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Professional dancer, producer, choreographer, and entrepreneur: Marcy Fox.[/caption]
If you’ve been following the Dance Hub blog, then you know that we’re running a series of interviews with some of the top professional dancers on Dance Hub.
Today’s fascinating interview is with Marcy Fox, Las Vegas-based professional dancer, who has performed in more than 20 shows along the strip and around the world. Currently, she’s a dancer for MJ Live at the Stratosphere.
In addition to her dancing career, Marcy is also the creator of Dancetinations –a company that creates custom dance camps for studios and schools across the nation. Marcy’s passion is dance, and through Dancetinations, she’s helping other young dancers to discover their dreams too.
Marcy studied at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and even went on to receive the UPA Performer of the Year award. She’s worked with some of the top grossing producers in the field and performed alongside top talent –as a Resident Show Dancer for Calvin Harris, Aoki, Laidbackluke, Hardwell, and AfroJack; as well as performing in “Bite,” “BuckWild,” “The Magic of Rick Thomas,” “Showgirls of Magic,” at the 14th annual Latin Grammys, and more!
Marcy recently opened up to Dance Hub about her life, career, and of course, Dancetinations. She also talked about inspiration, making a difference, and never giving up. Read on for Marcy’s story.
Enjoy!
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Marcy Fox[/caption]
Dance Hub: “How did you get started in dancing?”
Marcy Fox: “Way back further than I care to actually divulge, I saw my babysitter doing the running man! I thought it was the coolest thing I had ever seen so I asked her to teach me. She showed me the step and told me she took dance classes at the Paula Brekke School of Dance in Des Moines. I signed up for jazz the next week! That’s how I began this torrid love affair with dancing and all its forms from 8 years old through college, into a professional performance career, and now with Dancetinations!”
Dance Hub: “What is the most helpful resource you’ve come across for dancers?”
Marcy: “There are so many amazing resources available now with the Internet and the vast variety of competitions it’s hard to choose. Back when I first began, and before I moved to Vegas for college, I lived and died by Dance Spirit magazine. The Midwest didn’t always get the coastal trends right away, nor did we know what was coming for work so Dance Spirit was amazingly helpful in getting the word out on comps, companies, clothing, new teachers and auditions. This was before the World Wide Web exploded of course!”
Dance Hub: “Name a dancer you admire, can be contemporary or one from the past.”
Marcy: “Honestly Janet Jackson was a huge influence on me and my dancing. I know she isn’t deep in the dance world but because it was so difficult to get mainstream hip hop to Iowa I would record MTV on a VHS before school and come home to learn all the dances they did in music videos after class. She was so dynamic and always had big groups of dancers, I loved that she respected what we did and knew how much we could bring to a stage. She is still employing dancers all over the world and taking the time to learn with them and hiring amazing choreographers…she blows my mind!”
Dance Hub: “What is your favorite dance-related memory?”
Marcy: “I have two but they are kind of related.
“My first would be state individuals for drill team. I choreographed my own routine, designed my own costume, which my mother made, and made it to top 10 in the state. We had to perform one more time for the finals. As I was doing my turn sequence it was like the world slowed down Matrix style. Here I was 16 years old, and making a mistake in my routine, but I laughed in the middle because I just knew this was what I was supposed to do with my life. This was exactly where I was supposed to be, on stage and so happy I could burst even if I was messing up. It was amazing!
My second was the day I got my first job as a dancer. I got the call from the producer beating out 100 other dancers in Vegas. I was 19 and I was supposed to be 21 but he said he loved my style anyway. It was for a covered show at the Tropicana and they were building the stage as we spoke. I immediately flashed to that moment at state finals and just thought “I was right! They thought I was crazy to follow my dreams but I was right!!”
Dance Hub: What do you hope to accomplish at the end of this journey?
Marcy: “I am still performing as I build Dancetinations. My hope is to bridge that gap from having a dream to making it real for dancers. I want to bring the next generation the knowledge of how to get from class to work while keeping your integrity and your self-esteem alive. This is a tough business, you are going to be told no a lot more than yes and if you don’t have a strong sense of self you will not make it. I want the future dancers to be prepared for an audition, to know how a photo shoot is supposed to be done, to be exposed to people who are actively working and to learn from their mistakes. Taking classes from people that are relevant is so important to me. I ultimately want to make a difference in the struggle to realize a dream. If I can lessen it even for one dancer by showing them the classes they should take, or how to walk into an audition, how to process a “no” so that they get up and go to the one that will give them a “yes” then Dancetinations was a complete success!”
We’d like to extend a big thank you to Marcy for taking the time to interview with us!
Want to learn more about Marcy? Follow her on some of her social media accounts:
Serious about dance? Looking to improve your dance skills? Visit Dance Hub to see dance classes and instructors in your area.
