Biography
Oh hi! I’m Jenne, and I’m a professional tap dancer, musician, writer and teacher from Jacksonville, FL. I have been tap dancing for over 35 years, and I’ve been a dance teacher for nearly 20 years. I am the Artistic Director and choreographer of two professional tap dance companies: Noise Complaint – Tap Dance Theatre and Rhythm Theory Tap Ensemble, currently performing across the US. I also recently became the co-owner and co-director of Arts on the Edge Dance Studio after teaching there for over 11 years. I currently also teach dance for two other studios in the Northeast Florida region as well as Florida School of the Arts, a 2-year arts college in Palatka, FL.
Additionally, I perform as a dancer/back-up singer for the internationally acclaimed band, The Crüxshadows, which tours across Europe, the Caribbean and North America. Also, from 2014-2018 I was a member of the #Taplife Tap Dance Company based in New York City.
Since 2020, I have started to branch out as a tap dance educator by teaching in the virtual realm. I have a youtube page where I upload free tap dance tutorials several times a week, featuring all technique levels and styles. I also post tap dance mini-tutorials on my Instagram, Facebook and TikTok pages as well, where dancers from around the world can learn new exercises and techniques anytime they want.
In addition to being a dancer, I am also a singer/songwriter, having recently produced my own original music as well as parodies of popular songs. I perform regularly around the southeast as a solo artist and part of two different bands as well. My original music and my parody covers can be found on all streaming platforms. One of my dreams is to see choreographers use my music for performances and competitions.
I studied music for my B.A.. and also earned two Master’s degrees in education, all at Florida State University.
Why is Sprung Flooring important to you?
Sprung flooring is more important to me than I ever could have imagined. I am a professional tap dancer and teacher, so I am tap dancing more than 20 hours per week most weeks of the year. I also am performing at least 3 shows every month (sometimes as many as 12 shows in a month) all around the US. As a 39 year old professional, it is so important to me to keep myself as healthy and injury-free as possible in order to make sure I can keep performing at this level as long as possible. Sprung flooring has allowed me to keep performing and teaching without pain in my knees, and it has even allowed me to dance while recovering from knee injuries because it lowered the impact significantly. I am forever grateful to have found sprung floors, and I can’t imagine dancing without them ever again.
Why do you love O'Mara Sprung Floors?
I love so many things about O’Mara Sprung Floors, from the increased longevity they bring to my career to the portability of being able to have a tap floor with me wherever I go. I also love the company itself. They really care about the people who dance on their product and how it affects our lives. They are also really supportive of the dance community in general.
Career Highlights
Some of my favorite career highlights include:
-Performing with The Cruxshadows at Amphi Festival in Cologne, Germany
-Performing with #Taplife in New York as a guest performer in a theatre that happened to be on Columbia University campus, where my dad went to college
-Tap Dancing as the Mad Hatter in a professional ballet production of Alice in Wonderland
-Having two weddings where the ceremony was an actual full length tap dance show (one of them was on a Star Trek set!)
-Performing on The Gothic Cruise with The Cruxshadows
-Getting to perform in a Rocky Horror Picture Show shadowcast with Barry Bostwick himself!