Melissa Schade | Choreographer
A gifted, versatile and dynamic choreographer, it is impossible to put Melissa Schade in any conventional boxes. Melissa’s range is wide-reaching and expansive, both in terms of style, as well as technique. Having started dancing at the age of three, under the tutelage of her mother (a respected classical ballet teacher in her own right), Melissa’s vast and varied dance background informs her choreography, which runs the gamut from nuanced, lyrical and lovely, to bold, brash and high energy, not to mention her signature “controlled chaos” phrasing, and rock-n-roll vibes.
Authentic, uninhibited and extraordinarily expressed, Melissa choreographs for the masses, regardless of age, size, shape, color, gender or ability. Among her lengthy list of punch-packing credits, Melissa choreographed a Covergirl commercial featuring 70-year old model Maye Musk; a music video for Benjamin Booker, starring 8-year old African American dance protégé, Artyon Celestine; and a dance video for queer artist, “Big Dipper” and his “Fat Boyz” gang, about loving yourself and your body, regardless of how big your belly is.
Her gamut-running style is informed by her love of rock-n-roll, which made it all the more heart-warming for Melissa to collaborate with Arcade Fire, and to perform her own choreography alongside them at LA’s Forum as part of their Infinite Content tour.
A gifted performer blessed with pitch-perfect comedic timing, Schade has lent her choreography talents to a handful of comedic projects, including the television series “This is Not Happening” for Comedy Central; the infamous “Janky Christmas Show,” starring John C. Reilly; and “Hipster Sweat Spot,” an original musical about Eastside hipsters slaving away at a pop-up shop.
Whether she’s crafting pieces for musicians, dancers, fashionistas or comedians, be it on stage or screen, for series, commercials, feature films or live performances, Melissa Schade continues to tackle it all. See also Twin Shadow,Vice, Diplo, Vivienne Westwood, Budweiser, Fiat, and A-trak for a shortlist of her favorite projects.
Melissa Schade | Teacher
Having started dancing at the age of three, under the tutelage of her mother (a respected classical ballet teacher in her own right), and taught her first class at fifteen, Melissa Schade was essentially born and raised inside the belly of the dance world. This immersive upbringing gifted Melissa a 360-degree perspective into the dancer’s mind, body and path – an experiential and empathetic lens that allows her teaching style to thrive in a variety of different environments and disciplines.
Melissa has taught contemporary, modern, jazz, and ballet all over the United States, to students whose skill levels range from beginner to professional. She is currently on faculty at Beverly Hills’ renowned Harvard-Westlake Middle School, where she teaches Intro to Contemporary Dance, and choreographs the school’s annual musical. Melissa is also one of the most popular teachers on staff at Ryan Heffington’s Sweat Spot dance studio in Silver Lake, where her students double as veritable devotees of her rollicking Intermediate Contemporary Jazz classes. Some of her favorite teaching opportunities that continue to inform her ever-evolving oeuvre include stints at the Heidi Deckler Dance Theater (Duck Truck Residency), The Oakwood School, and The LA Contemporary Dance Company Summer Intensive.
