Rising Stars: Meet Michelle Loucadoux and Kristin Deiss of Danscend

Today we’d like to introduce you to Michelle Loucadoux and Kristin Deiss.

Michelle Loucadoux Bio
Michelle Loucadoux has been a professional dancer and educator for over thirty years. She danced on Broadway, in ballet companies, and on film and television and has traveled the world empowering young dancers. Michelle is a published author, has a master’s degree in business, and is passionate about creating a space for a more compassionate and inclusive dance community.

Kristin Deiss Bio
Kristin Deiss is a dancer, educator, yogi, and mom living her best life through helping others improve theirs. She holds an MA in History, an MFA in Dance, and is currently the Chair of the Commercial Dance Program at Hussian College, Los Angeles. Having battled a JIA diagnosis that changed the trajectory of her dance career, Kristin is dedicated to helping dancers better cope with the challenges of their art form.

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Co-founders Michelle Loucadoux and Kristin Deiss, after teaching together in higher education for almost a decade, were on a playdate with their two toddlers in the park during the first beginning months of Covid when the idea for Danscend was born. Kristin explains it further.

We were both contemplating so many aspects of our lives, which I think a lot of people were doing at the time, and we knew we wanted to do something greater. Namely, we knew we wanted to have a bigger impact on the lives of our students, especially during a time when everyone’s mental wellness was struggling the most. So, we started looking for resources for dancers specifically, as Michelle and I are past performers and currently now dance educators. And, there weren’t a lot. In fact, at the time, a google search of “dance and mental health” would bring up article after article about how dance was good for your mental health.

Being no strangers to the unique stressors that dancers face (such as perfectionism, negative self-talk, body image issues, the list goes on and on), we knew that we would have to create the thing we were looking for. So, Danscend started and officially launched on June 1st, 2021 with the mission to bring mental wellness to the forefront of dance training by providing a space for education, application, and community to dancers, educators, and professionals.

Since then, we’ve been plugging away! We offer virtual and in-person workshops, worksheets for use in the studio, a few online courses and certifications, and even a membership group for dance educators. And while we’re still fairly young, the interest we have received in such a short time is overwhelmingly positive and really shows that the dance industry is ready for a move towards more mental wellness.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Of course, it’s not been a smooth road! Is there ever a smooth road? Ha!

One of our biggest struggles is counteracting against the still pervasive stigma that surrounds mental health in general. It’s often seen as something you don’t discuss, something maybe even controversial, and even when those first two aspects aren’t present, something that most people don’t prioritize.

We know resources are limited – time, money, energy. And most people, sometimes ourselves included, because after all we are only human, will spend those resources elsewhere before directing them towards their mental health – especially if they feel like they aren’t suffering from a mental health challenge.

But part of our work is to arm people with tools and resources before getting to a mental health challenge, or if they feel like they’re experiencing one, tools and resources to help them move through it.

Dancers spend so much time training their bodies but so little time training their minds as well. And we hope to change that.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
What makes Danscend special is our community, hands down. Michelle and I are both super passionate about what we do, as we could have used this resource when we were younger and in the midst of our dance careers. (Our bios are below.). But we recognize we are not mental health professionals. So, all of our materials are based on peer-reviewed scientific research and backed by an advisory board of mental health professionals. Our strength lies in taking this information and translating it into dancer speak which we can do quite well as seasoned dancers and educators.

But perhaps the most important part of our community are our base of supporters. The dancers and educators looking to make a difference and who are using our resources to do so. They are really all such huge agents of change, and the wider we can spread this message, the more impact we’ll have.

Is there any advice you’d like to share with our readers who might just be starting out?
To consistently have an open mind for what lands and what doesn’t. If your products or messages aren’t being well received, it’s not necessarily because your ideas are bad – it might just not be what people are looking for right now. Be prepared to pivot and meet the needs of your desired customers. The more they trust that you know what they need, the closer they are to accepting those original ideas.

Pricing:

• Council Membership (individual) – $9/month
• Council Memberships (studios) – $75-105/month (depending on size of staff)
• Dancer Mental Wellness Worksheet Packet – $23
• Dance Educator Mental Wellness Certification – $125
• Mental Wellness Workshop – $250
• Self-Talk for Dancers mini course – $44

Contact Info:

• Website: danscend.com
• Instagram: @danscendofficial
• Facebook: @danscendofficial
• Twitter: @danscendofficial

Image Credits
Denise Leitner Eric Yang