Today we’d like to introduce you to Bridgette Borzillo.
Hi Bridgette, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
My journey started in the sports world. I played softball (ages 5-23), basketball (ages 9-13), soccer (ages 9-18) and field hockey (ages 13-18) and did not really have time for dance and other activities. So when I entered High School, I took dance as an elective and joined the Black Student Union (our school step and hip hop team) and dance company. But it wasn’t until I saw a Brittney Spears Concert when I really said to myself, “that’s it…. that’s what I want to do for the rest of my life. Choreograph and put on memorable and exciting shows.” And here we are. Due to me needing to play Softball in College, my dad and I laid out a plan to start sending recruitment letters to every Division 1 school that had both a softball and dance program. I was lucky enough to start my career at San Diego State University where I started on the Softball team and really began my Ballet and Modern Dance training. Having a tough year with injuries and illness, the coach and I decided to part ways and I flew over to Arizona State University, and walked onto the Softball team and entered the Dance program. Through these experiences, I learned discipline, hard work, never give up attitude, and organization skills. These skills have been an essential part of dance career. I danced in the valley for a few years with Arthur Murray, 32 Flavors Dance Company, Scorpius Dance Theatre and Dulce Dance Company before finally pulling the trigger on my own dance theatre company, CaZo Dance Theatre.
We have been so fortunate to work with so many artists and studios in the valley and we wouldn’t be what we are today without Mesa Arts Center allowing us to be an Education Resident. That allowed us to start teaching our passion to the community and performing in site specific works and some discounted theatre space. When the Pandemic Hit, we were unable to do what we loved most… Dance. A friend of mine, Lisa Juliet with Ballet Fusion Fitness, was allowing us to use their studio for the time we were without a home and we are so grateful. Juliet decided it was time to downsize and move locations and she asked if we wanted to take over their lease. We have been excited to have opened our doors during a Pandemic, but having a space for healing and growth is what everyone needs right now and we are happy to offer a space to allow that healing to begin.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It definitely has not been a smooth road. Some people may not know that as a dancer, you can be constantly scrutinized about the way you look, dance, choreograph, etc. and that’s been tough. I have learned that everyone is entitled to their opinion and you have the choice to let their words/opinions to either fuel you to push forward and prove them wrong, or listen to them and be hard on yourself. Before CaZo, I let a lot of those negative words and feedback become my reality. Now that I have CaZo, I am more confident about my work and the people I work with are so incredibly supportive. I am grateful to have them. When we first started the company, we didn’t have a home. We had to trade services and ask for donated space to allow us to rehearse for shows because we were on a very tight budget. And having the opportunity to be a resident with NueBox in 2016 really opened up a lot of opportunities, including the residency at Mesa Arts Center. We are eternally grateful to Julie Akerly and her team at NueBox for opening those opportunities and allowing us to grow the way we did over those four years.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
CaZo Dance Theatre is a Story-telling Dance Company and our mission is to grow the dance audience in Phoenix by creating work that’s accessible to those who may not have experience in dance. We have created many stories that are universally relatable to allow patrons to sit back, relax, and enjoy the movie like experience. We say experience because when the audience enters the theatre, the show is already starting with a Pre-show, themed around the story presented to allow the audience to get in the mood. For example, when we presented Remember When… An Old Fashioned Love Story. My grandparents met in the 1940’s, so we had 1940 standards being sung live as patrons entered the space. We enjoy touching the lives of our viewers and enjoy the comments we get about the story, music and experience. We also use variety of dance styles to portray our stories including Tap, Jazz, Modern, Contemporary, Partnering, Ballroom and Acting. In our Studio, CaZo Dance Center, we strive to teach our youth that there’s more than competition teams and what dance looks like after high school. We train them to be individual artists, praising their strengths and working on their weaknesses at their own pace. We have a strong emphasis on performance skills and mental health. We want to make sure our dancers are body positive and are constantly wanting to learn more. You can always learn something new every day.
Pricing:
- $50/4-weeks for 1-hour class
- $75/6 Week Ballroom Series
- Live theatre Tickets $17-$45
- 5 Classes for $65 – first one is $5
Contact Info:
- Email: info@cazodance.com
- Website: www.cazodance.com
- Instagram: cazodancetheatre and cazodancecenter
- Facebook: CaZoDco and CaZoDanceCenter
Image Credits
Stephanie Tippi Hart – Dragonfly Studio Photography
Rick Meineke – Lights view Photography
Michael Simon – FourSimon Photograpy
