RVA Dance Collective was formed in 2007 when Jess Burgess and Danica Kalemdaroglu met and joined forces to create a new voice in dance for the Richmond community. The co-artistic directors work tirelessly to bridge the gap between artists of all mediums in the city of Richmond. Formed under the assumption that great art cannot survive or thrive without the spirit of collaboration, RVA Dance Collective’s artistic goal is the union of all forms of art in the Central Virginia area. Burgess and Kalemdaroglu have worked with visual artists, film artists, musicians, photographers and theatre artists in the spirit of finding absolute creativity. We host a free community modern class every Sunday at Dogtown Dance Theatre because as said by the late Martha Graham, “the body is your instrument in dance, but your art is outside that creature,” RVA Dance Collective’s ongoing mission is geared towards the inclusion of all forms of art for creative and lifelong inspiration.

Collectively, the dancers of Brown Ballerinas for Change, whether their dance journey began at the age of three or eight, have found a passion for dance and have become change makers and influencers around the world. They became the face and voice of youth activist involved in the Black Lives Matter movement. In the midst of a pandemic they were able to form and incorporate Brown Ballerinas for Change as a 501 (c)3 nonprofit organization and use their gift of ballet/dance to promote activism, social justice, and to increase diversity in dance. They’ve found a peaceful way to get involved using dance as an act of protest and to show other young people that they too could get involved in the fight for justice.

Andrew “Narsi” Pruitt have been dancing since the age of 6 learning choreography from his mother. Through the years, Narsi has picked up, learned more than 3 dance styles; like Krump, Litefeet, Animation, Lyrical, Interpretive, and FlexN; fused other hobbies into his style of dance; such as, roller skating, art, music engineering, poetry and improv. Traveling to different states also aided the influences for his freestyle nature like walking through downtown cities, viewing graffiti murals throughout towns, and understanding mass cultures within each state. With brief understanding, Narsi discovered parts and pieces of molding and creating a style in which he uses the word, “Universal”, to create unlimited opportunities to express to any genres of music and think outside-the-box with human visual effects. His top 2 favorite genres of music to “Feel” his movements and go into a “flow” state are R&B and Soul.

Hi! I'm Allison Day Meyer and I am a dancer, dance instructor, and dance photographer from Northern Virginia. My love of dance and passion for capturing movement on camera are what drive me.

I began my dance training at Chris Collins Dance Studio at the age of 3 and graduated high school with a diploma from the Fine & Performing Arts Program from Woodbridge High School. I furthered my dance studies at Virginia Commonwealth University where I received a BFA in Dance Performance and Choreography.

Originally from western New York, north of Buffalo, I began dancing at the age of seven and went on to continue my dance education at the University of Buffalo, receiving a B.A. in Dance in 2005. During my college career I had the opportunity to take class from several professional dance companies, was a member of the University’s Zodiaque Studio Dance Ensemble, the UB Dance Team and fun fact; cheered professionally for the NFL’s Buffalo Bills footballTeam.

After college I moved to Richmond, VA where I spent nine years teaching for Jessica Morgan School of Dance until its transition to Prestige Dance Studio in 2014. Those years of experience and mentorship were invaluable to me especially as I began my role as Artistic Director of Prestige.

My dance journey is quite simple. I was 3 when I began dancing, started competing at 6, participated in high school dance team and school musicals, and received my BFA in Dance Performance from East Carolina University in 2010. I am fortunate to have supportive parents who allowed me to dive into this lifestyle and to encourage me every step of the way. Upon graduation, I moved to Richmond and currently teach Jazz, Contemporary, and Musical Theater, along with being the assistant director of dELIRIUM, our competitive company at Chesterfield Dance Center.

At the age of 14 I started my dance journey taking Mexican Folklore and Flamenco. When I was 18 I attended the University of Arizona where I took my first Ballet, Modern and Jazz class. After college I moved to Chicago where I danced with River North Chicago Dance Company, and Hubbard Street 2. After doing 6 years of concert dance I wanted to try the commercial world out so I auditioned for Celine Dion show in Vegas. Luckily I got the job and Vegas became my home off and on for 12 years. In that time I went on a world tour with Celine Dion, I performed with Shania Twain at Cesar’s Palace, performed with Cirque Du Soleil, Donny and Marie Osmond Show, danced with BodyTraffic Dance Company, and performed on shows like SYTYCD, Dancing With The Stars, and AMA’s with Taylor Swift. When I look back at my career I am so grateful to have had these amazing opportunities doing something I truly love.

To do this I need to start with my background that is the reason for what I do in life:

I am from Colombia, South America. My grandmother was a poet, my mother a dancer and my father was a doctor who treated everyone regardless of their ability to pay. I LEARNED FROM THEM the importance of HELPING OTHERS while promoting ARTS AND CULTURE.

When I came to Richmond 25 years ago to marry my husband, William King, I knew very little English but it was easy for me to adapt to a new culture. It was very hard for my daughter who was 12 years old. She was placed in an ESL class and was very unhappy until she was asked to write an essay about her culture. She made a video of herself dancing SALSA. With her presentation not only did her pride return, but her confidence, security and motivation – all major keys for a happy, successful life.

Finding my passion for ballet at a very young age has inspired a lifelong journey of learning, creating, performing and now directing. I am Originally from Tennessee and began training at the City Youth Ballet with Susan Pace-White. I then started training all over the country with many of the nation's most distinguished artists including David Howard, Edward Villella, Gelsey Kirdland and Alonzo King. I received a B.F.A from Radford University with a concentration in performance and choreography under the direction of Frano Jelincic and Dagmar Kessler. Upon graduation, I became a principal dancer with the San Diego Ballet. During my time with the company I had the opportunity to dance various lead roles under the direction of Robin Morgan and Javier Velasco.

Present day, I’m teaching more than ever while also hosting RVA Dance Life Series which gives dancers in RVA a chance to teach in a diverse lineup of teachers to new audiences. So far in this 6 year journey, I’ve learned so much about myself and what I’m capable of. However, I’ve only scratched at the surface. There are so many more incredible things in store for me, and I cannot wait to explore them. Also, my family is now one of my biggest supporters.

I am beyond thrilled and honored to be a nominee for best jazz choreography because I’ve been extra passionate about it in my classes in the past year. It’s such a fun style that I cannot get enough of sometimes.

Looking back over 16 years of teaching, it’s amazing to think back to those days when I was so fresh and wildly passionate, and perhaps a little naïve to the complexities of teaching. It lights a different fire in you because you want to share your passion and give your students more than you had been given. My teaching style is strongly influenced by music as it is the driving force of my craft. I pride myself on the challenges I create for my students, and love watching the development of their growth within those challenges. This is my drive to continue this journey. The music and complexity is my spirit coming out and it ignites my passion day after day. 

I have been in the Richmond area for the last four years, and have been working hard to meet the dance community of VA. It has been a long and joyful journey to become a choreographer and professor. I now have the opportunity to spend time doing research on the topics that inspire me. More importantly, I am in a position to inspire and train young dancers and to be part of their own journeys.

In this very moment, I could not be more proud to be a part of the Richmond dance community. Our small city holds such great talent and although we are all so unique and talented in our own way; we equally share an amazing passion and love for the art of dance and the avenues in which we are all contributing to our dance community. Thank you, RVA Dance Awards for creating the perfect storm for dancers, studio owners, choreographers, directors, and educators to come together and celebrate one another. I am extremely honored and grateful for my nominations as Choreographer of the Year and Best Artistic Direction. Being able to create, explore, and grow with my dancers is one of the most fulfilling pieces of my life…I wouldn’t trade it for the world.

RADAR is incredibly honored to be nominated for Best Dance Company and Best Collaboration! We love and are passionate about dance and find the process of creating and performing rewarding in and of itself. That being said, having the Richmond community recognize us and our work in this way definitely enhances that reward! We are so grateful for the support and excited to be representing Richmond dance alongside so many other amazing dance companies!

I currently train many hours a night at Chesterfield Dance Center, where I study ballet, jazz, modern, tap, hip-hop, contemporary, pointe, and musical theater and compete on their Epic Delirium team. I am an assistant instructor and love teaching younger dancers. Additionally, this year, I was selected by Revel Dance Convention as a Pro Reveler, and I travel around the country assisting with classes.

Richmond Urban Dance is extremely excited and grateful to be one of the nominees in the category of Best Digital Content! It is so humbling to see that the RVA dance community appreciates the hard work that we put into our social media. We consider our digital content just as much as an art form as we do our dancing, so it is an honor to be recognized. Taking a dance class or participating in a performance is one thing, but trying to reach a larger audience through social media is entirely different. We want our audience to feel the same positive energy and vibes that we try to have in all of our classes and performances!

“It wasn’t until I was grown, working in a cubicle, that I realized that dance could be my vehicle or artistic expression. After about 15 years, it makes me grateful and honored to be nominated for Community Dancer of the Year and Best African Choreography for the first RVA Dance Awards. I just love bringing people together and representing the African roots that most of our favorite dances have. So these nominations make me feel that a may be headed in the right direction.”

Finally, there was Dogtown. I will never forget the night Rob Petres, founder at Dogtown invited me to dinner to “chat.” When he offered me the position, I was floored, confused, excited and ready. I accepted on the spot and started making the necessary changes in my life to go on this new adventure. Dogtown is everything to me. Watching the tremendous growth we’ve seen over the last five years since I became director, I have truly come alive. The same ferocity of spirit that got me through the car accident filled inside of me, and I knew I was going to do whatever it takes to make Dogtown successful and something amazing for the dance artists in this community.

“Our strengths and weakness compliment each other, making us constantly push one another to improve. Working with friends can sometimes be challenging, we fight like brother and sister but we love each other all the same. We’re super excited to have been nominated for our collaboration and are ready to make our next project happen.”

Dancing has always played a pivotal part in how I engage with the world. It is how I make sense of it. Every style of dance that I have engaged with has given me a greater vocabulary with which to create. I am thankful for the dancers both professionals, and students who have helped to make my dances come to life. <3