8 Dance Mentors
4 DJ Mentors
Two Nights of Fusion dancing
Mentor biographies are below the schedule.
Ticket sales coming soon.
FRIDAY
Aug 23, 2024
8:30p-12:00am
Dance Gathering:
FOREGROUND
DJed by:
Angie Huang
Gina Longo
Philip Bell
Tony Sciscio
more TBA . . .
SATURDAY
Aug 24, 2024
12:45p-2:45p
DJ workshop with:
A’lan Abruzzo
Mija Valdez
3:00p-6:00p
Dance Training Ground with mentors:
Angie Huang
Ben O’Neal
Emily Webb
Ben LaCara
Jeannie Lin
Justin Alonzo
Lucas Weismann
Will Shaver
8:00p-9:00pm
Master Class
Joe GRay
9:00p-1:00am
Dance Gathering:
Underground
DJed by:
Angie Huang
Gina Longo
Joe Gray
Philip Bell
Tony Sciscio
more TBA . . .
SATURDAY
Financial Needs
We want as many as possible to benefit from these workshops, if for any reason you would like to attend on scholarship, do not hesitate to fill out this form to apply, we look forward to having you join us!
DANCE MENTORS
Ben LaCara (he/him)
Ben has taught fusion for over 14 years. He’s started a weekly venue in a new city and helped run 3 different recurring events. He has taught impactful classes to absolute beginners and run advanced level workshops. He knows the value of having class be driven from foundational principles and having all technique and movement taught from there in order to meet students where they are at. Ben loves empowering dancers to be technically precise and loose and playful.
Ben O’Neal (he/him)
Ben O’Neal has been partner dancing for 15 years. While starting in ballroom, he quickly found social dances like salsa and west coast swing to devote the majority of his time. He became obsessed with the learning and teaching process of wcs and really let it engulf his dance life. Through this process he found that he could implement other dances into his wcs, unknowingly to him, starting his fusion journey. It wasn't until he found fusion properly that he stopped calling himself a wcs dancer and realized all he’s ever wanted to do was fuze. After years of learning the rights and wrongs of dance fusion gave him an open ended canvas to explore and create. He still loves to pull from his past dance experiences but now prefers exploring the boundless creativity fusion offers.
Emily Webb (she/her)
In 1996 Emily Webb began her love affair with partner dance. Through the years Emily has studied Tango, Swing, Salsa, Blues, and Fusion dance with some of the top instructors in the world. Today Tango and Fusion remain Emily's greatest dance loves.
Thousands of students across the US and Canada have benefited from Emily's dynamic and interactive teaching style. Through her years of teaching experience Emily has learned to make even the most complex movements simple and build them from the ground up. This means you will not only look good while you dance, but feel great to your partners too!
Jeannie Lin (she/her)
is a masterful shapeshifter dancer who is able to effortlessly adapt, blend, articulate and draw from a myriad of different dance forms and experiences. Her early training comprised of gymnastics, ballet, and modern dance, while her later years included formal study in over 30 styles of partner dance at the Ballroom Dance Teacher's Academy where she graduated with high honors. Her evenings were spent teaching professionally at a ballroom dance studio, while her late-night adventures included clubs and bars all over the city dancing salsa, bachata, west coast swing, blues, argentine tango, and more.
Now she happily resides in the worlds of fusion and argentine tango, where she weaves in her other dance styles together seamlessly, integrating concepts and creating hybrid movements with grace and fluidity. Recognized for her nuanced and effective teaching style, she's been invited to teach internationally at fusion festivals and workshops, including in Spain, Germany, Sweden, the Netherlands, United Kingdom, Poland, Hungary, and Canada.
Justin Alonzo (he/him)
Whatever it is, the way you tell your story can make all the difference.
Mark Carpenter (he/them)
is an international Fusion and “Baystyle” instructor, DJ, and organizer hailing from California. When he is not traveling he is based out of the SF Bay Area, where he runs the newly founded Fusion Dance Academy. Starting his social dancing career with Lindy & Blues in 2005 he has since studied Tango, WCS, CI, and a dozen other dances.
He has been teaching since 2006 though since 2016 has entirely focused on the Fusion scene with its emerging forms and conventions, teaching workshops all over the world (and in two languages). He is at the forefront of shaping what Fusion is and what it can become. Constantly iterating, Mark is eager to share all the teaching skills, techniques, paradigms, frameworks, tips, and tricks he can to help usher the new generation of dancer.
Will Shaver (he/him)
a social dancer at heart, Will has been social dancing since 1998. In that time he's danced ballroom, west coast swing, blues, lindy, salsa, and lately lots of fusion. He's recently moved to Oakland and is excited to be more involved in the local dance community. He loves teaching classes that help people become better social dancers, especially conceptual classes that help students discover new ways to connect with their partners and the music.
DJs and DJ Mentors
A’lan Abruzzo (he/him)
A'lan, a seasoned DJ with a deep passion for music and dance, began his journey under the expert tutelage of Steven Watkins when he specialized in blues. His DJ prowess was recognized early on as he graced the decks at the very first Fusion Exchange, marking a significant milestone in his career. Beyond this, A'lan holds the distinctive honor of being the inaugural music coordinator at Shades SF, setting the tone and rhythm for countless dancers. His reputation in the DJ world was further cemented with his unforgettable "Heart Set" at the Denver Fusion Exchange. Today, A'lan not only continues to captivate audiences with his mixes but also extends his expertise through teaching and coaching, inspiring the next generation of DJs to find their unique sound and rhythm.
Angie Huang (she/her)
Cannot be contained
Matthew Tsunami (he/they)
Matthew has been dancing blues and fusion for over a decade, previously coming from the land of Latin and Argentine Tango, and since taking brief trips into the various Swings. He immediately fell in love with the improvisational freedom blues gives, while providing a structure to connect with another human. An absolute fiend for isolations and syncopations. His philosophy of partner dance - that it is highly conversational with plenty of adjectives, adverbs, and other parts of speech - is something he brings to dancing, teaching, and DJing. He strives to bring evocative music to dancers and empower them to intentionally connect and have whimsical, funky, and awe-inspiring dance conversations.
Mija Valdez (she/her)
Mija was born and raised in San Diego, California. She attributes her musical taste and inclination towards fusion dance in large part to her own mixed Japanese and Mexican heritage and influences. She was greatly influenced by modern dance, as a child, most particularly by the embodied expression of emotion it made possible.
In 2011 she encountered fusion for the first time, and was utterly blown away. She wanted more fusion in San Diego, but had no idea how to find the music, so at the behest of a friend, she created the Fusion Playlist Hit or Miss, Fusion Talking Points, and the Fusion DJ Setlist groups on Facebook. The thought behind the formation of these groups was to foster discovery, dialogue, and community.
Of all the dance styles Mija has experienced, she feels that fusion offers a unique opportunity to express and explore a wide range of emotions and dance styles in a partnered way. As a fusion DJ, she seeks to foster opportunities for vulnerability, connection, creativity, and playfulness with both, music choices, and flow. She has been exploring notions of how less can be more, and finding silence and stillness in the music and in the connection with one’s partner as a place from which to dance.
Philip Bell (he/him)
Jack of all, king of none
Venue
Omni Commons
4799 Shattuck Ave
Oakland, CA 94609