Conversations with Justin Boccitto Dani Champagne

Today we’d like to introduce you to Justin Boccitto Dani Champagne

Hi Justin Boccitto, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
Our company, Common Ground, began in New York City in 2019. It was simply a place to take tap dance classes that allowed students to explore all the styles tap has to offer while also preserving the history of the art form. There was a community aspect as well after the classes where we would converse about how tap dancing is effecting our lives and careers. The pandemic hit and we, like most dance organizations, went online. Funny enough, this allowed for a broader audience and suddenly we had tap dancers taking our classes in studios throughout the country, and around the world. Students in Japan, Australia, Germany, Ireland, and many more were learning from our instructors. Once things began to open up we realized we could travel the country and actually teach these online studios in-person. This started Common Ground: On Tour. We literally built a small sleeper car out of a Honda Element and traveled the country (4 full cross-country trips from NYC to Los Angeles). We’ve taught students at over 50 studios in the United States and visiting 40 National Parks on our days off! One of the cities we would frequent on these tours was Denver. Every time we visited and taught in Colorado we would look at each other and say “we could live here”. And that’s just what we decided to do. We packed our New York apartment and moved to RiNo in August of 2024. We now are offering tap dance and musical theatre classes in Denver and Colorado Springs and also just started a third branch of Common Ground in Los Angeles, now giving us three cities where tap dancers can experience our pop-up tap classes.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Two people living in a small Honda Element for months at a time is definitely challenging. We had to create systems to stay organized and also make sure we had access to the internet as we were running the business remotely. Sometimes we would literally be making up choreography in camp sites, rest stops, and other odd places just to prepare for the upcoming workshops. We also moved to Denver right on the heels of our last cross-country tour. This was challenging because we had to coordinate movers around that schedule. Everything went into storage and we didn’t see it again until about three weeks after we moved to Denver. We were living off our camping supplies when we first arrived in our new home in RiNo. Learning the dance culture in Denver has also been a new adventure. We were so used to New York dancers and we are slowly adjusting to lifer here in Colorado and finding our “people” in the dance community.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
We are both trained tap dancers. Justin studied more in the musical theatre style during his upbringing in New Jersey. He worked extensively in New York for 25 years and taught many students including Lady Gaga. He is also a performer and played the Gene Kelly role in “Singin’ in the Rain” at many theaters across the country.

Dani is originally from Rhode Island and grew up learning more rhythm style tap. She studied under two very well-known tap dancers, Dianne Walker and Derick Grant. She performed with several tap companies in Boston before moving to New York creating a company of her own and becoming a guest teacher at Broadway Dance Center.

What do you like best about our city? What do you like least?
We love the diversity of Denver. We especially love the arts and food scene in RiNo. Scootering has also become our best friend as we use it for a majority of our city traveling. There also seems to be an event every weekend in Denver which always gives you something to do. Obviously New York is a larger city and we are still adjusting to a new environment and figuring out where to meet like-minded people.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.commongroundtap.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/commongroundtap
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/commongroundtap/

Image Credits
In-studio photos by Kayleen Bertrand