Showtimes are at 7:30p & 9:30p for this performance.
(Doors open at 5pm for dinner/Seating begins at 6:15p for the first show & 9:00p for the second show)
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Jason Janas is an artist and musical technician dedicated to honoring the great American art form of tap dance. Regarded as one of the hardest working tap dancers of his generation, Jason credits his work ethic to his New Jersey roots and the mentors that guided him along the way.
He began his tap dance instruction under Ms. Deborah Mitchell and was the first charter member of the New Jersey Tap Ensemble. It was there that he found a love for the dance and his insatiable quest to study and master the art form. His journey led him south where he became a member of the North Carolina Youth Tap Ensemble under the direction of Gene Medler. From there, he was cast in his first professional role as member of Tapestry Dance Company in Austin, Texas, under the direction of Acia Gray, and spent five years as a principal dancer.
The exposure Jason received led to an invitation from the incomparable Derick Grant to join the cast of his show, “Imagine Tap!”.The show ran for six weeks in Chicago and changed his life. Other show credits include “Souls of our Feet” with Tapestry Dance Company, “Wonderland” with Sara Savelli and Ayodele Casel, and as a co-choreographer and featured artist in “Tap Stars” European Tour with Rasta Thomas.
Jason finds great joy in passing along his experience and teachings to the next generation and has held faculty positions at tap festivals and workshops in New Jersey, New York, Los Angeles, Boston, Chicago, Charlotte, Austin, Detroit, San Antonio, Vancouver, Zurich, Curitiba (Brazil), Moscow, London, Paris, Odessa (Ukraine), Tokyo, Barcelona, and Germany. Jason currently resides in the Metro Detroit area with his wife and daughter. He is a faculty member for Radix Dance and co-owner with his wife, Bianca, of The Foundation House dance studio, and founder/producer of Hoofin’ Ground tap festival, and W.O.R.K., an advanced tap intensive.
He is dedicated to enhancing and building the tap dance community in Detroit and submersing himself into the city’s deep Jazz and tap dance roots. He is proud and thankful to partner with historic Cliff Bell’s for his introduction to the Detroit jazz scene.
