Today we’d like to introduce you to Wendi Isaacson.
Hi Wendi, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I have been a dancer since I was three years old. I have focused on different styles of dance at different stages of my life—attending the Ballet West Academy as a young girl, and being part of the drill team in high school, but as I entered college that is where my love for tap dance really solidified. I had an amazing mentor named Colleen West, who I still am in contact with.
She is the one who taught me all about tap history, helped refined my tap dance style and I was able to tap dance on her company called “Foot Poetry.” I actually continued dancing in her company even after college up until a few years ago. I will forever be grateful to Colleen for the care and mentorship that she has given me over the years. I owned a dance studio for 10 fun years of my life, then sold it in 2009. After taking a few years off to raise my 4 children, I eventually returned to teaching at various studios.
This time, however, I decided to specialize in only tap dance. I continued attending tap workshops and festivals when I could. In 2018, I started the Utah Tap Fest to give my Utah tap dancers more opportunities to train and learn from industry professionals. I also began directing my professional tap company, Rhythm Nation Tap Company.
I also started teaching tap dance at Brigham Young University around the same time, which has been a fun change from studio teaching.
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?
It’s been a fun road, but working and raising 4 kids is definitely not easy. It’s taken a lot of coordination with my husband to get into the groove we are in now. It’s also gotten easier as they have gotten older.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I am a professional tap dancer, teacher, and choreographer. I produce several concerts and big tap dance events each year. I teach a lot of private lessons although I am basically full and I am not taking new students at this time. I get hired to do a lot of competition routine choreography, including solo duos trios, and group numbers. One of the projects that I am most proud of is a show called “A Very Jazzy Nutcracker.”
It is a full-length nutcracker, set to jazz music, and it is comprised of entirely tap dancing. It took me a year to write and has sold out every time that we have done it. We took a break because of Covid last year, but a very Jazzy Nutcracker is returning to the stage again this year on December 10 at the Ashton auditorium theater in Orem.
What would you say has been one of the most important lessons you’ve learned?
The most important thing I’ve learned in my career is that people and relationships matter the most. They are more important than any award or recognition.
The way you treat people always matters most in the long run. Showing kindness gets you a lot further in life and your career than jealousy and gossip. People want to work with positive people that don’t gossip about others.
Contact Info:
- Website: Www.utahtapfest.com
- Instagram: @utahtap, @rhythm_nation_tapcompany
- Facebook: @Utah Tap, @Rhythm Nation Tap Company
- Youtube: Rhythm Nation Tap Company
Image Credits
Rocket Salt Photography, Elizabeth Leighton Photography, Calvo Images, and Lucy Limoncello
