Meet Jill Elaine Collins | Artistic/Managing Director Sahlala Dancers

We had the good fortune of connecting with Jill Elaine Collins and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jill Elaine, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
I had been dancing and touring professionally for over a decade and teaching for even longer. I wanted to use the skills and experience I gained to start my own business. JCoDance LLC was created to encompass my different passions: performing, directing, producing, choreographing, and teaching. The founder of Sahlala Dancers, the company I danced in for many years, was ready to pass on the company and felt I was a good fit as the new director. The timing was just right.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I’ve been dancing practically my entire life. When your passion turns into a professional business, you have to really love it, because the day to day responsibilities of running a company are challenging. I always try to remind myself of the excitement I had for dancing and production when I was a kid to stay inspired.

In order to succeed, you need to have a great team in place. My company dancers all have different strengths and I believe in a collaborative process. I want the dancers I work with to feel valued and that their creative input matters.

Working in the genre of international dance styles (we perform a lot of Middle Eastern Dance – Raqs Sharqi aka bellydance, Latin styles like Samba, Salsa, and Cha Cha, Bollywood, Iranian, Romani, Flamenco, Greek) there is a lot of research that goes into our productions. I work with master choreographers and teachers in those styles to set works on the company and provide training. It is so wonderful when we perform for a client and everyone is singing along and cheering while we dance! Our clients can tell we put a lot of effort into representing their culture and are so appreciative of the quality of our work. People want authenticity in dance and they want high quality productions. I take pride in applying what I learned in my years in concert ballet/modern production and implementing that same polish to the international dance shows I produce.

I am taking the company to Egypt in the end of November for a study abroad. It is so important for dancers to understand the history of what they’re performing and to study straight from the source. We were hired to perform Thriller for a Halloween event this year and we had one of the dancers from the original Thriller video come in to teach us the choreography. As a director, it’s important for me to provide these learning opportunities for my dancers.

We aim to set a standard of excellence through training, research and collaboration to create authentic productions that inspire and entertain. Our mission is to uphold the legacies of cultural dance and use our innovative creativity to carry these traditions into the future.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I’m a beach girl; I grew up in Pennsylvania so going to the beach always seems like a vacation to me! My favorite spot is Big Dume…the hike down there is incredible.

I’m all about beautiful views…LA is such a gorgeous city. The rotating bar in the Westin downtown has amazing views; I always take out of towners there for a drink and soak in the beauty of downtown LA at night. Yamashiro, the sushi restaurant tucked into the Hollywood Hills near the Magic Castle has great sushi and again, incredible views! Mama’s Shelter and Tommy’s have great rooftop bars and usually good music for dancing.

Food wise I love Surawon on Olympic….their banchan is great. Hamburger Mary’s on Santa Monica for drag brunch is a super fun time and they have great vegan/gluten free options. The sushi chefs at Kazoku on Hollywood in Thai town are excellent and the staff is so friendly.

Seeing a show at the Pantages or Dolby Theatre is pretty epic. I just saw Moulin Rouge when the National Tour was here and it was everything! I was inspired to add can can to my company’s repertoire from that show. And of course, seeing Sahlala Dancers perform! We’re at Premier Restaurant in Studio City every Saturday at 10pm. They have some of the best seafood in the city there.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Jillina Carlano founded the Sahlala Dancers. She is the one who approached me in taking over the company. I consulted a lot of different people in my life; my mom (who just wanted me to be happy) my mentor Gigi Hartman, who was my dance teacher since I was 3, told me I definitely had the skill set to direct and manage a company. My friends pointed that it would be a step forward for me to have creative control in the projects I selected.

Website: sahlaladancers.com

Instagram: @jilldance4life @sahlaladancers

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCTHIyDCatq4OH86bzhMnXEQ

Image Credits
Chloe Sherman Pepe Aleks Malczewski Barry Alexander