Meet Aimee Hopkins: Owner, Founder, Artistic Director and Teaching Artist with Aimee Art Productions: Building Self-Esteem and Literacy Through the Arts,

We had the good fortune of connecting with Aimee Hopkins and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Aimee, we’d love to hear about how you approach risk and risk-taking
I have always been a risk-taker. Back when I was 17, a parent in my town asked me to start a Drama program at the local elementary school. She knew I was in the plays at my high school. I had never taught a Drama class to kids before, but it sounded like fun and felt like something I could do. I had so much success with it, that another school asked me to do the same thing. And it has been like that ever since!

What should our readers know about your business?
My business is Aimee Art Productions: Building Self-Esteem and Literacy Through the Arts. I have always been an entrepreneur, starting when I was 11 making hand-painted greeting cards for my family and friends and selling them with the logo on the back: “Aimee Art Productions.” I started the Drama programs in my small town in Rhode Island when I was 17, and in college continued to sell the greeting cards and hand-paint wine glasses. I have always taught piano, dance, theatre, art, and more to kids and adults. It has been my bread-and-butter since I was a child, all the time I was going to college and grad school, and performing in small theatre in Providence, RI and in Los Angeles. I got my BA at Middlebury College in Vermont with a joint-major in Theatre and Women’s Studies with a minor in French, and my Masters at Trinity Rep Conservatory / Rhode Island College in Providence. These programs really encouraged us to create our own work rather than wait by the phone for our agent to call. In Providence and in Los Angeles, I put on my own plays that I wrote, performed in my own one-woman shows and standup comedy, had a commercial agent and did small films and commercials, all the while doing my side-business. Though I also temped and waited tables, the teaching has always come easily to me and felt creative. When I got a full-time teaching job with health benefits and thought I was shutting down my side-business, people kept asking me to teach lessons after-school, and it seemed that it just continued in spite of itself and was great extra income. When I decided at age 30 to turn the page on the performing and writing and to settle down and have a family, I returned to my side-business full-time and my husband was teaching full-time. It has been the perfect balance for us with one W2 income with benefits and one 1099 self-employment income, I have been able to flex my business around raising my two girls and that has been such a blessing. When they were babies, my husband Craig would come home and I would hand him a baby and start teaching piano and voice lesosons, or I would hold a baby on my lap and nurse them while teaching. It was awesome. Then I went back to school-day hours teaching Music just 2 days a week, and once they were in school I began to work school hours. Now that they are teens in the pandemic, I try to keep my schedule as much like theirs as I can, but they don’t necessarily want to hang out with me as much anyway! LOL. It wasn’t easy to get where I am today but it was worth it. I have learned so much about being a mom, a wife, a business owner, and a good and ethical person in this world. I have overcome challenges by never giving up, always sticking to my principles and coming from joy, love and creativity in everything I do. My husband has always encouraged me too, even when I wanted to give up. One important lesson I have learned is that if it’s not good for me it’s not good for anyone. If it takes away from my family or from myself, it isn’t worth it. If it’s only for the money, it isn’t worth it. If it is for the highest health and good of all, it’s right. My brand is about building self-esteem and literacy through the arts. If we just say “good job” in a general way, nothing is learned. If we give specific feedback such as, “Wow, you really pointed your toe on that move and I could tell you knew the choreography,” then the dancer’s skills grow AND these skills transfer to their self-confidence and skill in other areas, even reading, math, social studies, science, work ethics, time management, teamwork and more.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I would take them up to Griffith Park Obervatory for a hike, picnic and Planetarium show. It’s the best $5 you can spend in Los Angeles, the best view, the greatest trails, and so easy and cheap. I would try to go during the week when parking is easier, but if not, we would park on the hill and walk up. The planetarium is so magical and it really makes me feel connected to humanity. I am reminded of just how tiny I am in relation to everything else, and how much I think the little things matter so much but they really don’t, especially if there are other entire solar systems, galaxies and maybe even more! If we had time, we would have lunch or coffee at Trails Cafe in Griffith Park. If it was a week-long trip and we had a lot of time, I would take them to Yucca’s taco stand on Hillhurst for the best bean and cheese burritos in town, the Yucatan sandwiches, the tacos and the lemonade. Even their burgers are the best. Then we would ride the Swan Boats in Echo Park — a joyous adventur on the water with great city views! I would take my friend to the beach for sure, I know of three private free beaches in Malibu, but I won’t say where! One is right near Malibu Seafood Shack, the best seafood in town and great simple atmosphere that reminds me of my home in Rhode Island, so we would definitely get a bit there!  Other things I would do would be to take my friend to see the stars on Hollywood Blvd., and downtown to the Angels Flight and Downtown LA Marketplace for some delicious food and affordable shopping from local vendors. We would also visit Grand Park to see the fountains, sculptures, and urban landscape, enjoy a scrumptious specialty coffee and maybe even a show at the Music Center, Dorothy Chandler or Disney Hall. Finally, I would take my guest to Descansco Gardens for a walk among the plants, a delicious lunch at their outdoor cafe, and to my own hiking trails in Glendale for a view of the city and lunch at our local corner cafe and a specialty chocolate at Mignon, a local chocolate maker. If we chose to, we could also get mani/pedi’s at our local nail salon or a massage at Basai and take a dance class at Studio A or Heartbeat House in Atwater Village/Silverlake. What a week we will have!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My husband, Craig, who has always been my CEO (Chief Encouragement Officer!), Susan Cambigue-Tracy, my mentor and guide from the Music Center of Los Angeles, my mom, the “wind beneath my wings” always, and my two daughters, Margaret (Maggie) and Charlotte (Charley) who have always inspired me to be a good example of a working mom who contributes but also puts their well-being above all else, and also to take care of myself.

Website: www.AimeeArtProductions.com
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Twitter: https://twitter.com/AimeeYoungHopki/status/1334606055167283200
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Other: Kidpass, Koddler, Activity Hero, Red Tricycle

Image Credits
Photos with keyboard and drums are courtesy of Chris Emerick of Paragon Productions, courtesy of Segerstrom Center for the Arts