Daily Inspiration: Meet Joanna Ashleigh

Today we’d like to introduce you to Joanna Ashleigh.

Hi Joanna, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today.
I have loved moving ever since I was a young child. My favorite activity was learning to seamlessly run from my front porch to the large maple tree, grab hold of the lowest branch and spiral up that tree as fast, quickly, and smoothly as possible. I’d stay up there and look at the mountains for hours.

I consider this my first dance memory. I did not grow up with the means to access dance classes and only took my first dance class in Middle Eastern dance technique in the early 2000s as a young adult. I studied it intensively for over a decade and eventually decided to attend college. I graduated with a major in dance and a minor in Arabic studies from CU Boulder in 2020 and enjoy blending Euro-centric compositional and movement creation concepts with Middle Eastern dance; predominantly the style known as Raqs Sharki from Egypt.

I teach weekly dance classes for adults in Denver on Tuesday evenings and delight in teaching private lessons out of my home studio throughout the week. My message is that dance is for everyone, and I love facilitating environments that encourage adults to create healthy relationships with their bodies while providing tools and information that extend well beyond the dance studio. As my African dance teacher, Nii Armah Sowah always said in class, “If you can move, you can dance.”

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
The biggest struggle in my journey continuously centers around how dance is viewed in the States. It is not considered a viable career path and the negative undertones that are present when you tell someone you dance for a living are palpable.

I am lucky that I have an amazing and supportive partner who sees the value in what I do and offer. My hope is that I can begin to change minds and hearts by offering high-quality instruction and heart-provoking performances so they can feel and see for themselves how important dance continues to be as an art form.

Another struggle is in the perception that this dance form is only for female-identifying individuals. This erases the fact that this dance style has been performed by all genders historically. For more on this, you can visit my peer, Drake von Trapp’s website: http://drakevontrapp.dance/.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I love collaborating with other artists and creatives. There used to be a tendency for dancers to only create work with long-term collaborators and I have thoroughly enjoyed breaking that mold by continuously creating new work with many artists throughout the United States.

This approach keeps me in a beginner’s mindset, where I have infinite things to learn from the various accomplished artists I encounter. Every individual brings something unique to the table and I love engaging new perspectives and learning from my peers.

Are there any apps, books, podcasts, blogs, or other resources you think our readers should check out?
Daniel Coyle’s, Little Book of Talent is a must for any creative pursuit, and to be clear that means for every individual ever. No matter what the profession is, every job requires creativity, and if you think yours doesn’t, well where can you sprinkle some creativity in? Approaching that question alone will require creativity.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.JoannaAshleigh.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/joanna_ashleigh/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/joannaashleighdancer
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChpedLt177aix9LjTcD-7GA 

Image Credits
Casey Campbell Photography, Glisson Imaging, Phoebus-Foto, and Jana Buist