Leah Silva
A native of Southern California, Leah Silva is a sought out International Instructor, Award-Winning Choreographer, Artistic Director, Producer, and Critically Acclaimed Performer.
Leah Silva has been featured in publications like Dance Teacher Magazine and has achieved notable milestones, including being the first tap dancer invited as an Artist-In-Residence at Zion National Park. Her accomplishments span choreographing for the Television Academy’s Emmy Awards Governor Balls, performing for Mattel Toys, and working with American Idol finalists. She was also the pre-show entertainment for Broadway’s touring hit, 42ND Street, at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts, and has created choreography for Nestlé’s international dance campaign.
Through her impactful and unique teaching approach, Leah is recognized for training and mentoring some of the most promising and up and coming young tap dance artists. Leah’s students have been highly recognized internationally and have achieved prestigious recognition, including winning YoungArts and the Music Center’s Spotlight.
Her award-winning choreography has been showcased at prestigious events and film festivals. Additionally, her work was featured live on PBS during the Music Center’s Holiday Celebration at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion.
Leah is the Founder and Artistic Director of Reverb Tap Company, known for its innovative dance-film productions, which have garnered the company’s achievement in becoming an Official Selection at the Newport Beach Film Festival. She is also the Founder and Director of the international Orange County Tap Festival.
Mary Thomas
Mary Thomas is an accomplished tap dancer from Southern California and the Associate Co-Director of Reverb Tap Company. She started as a member of Reverb in 2016 and has performed at dance festivals and special events around the country, including the 2018 Emmy Awards Governors Balls.
Mary is passionate about choreographing and in 2019 was awarded the Rhapsody in Taps’ Ted Gatto Memorial Tap Legacy Scholarship. Highlights include choreographing for the Huntington Beach High School Academy for the Performing Arts and having her choreography featured in “The Space Between” concert at the Old Town Temecula Theater in 2023.
She also enjoys teaching students of all ages and levels in Southern California and recently taught tap at Golden West College. Mary is honored to teach and perform at festivals and workshops, including the OC Tap Festival for six years running. Her goal as a teacher is to instill technique, musicality, artistry, and most importantly, a love of the dance in all her students.
Mary has always been encouraged in her art by Christy Hernandez, Linda Sohl-Ellison, and Leah Silva, and she considers herself very blessed to be mentored by these three phenomenal women and tap dancers. Mary graduated summa cum laude from Cal State Long Beach in 2023 with her Bachelor of Science in Business Administration – Accounting.
Tasha Lawson
Tasha Lawson is an established International dance artist with 25 plus years as a vibrant and successful visionary spanning festival producer, educator, choreographer, artistic director and performer.
Ms. Lawson is the founder, producer and artistic director of Calgary’s Tri-Tone Rhythm Ensemble and Rhythm, Body and Soul Tap Festival, with a focus on preserving and promoting tap dance and percussive arts through education and presentation.
Ms. Lawson, is recognized for developing well rounded dancers, providing the foundation needed to pursue a professional career. Students have been accepted into prestigious schools including Jacob’s Pillow in Massechusettes and Escola Luthier in Barcelona, and performed with acclaimed companies such as STOMP and Dorrance Dance.
Passionate about education, Miss Lawson developed Tri-Tone Teacher Training Program’s in Rhythm Tap and Pre-School Creative Dance, sharing methodologies that integrate technique, musicality, artistry and history while inspiring creativity and self discipline in students.
Tasha toured the US and Japan in 2010-2011, as Assistant Artistic Director of Cirque Du Soleil’s, KOOZA, maintaining show quality and artist integration. She has delivered body percussion workshops for the Cirque casts in Las Vegas, and for the International Body Music Festival’s in San Francisco and Paris.
From 2002-2008, Tasha performed and toured with Tapestry Dance Company in Austin, Texas, under the direction of Acia Gray. During this time, Tasha also served as Artistic Director of Tapestry’s apprentice company, Visions In Rhythm, directing the creation of six full-length concert presentations.
Tasha has guested at numerous International Festivals in North America, South America and Europe. She was on faculty at Jacobs Pillow for its inaugural Professional Tap program and has been artist is residence for Capilano University, University of Texas, Decidedly Jazz Dancework’s PTP Program, Harbour Dance Center, Vancouver’s, ITP Program. She will be teaching for The University of Calgary
Tasha Graduated with advanced standing in Dance Teacher Training and Dance Performance, from Grant MacEwan University, with a focus on pedagogy in modern, jazz and classical ballet and pre-school creative dance. She later attended the Modern Dance Program at Simon Fraser, then re-located to New York, immersing in rhythm tap and music studies.
In 2022, Tasha premiered Lawson Percussive Dance Arts, a multi-form dance and live music company comprised of Tri-Tone Ensemble Alumni, which premiered at the National Music Center, supported in part by the Calgary Arts Development Authority,
Grateful for the many opportunities afforded to her, she strives to share her experiences and give back to community. Tasha is currently in her 10th Season as AD with the Tri-Tone Rhythm Ensemble, sits on the Board of Directors for the Dianne Walker Legacy Foundation, and will be teaching at the University of Calgary in the Spring of 2024.
Jeffrey Dawson
Jeffrey Dawson is a tap dancer from Vancouver, BC. An alumnus of the Vancouver Tap Dance Society’s youth company TapCo, he has performed on both the local and the international stage. In 2019, he performed in the award-winning show “The Souls of Our Feet” with Tapestry Dance Company in Austin; with Jason Janas’s Co.MMIT at the Chicago Human Rhythm Project; and in Danny Nielsen’s production “On Foot” in Vancouver. Jeffrey is also an alumnus of the 2019 Tap Program at Jacob’s Pillow, and as part of the program was given the opportunity to present his own choreography in a show at the prestigious Ted Shawn Theatre. Jeffrey was commissioned to create a 35-minute set of choreography for the Vancouver Tap Dance Society’s show “Let Us Dance” in the summer of 2021, and was commissioned by the Vancouver Tap Dance Society to create another original work in the summer of 2022. He was invited to be the Artist-in-Residence at the 2023 OC Tap Festival, and premiered an original 25-minute work at the festival in July of 2023. Over the past two years Jeffrey has also established himself within the Vancouver jazz community, bandleading at prominent jazz venues such as Tyrant Studios, 2nd Floor Gastown, and Frankie’s Jazz Club. Most recently, he was invited to be a guest performer with Dorrance Dance for their performance of “SOUNDSpace” in Vancouver in April of 2024.
Connor Denison
Connor Denison is an award-winning tap dancer, choreographer and teacher and has had the honor to teach and perform at a multitude of studios, workshops, and festivals across Canada as faculty, guest artist, and choreographer. Growing up as a company member of Calgary’s Tri-Tone Rhythm Ensemble he has had the opportunity to study the history of Tap Dance, learn repertoire of the masters, as well as participate in the development of new contemporary works under the artistic direction of Tasha Lawson. Connor is also a graduate of the Tri-Tone teacher training program.
Highlighted performance credits include touring BC with the cast of “Love.Be.Best.Free” (Danny Nielsen), dancing as a lead in “Caravan” (Derick Grant and Tasha Lawson) and performing in “The Cholly Project” in Vancouver (Travis Knights). Recently Connor was featured in Danny Nielsen’s full-length production “On Foot,” premiering in the fall of 2019. In the fall of 2020 Connor was an understudy in Lisa Latouche’s piece “Fool’s Gold” presented by Fall For Dance and in 2022 he was hired as a lead dancer in Latouche’s production “Phonetically Speaking.”
In the spring of 2019 Connor began producing his own work entitled “Fourteen”. Audiences were later captivated in the summer of 2020 and 2021 in Calgary when Connor was given the opportunity to extend the piece into a half hour set presented by Springboard, receiving rave reviews from industry professionals. Connor is currently developing the set into his first full length show.
Jordyn Lemire
Jordyn Lemire, a talented tap dancer from Calgary, AB, has made significant strides in her artistic career. She’s performed and studied with Leah Silva’s Reverb Tap Company, Tasha Lawson’s Tri-Tone Rhythm Ensemble, and the Vancouver Tap Dance Society. In 2022, she received the Grace Inglis Memorial scholarship from West Coast Tap and was accepted into the virtual Jacob’s Pillow’s Tap Dance program. This past year, she participated in Decidedly Jazz Danceworks’ Creative Arts residency program. Here, she choreographed and produced her first tap dance concert ‘Paying the Dues’ that was presented in Vancouver and Calgary. During this time, Jordyn founded the Coastside Taphouse Society to provide more opportunities for dancers in the future. Jordyn has performed in various concerts around North America, and recently performed alongside Tasha Lawson, Max Pollak, and Bryan Dyer at the International Body Music Festival in Athens, Greece.
Emma Ritchie
Emma Ritchie is a professional rhythm tap dance artist, passionate educator and award winning choreographer. Her training extends into a multiple of disciples including, ballet, jazz, modern, contemporary, and hip hop. In 2014, Emma successfully auditioned for the Tri-Tone Rhythm Ensemble, where she spent 8 years deepening her studies in rhythm, history, music, composition and improvisation, under direction of Tasha Lawson. With the ensemble, Emma has trained and performed both locally and abroad including, the Vancouver International Tap Festival, Third Coast Rhythm Project, New York City Tap Festival, Gabriola On Tap, Rhythm Body and Soul Tap Festival, Alberta Feets Festival, and at the Dianne Walker Experience, among others.
In addition, Emma is a graduate of the Luthier School of Music and Dance’s Professional Training Program for Tap Dancers, located in Barcelona, Spain.
Upon returning to Calgary, Emma has been actively educating and choreographing throughout Alberta. Professional performance credits include, “Play It Forward” and site specific work at the National Music Center with Lawson Percussive Dance Arts, under the direction of Tasha Lawson, “Phonetically Speaking”, with Lisa LaTouche’s, TapPhonics, and “Recapitulation” with Naranja Dance Project (Spain).
Emma’s professional choreography has been presented by Spring Board Dance at Container Park, Dance YYC and at the National Music Center for International Tap Day.
Emma has studied pedagogy and methodologies in the Tri-Tone Teacher Training program and is currently on faculty with the Rhythm Ensemble in Calgary and works closely with Tasha, mentoring young dancers in the development of the Tri-Tone sister company in Red Deer., Emma is dedicated to her craft, and excited to share her knowledge with aspiring young dancers, while continuing to expand and refine her personal artistry.