We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Christopher Layton. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Christopher below.

Christopher , appreciate you joining us today. What were some of the most unexpected problems you’ve faced in your career and how did you resolve those issues?

I would say the biggest unexpected challenge that I’m currently facing right as a growing artist and wanting to take it my craft more seriously as a professional is understanding the amount of work that actually comes it. I never want to stop learning and growing. I am a person that dreams really big and I set big goals for myself. But, with those big goals, there are smaller goals that are intertwined within them. With Dance specifically, when learning a multitude of styles, there are a lot of physical expectations that I have on my body. And there are certain things that I am not able to do with my body just yet. As a perfectionist, you can see how that can be frustrating. Something that I’m currently working through now to overcome this perfectionist mindset is learning to treat my process with grace.

I recently did an artist incubation program called H.A.T.CH (Holistic Approach to Transformative Choreography) In collaboration with Dayton Contemporary Dance Company (DCDC) and guest choreographer Sidra Bell at the Ohio State University. During the day, company members of DCDC would take us through an hour and a half workshop in styles primarily dealing with Contemporary, Modern, or Jazz. I am primarily a hip-hop dancer and I have limited training in these more classical styles that require a good amount of flexibility and body mobility. Going through these classes each morning for the past week, honestly made me feel insecure and upset about how limited my range of motion was. It frustrated me to know that I’m not at the level of flexibility of where I wanted to be. However, in conjunction with doing Sidra’s improvisational workshop (M.O.D.U.L.E) in the afternoons quickly gave me a new perspective over how I treat my process with my art and with my body. The workshop centers around non-performative improvisation providing a laboratory for free range movement and letting the story form on its own terms. Sidra provided amazing instruction throughout the warm-up process and gave us very conversational facilitation to invite us to sync into our bodies and trust the process.

Through the conversations that I’ve had with Sidra, and others within the program, I learned two things. 1. Trust your own personal process. 2. Learn how to let things be. Rome wasn’t built a day. Things take time. Though I am not at the level of flexibility where I want to be, I now have the tools to continue to grow and become the dancer that I envision myself being. Until then, I will continue to achieve my smaller goals, that in time, will help me reach my big goals.

Christopher , love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

My name is Christopher Anthony Layton. I am 26 years old. I will be 27 on August 15 of 2024. I promote myself as a Dancer/Choreographer/Creative Director, However, I also sing an act as well. The funny thing is I started off primarily as an actor. I’ve been acting since my very first year in middle school in the sixth grade, and Dance slowly started integrated itself into my life more around my sophomore year of high school. I’ve always loved movement and the ability to express myself through dance. But, I never took it seriously until I got into high school. I joined nonprofit arts organizations around my city, I danced in college, and I was able to get a good taste of what it’s like to perform professionally and I have never stopped since then. The styles I primarily hone in on are styles under the umbrella of Hip-Hop (House, Krump, and Hip-Hop Freestyle) I also Vogue, I do Street Jazz, and Contemporary.

Something future clients and followers can expect from me is a great deal of storytelling. I aspire to reap all the benefits and opportunities that the dance industry has to offer. I plan to have my hands in commercial Dance, doing concert company work, and to be an educator in the world of academia. In more recent years, my greatest achievements deal with my community involvement and being recognized for the work that I do where I lived. I am a two-time grant recipient of the Greater Columbus Arts Council, I am a recent inductee of the Lincoln theater’s ‘Expand Your Horizons’ Artist Incubation Program 2024 cohort, and recent fellow of the H.A.T.CH (Holistic Approach to Transformative Choreography) incubation program at The Ohio State University curated by Department of Dance faculty Chair Charles O. Anderson with guest artist of Dayton Contemporary Dance Company and guest Facilitator/Choreographer Sidra Bell.

Something else I want future followers and clients to understand about my brand is that I am a growing artist that is still cultivating his own voice. So, as I continue to produce content and works across multiple disciplines include dance, just know that it is a continuation of how I want to see myself in the world and how I want to tell stories of my community and those share community with.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

There are multiple things that are driving me in my creative journey. The main thing, though it may have a hint of vanity attached to it, is that I want the world to see me. I want the world to see me and the communities that I represent, I want people to see where I come from. I want to utilize my craft to tell the stories of the people that I meet and use my growing platform as a way to tell stories of people who may feel voiceless.

Dance is a universal language that everyone can speak. Dance is at the heart of every culture. It’s meant to bring the community together. In this day and age, with the rising use of social media and Dance becoming a very superficial art form, I believe in someways we’ve lost that communal energy that invites all people in to just move their bodies and express themselves. I want to help bridge the gap through my content and works. I want to bring a little bit of that communal energy back into the space the best way I can.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

At the beginning of 2024, I wanted to give up on Dance. Coming to the understanding of what was expected of me as I grew to take this art form more seriously, I got very overwhelmed by the amount of pressure that I was putting on myself and my body. So, for 2 to 3 months I stopped. I stopped performing. I went to class very rarely, and I focused on other things. But there was a burning fire in my heart that did not want me to quit completely. I just needed time to process and heal. I leaned upon my loved ones and talked to them. Quite honestly, I had to rebuild some relationships that I took for granted, and I had to let go of others that were no longer serving me in my process of growth. With some patience, love, and lots of self-care, I’m getting back into the swing of things and rediscovering the reason why I love it of much.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @cj.layton_