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Born and raised in the Midwest, Joel found a love for dance early in his college days and quickly became hooked on growing as a dancer and competitor. Aside from having amazing hair, Joel Torgeson is now one of today’s rising stars in West Coast Swing. Joel provides a youthfulness and vigor to his dance along with an analytic mindset to his teaching style that makes him one of the brightest up-and-coming professionals. He has also helped push to grow our dance community by bringing awareness of West Coast Swing though his video collaborations and social media presence. In addition to his approach as a dancer, influencer, and instructor, Joel has deeply rooted midwest values that also make him such a unique person on and off the floor. 

Kay Newhouse has helped grow and shape the WCS community through her hard work and compassion. In addition to working as an event director for Mad Jam, DCSX, and Swing Fling (Dance Jam Productions), Kay has helped establish safe and friendly dance communities. Through her work with Dance Jam Production, Kay produced the Code of Conduct and a statement of expectations of Professional staff that has been used throughout WCS communities and the World Swing Dance Council. Recognized as one of our communities pivotal leaders, Kay continues to work, educate, and shape the cultural structures of our dance to encourage building communities we all want to be part of.   https://kaywcs.com/

Koichi Tsunoda has traveled all over the US honing his skills as a DJ to become one of today’s most popular WCS DJs. Whether playing music for competition or late night socials, Koichi’s set is always innovative and refreshing. Koichi defines his approach as a  “westie geek who DJs like an engineer”. His latest project, along with DJ Liz Ravdin, is the Westie DJ Lab which focuses on educating and training dancers interested in deejaying as well as growing the community. If you are interested in learning how to DJ or to become a better DJ, be sure to check out their facebook page and attend one of their DJ workshops. Be sure to also check out Koichi’s spotify playlists for some great music! We’ve included the link to one of our favorite playlists below.  https://www.facebook.com/westie.dj.lab/?fbclid=IwAR0Kk0EgL0NMjPnSInhurLz7Mmu3ZV8pMqA2vi5WH8ETWReY1OKcxVbNojE

Recorded at Wild Westie 2019, we sat and talked with Jason Wayne on his history in WCS. Jason shares his views on the dance as well as who he studied as a dancer that inspired the footwork and style he is known for today. We hope you enjoy this episode and be sure to check out previous podcast episodes as well. If you would like to learn more about Jason Wayne or want to book him for events, lessons, etc. be sure to check out his website at http://waynesworlddance.com/.

In this episode, we sit down with Champion level dancer Arjay Centeno to learn about his dance journey and life as a traveling instructor and family man. Arjay found his love for music at an early age and traveled the world as a classical violinist before transitioning into dance. He discovered West Coast Swing during his ballroom training in Northern California while pursuing his love for art and dance. Today, Arjay continues to travel the world teaching and inspiring other dancers to improve their craft and promote positivity in the community. 

We are excited to share this episode of Phrase Change featuring Alyssa Glanville! Alyssa started her journey in West Coast Swing at the age of 15 when she started ballroom. She quickly fell in love with the dance and its creativity drawn from other dance styles. Having trained in Lindy and Folk dancing prior to WCS, Alyssa began to expand her knowledge and grow her WCS by training in Hip Hop, Contemporary, Jazz, Zouk, and Ballet. Today, Alyssa travels all over the world judging, teaching, dancing, and inspiring other dancers. 

His strengths – Contemporary and falling on the floor His Weaknesses – Blues and falling on the floor Chris Dumond joins us again on Phrase Change and shares his experiences from the 2018 US Open as well as his expertise in how he created the music used in several routines. We also talk with Chris about his numerous side projects, his famous Scary Stricly performances with Victoria Henk, and updates to Rising Star. We want to thank Chris for taking time to chat with us during his recent visit to Austin and hope you enjoy our interview with this multi-talented Champion.  Be sure to check out other episodes of Phrase Change Podcast on Spotify, Itunes, and other major podcast hosting sites. You can also listen at Phrasechangepodcast.com and on Facebook.  Curious to know more about Chris Dumond’s other passions and hobbies? Check out his website and YouTube channel for his vlog, original movies and songs. https://christopherdumond.com/about/

Estelle Bonnaire is a multi-swing dance savant and one of the leading west coast swing instructors, dancers and judges coming out of Europe. She has a deep passion for growing her dance knowledge and sharing her love of WCS with dance communities around the world. Her joyful personality and ‘choose happiness’ attitude, have made her a renowned teacher, role-model, and top level dancer both in the U.S. and Europe. 

Malia San Nicholas began her passion for dance and performing arts at the age of two when she started her formal training in classical ballet. She performed in lead roles in The Nutcracker, Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty, Coppelia, and Cinderella. she also began studying tap, jazz, contemporary and has a background in gymnastics, American ballroom, and Latin. In her early teens, she began competing with a three-time Grand World Champion country dance troop in 1993. During her travels with the team, she was introduced to West Coast Swing and quickly fell in love with the versatility and style of the dance. It wasn’t very long before she began competing in the Showcase division on the swing circuit while continuing to travel and compete on the country circuit. Malia began teaching full time in 2008 and now specializes in West Coast Swing as a Champion-level competitor, instructor, and judge both nationally and internationally. In addition to her sassy and infectious personality, Malia is often recognized among her peers for her smooth quality of movement and elegant floor-craft.

This special episode of Phrase Change features the Routine lecture panel recorded at Wild Wild Westie in 2018. We want to thank Ben McHenry, Cameo Cross, Glenn Ball, Taletha Jouzdani, Austin Scharnhorst, and Kali Casas for participating in this panel and this episode. We would also like to thank the amazing event directors of Wild Wild Westie and if you haven’t been before, be sure to check out W3 2019 in Dallas, TX! http://www.wildwildwestie.com/

Brandon and Kristen Parker are two premier dancers and instructors out of Houston, TX. Beyond being All-Star/Champion-level dancers, they have contributed immensely as community leaders to the Houston scene, as well as bringing together Texas as a whole. Please enjoy this episode as we discuss their passions outside of dance with essential oils, their backgrounds, and their traveling experiences.

We are excited to bring you our long overdue episode of Phrase Change recorded in April of 2018 and featuring the multi-talented Tara Trafzer. Whether it’s dancing, teaching, judging, or sharing her unique history facts on the microphone, Tara is one of the most inspiring leaders in our community today. In this episode, Tara shares her experiences and stories of growing up under the mentorship of the Schwimmer’s and how her experience and hard work ethic has molded her into the champion she is today. About Tara

In this episode, we sit and talk with legendary dancer Carlito Rofoli. His smile and charisma inspires and brings joy to so many dancers. Aside from his history in West Coast Swing, Carlito shares how much joy the dance community has given him over the years and explains why you can always catch him late-night social dancing while often shutting down the ballroom at most dance events.

This episode of Phrase Change features Champion level dancer Demetre Souliotes. Join us as we take a deep dive into Demetre’s dance history and how he started in West Coast Swing. He also shares his personal views on the history of WCS, teaching, and his love for the dance community. His passion, leadership, and infectious personality has helped grow the So-Cal Westie dance scene, turning the group into a non-profit organization. Demetre also provides a unique insight on growing an event like The After Party (TAP) and how he envisions leaving his legacy in West Coast Swing. Also, shout-out to Liz Ravdin for our special Intro and Outro on this episode

This episode of Phrase Change features multi-talented dancer, DJ, and emcee, Victor Loveira. Working many premiere WCS events as a DJ and emcee, Victor provides us with a look of what goes on inside the DJ booth. From providing music during competitions, to late night social dancing, learn about the prep work required from the DJ’s perspective to make each event successful. https://www.facebook.com/SwingDJ

In this episode of Phrase Change, Christopher Dumond shares his experiences from competing in Juniors to moving up and competing alongside his friends in the Champions division. Having trained with the Schwimmer’s from an early age, Chris offers a unique perspective on how his hard work has helped him build a career as both a dancer and instructor.

We are excited to bring you our 10th episode of Phrase Change featuring the legendary Robert Royston. In this episode Robert shares his history in swing and how his hard work ethic helped him achieve multiple titles in dance and build a career in the music industry. https://www.robertroyston.net

In our 9th episode of Phrase Change, we chat with WCS All-Star dancer and choreographer, Ariel Peck. From her knowledge of dance and music to her photography business, Ariel shares her passion for expressing her artistic attributes. http://www.ari-photography.com https://www.instagram.com/ariel.peck/?hl=en

This episode of Phrase Change features our 2017 US Open Classic Champion, Susan Kirklin. Join us as Susan talks about her dance background, her perspective on routines and competition, and her career as a studio owner and teacher. For more episodes of Phrase Change, please find us on iTunes or Stitcher. You can also follow us on Facebook and on Twitter (https://twitter.com/PhraseChange). Links: Susan Kirklin

Bryn Anderson began her dance journey at an early age and quickly fell in love with WCS. Through the love and support of her family, Bryn grew her passion for music and dance to become a Champion level dancer. For more episodes of Phrase Change, please find us on iTunes or Stitcher. You can also follow us on Facebook and on Twitter (https://twitter.com/PhraseChange). Links: