Today we’d like to introduce you to Amanda Martz
Amanda, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I started dancing when I was 3 in a Mommy and Me class and never stopped. I knew when I was young that I wanted to be a professional dancer when I grew up, but didn’t really know what that could look like. I trained in all styles, but started training more seriously at Aspire Dance Studio when I was 11. As a studio dancer, I competed for 10 years at regional and national competitions with group dances and solos. I had a huge love for tap dance so I also joined Chloe and Maud Arnold’s Sole Talk tap company and performed and trained with them for 7 seasons. In high school, I really started to find a love for student choreography and frequently produced group and solo dances that were featured in the annual concerts. Around this time, I realized that I would love to start teaching dance as well. In elementary school, I did a “Star of the Week” presentation about myself where I talked about wanting to be a dancer and teacher when I grew up. It just took me a while to realize I could combine my two passions and become a dance teacher! My studio director, Alexia Liavas, gave me the opportunity to start teaching a few combo classes for the littlest dancers my Junior year of high school, and I fell in love with it right away. As I was getting to my senior year of high school, I knew teaching, choreographing, and performing would be most important to me going forward.
Now, I attend UC Irvine where I am pursuing BFAs in Performance and Choreography, with a minor in Education. I also still work at Aspire! I choreograph solo and group dances for the competition team and teach over the summer. I also work for USA Varsity as a part of their dance staff. With USA, I have had the opportunity to teach dance camps for high school dance teams over the summer and work competitions during the rest of the year. I love that I still get to follow my passions of teaching and choreographing for work while in school.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Covid was definitely a challenging time to navigate as an artist. I wanted to make sure I was finding things to do to keep up my training and creative side. My parents helped create a little studio space in my garage that I could use for Zoom classes, teaching, auditions, filming, and so much more. Speaking of auditions, the college audition experience was so different from what I was expecting. Every school I auditioned for, except for UC Irvine who held a live Zoom audition, required self tapes. Though I got to audition for many schools I might not have normally auditioned for, the process of doing all of the self tapes was very tedious. I often questioned if I was making the right decision by going into the arts in such an uncertain time. Obviously, it paid off!
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
In addition to tap being my favorite style of dance, I have a huge love for contemporary and jazz. Lately, I have been working with these styles a lot in my choreography, teaching, and performances. In high school, I was most proud of the choreography awards I won for my tap and contemporary self choreographed solos.
UCI has afforded me so many opportunities that I am thankful for. Freshman and Sophomore year, I had the chance to work with and perform in two dances produced by a Dance MFA candidate who centered his research and creative process around disability justice. Last year, I helped start Sole Rhythms Tap Club to create a community for tap dancers on campus, and have been vice president for the past two years. Last year, I also had the opportunity to present my choreography in the annual undergraduate choreographers concert. This was an amazing experience that taught me about the full process of working with lighting designers, costume designers, and the entire artistic team. This year I am interning as a Teaching Artist with Creative Connections and will be bringing my dance knowledge to a high school in Orange County. This being my last year at UCI, I am really excited to start working on my thesis performance choreography which will include tap and contemporary dance!
I love that my journey in dance has been so diverse style wise and opportunity wise. I really try to go for any opportunity that I can to help me grow my skills on and off the stage. I’ve learned so much from all of my mentors, and I try to take what I’ve learned into everything I do.
Networking and finding a mentor can have such a positive impact on one’s life and career. Any advice?
Be friends with everyone! Be helpful, be genuine, and know what you have to offer. It is also important to know what you want, and find the people that can help you get there. Stay connected with them! I really enjoy learning about the behind the scenes aspects of the Performing Arts world beyond just being on stage, and fortunately, I have found mentors that are very career oriented and have helped me focus on the longevity of my career beyond just performing onstage.
Pricing:
- Contact me about pricing for solos, groups, and private lessons!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://amandamartz.my.canva.site/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/amandamartz_/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@amandamartz9742
