum performance.
 

Vince Calingasan

Vince Calingasan is the co founder and director of Rewind Dance Crew – winners of Shakedown 2006, Australia's biggest Hip Hop dance competition. Vince also took Rewind to the World Hip Hop Champs in the US this year where they made it to the finals!

Vince's passion for dance has taken him to classes in LA at Millenium, and he enjoys attending classes almost as much as teaching. Drawing on inspiration from choreographers such as Marty Kudelka, Sky Hoffman, Shawnette Heard and Kevin Mayher, Vince's street style of hip hop incorporates some locking, popping and a little breaking. When asked about his favourite dance move, Vince replied “I don't have one, but I have favourite sounds I make while teaching, like Voom....and Ka Ka...My students know what I mean” . Yes Vince, we know what you mean.


Deb Cantoni

Deb Cantoni took Modern Jive to a new level with her 'Le Bop Jam' cabaret in 2006.  She won the two National Modern Jive championships in which she competed Le Bop Jam, as well as achieving a standing ovation!  Deb's innovative choreography and sensational teaching have seen her teams place many times over the past 8 years, including first place at the Victorian Modern Jive Dance Championships for the past four years!

In 2003, Deb Cantoni was the 2003 Australian, Australasian, and UK Modern Jive champion!  She placed first in the Showcase section of the biggest Modern Jive competition in the world (the UK Open Modern Jive championships) and placed second in the freestyle section of that competition. In Australia, Deb has won the open freestyle and masters freestyle (professional level) of the Australian and Australasian Modern Jive Championships.

Deb owns and runs Le Bop Modern Jive, and regularly teaches modern jive classes and workshops in Melbourne, Sydney, Perth, Canberra, Brisbane, New Zealand and less regularly in the UK.

In her "spare" time, Deb Cantoni owns and runs The Space Dance & Arts Centre, and in seven short years, has transformed the Space into one of the biggest and best known dance studios in Melbourne.  Deb is also mother to gorgeous 2 year old Charli, who can be seen running around The Space in her tap shoes!

Having completed a full time performing arts course majoring in dance, Deb also brings her general and partner dance experience to bear as an assistant choreographer and adviser in the commercial dance scene.