Local twinkle toes takes act to Tinseltown

Taylor hasn’t stopped dancing since the day he could stand on his own two feet.

His mother, Sandra, has seen him groove to the music for as long as she can remember.

“He started dancing when he was two years old, if not before that,” she says. “Anywhere he’d go he was always moving. Even on a bus or wherever, we’d have to tell him to sit down.”

Now a Grade 9 student at Maples Collegiate, Taylor has developed into a talented hip hop and African dancer. He’s part of Bomb, his school’s hip hop dance group, as well as the Afro-Caribbean Dancers that perform at the Africa-Caribbean Pavilion at Folklorama. He’s been in six locally-filmed movies, performed at the closing ceremonies of the 1999 Pan-Am Games, and even acted at Manitoba Theatre for Young People.

And now he’s being noticed by some of the biggest names in the dance world.

In June, Taylor is off to Los Angeles to attend the L.A. Hip Hop Dance Intensive program at the prestigious Debbie Allen Dance Academy. Allen is best known for playing dance instructor Lydia Grant in the movie and TV series Fame, both of which she choreographed.

At 15, Taylor will be one of the youngest students at the week-long program that will feature more than 150 classes taught by some of the top professionals in hip hop, break dancing, krumping and stepping.

“I’ve known for a long time that I want this to be my career,” says Taylor, who has high expectations for what he’ll get out of the week.

“Hopefully I’ll get myself noticed down there and learn a lot of new things.”

Taylor is especially looking forward to a master class taught by Allen and renowned choreographer David Scott.

Scott has done the choreography for many major Hollywood movies, including Stomp the Yard, Coach Carter and You Got Served, and has been a choreographer on the reality TV show So You Think You Can Dance?

“It’s sort of frustrating to be dancing in Winnipeg sometimes,” says Taylor. “Some of the studios don’t really have good hip hop classes. It’s easier in Toronto and places like that.”

Taylor’s eventual goal is to dance professionally in a major entertainment centre, such as New York or L.A., but not before he finishes school in Winnipeg — law school, that is.

Taylor says human rights law is most interesting to him. When he was a student at Ecole Leila North Community School he spearheaded the creation of a special celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

“Lots of dancers have second careers,” says Taylor. “I’d also like to teach at a dance studio.”

His mother says as long as he concentrates on school, she’ll continue to support — and finance — his dancing. And if she isn’t happy with him, she’s got a powerful card up her sleeve.

“I’ve been threatening to make him do ballroom dancing,” she laughs. “He wants nothing to do with those costumes.”