We recently connected with Jônia Queen and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Jônia , thanks for joining us today. Talk to us about building your team? What was it like? What were some of the key challenges and what was your process like?

When I decided to start Raiz Brazil Dance Company , I started scouting Dancers in my own Samba Class , looking for Samba Dancers that had a minimum performance level to start and Dancers that had the interest in training and growing.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

My stage/professional name is Jônia Queen, I am born and raised in Brazil and I have been dancing since I was a little girl.
In Brazil I’ve trained in Jazz, Ballet, Contemporary and Hip Hop. I was dancing hip hop professionally and decided to come to the US to take classes on Broadway in New York and in Hollywood/ Los Angeles.
After spending a month here taking classes, I returned to Brazil and decided that I wanted to move to the US to pursue performing Dance full time, and I did it without having any support system, just having faith, courage and the will to work hard.
As I moved to Los Angeles, I started dancing Hip Hop in the MaDonna Grimes Dance Theatre Team and later at Culture Shock Los Angeles Hip Hop Crew, and also I started teaching at the Athletic Garage Dance Center.
As I also got dance jobs where I performed Latin Jazz, Contemporary and Hip Hop, I was going to auditions and connected to another Brazilian that was performing in Samba Shows.
She told me that there was a group that needed more Samba Dancers and that’s how Samba Performance entered my life.
Being native from Brazil I always loved Samba but it was a social and fun experience, that I would go to a Samba School or parties and dance Samba for fun. I always admired the Samba Queens and Samba Dancers. ( called Passistas in Brazil ).
Being a Performer and Choreographer, and having the opportunity to start performing Samba here, was a dream come true.
After years performing with different Samba groups in Los Angeles, I had the urge to create my own Brazilian Samba /Brazilian Dances Company. Because I love also creating, choreographing and I had a vision of what my Company would be, and then I created Raiz Brazil Dance Company that had its debut in February 2008 at the Sambala Samba School Carnival Ball in Long Beach.
I recruited our first Samba Dancers in my Samba Class and also in the Samba Dancers Community inviting some fellow Samba Dancers to train with us and be part of our Company.
My vision for Raiz Brazil Dance Company has always been to bring a theatrical approach to Samba and other Brazilian Folk Dances, always making sure to keep the authenticity of the Brazilian Art and Culture. Being a Choreographer I want to create elaborate choreographies, with authentic feel, contagious energy and fun to watch , so we can entertain the audiences in their parties like birthdays, weddings, corporate parties and at the same time have the level of excellence for big stages.
Starting my own Dance Company also challenged me to learn how to execute different sides of the entertainment business. I started Raiz Brazil Dance Company pushed by my creative and performance passion and drive and soon I realized that I had to build a lot of different skills to execute my dream. Skills like people management, negotiation of contracts, contract writing, balancing check books to make the business work, marketing and branding the company vision, customer service , Human Resources etc.
Also as a Native Brazilian that wants to preserve the authenticity and respect for our art and culture and at the same time be commercial and communicate to the different audiences as we entertain, require a lot of training, and I realized that I have to constantly train our Raiz Brazil Samba Dancers , and new Dancers that join the Company, to keep the performance quality and to grow everyone’s skills, since it’s a very particular style of dance. It’s a big challenge also to have same individual level at all times.
What set us apart is our theatricality in our choreographies and that constant weekly training, that promotes the growth of all the Dancers. Having that theatrical approach spoke loud, giving us opportunities for big stages taking us to international tours to Mexico, China, Thailand and Russia. We could also grace the Hollywood Bowl stage at 3 different times as a Company,, performing with Ozomatli Band at the Playboy Jazz Festival and twice with Sergio Mendes and Band during the Hollywood Bowl Summer Concerts. We also have performed in awesome theaters like the Ford Amphitheater, the Pasadena Civic Theater and the UCLA Theater, among other theaters in California and the US .

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

I believe what built our reputation in our market was the quality of our Show, bringing authenticity, great dancing and presentation plus the work ethic that is promoted within Raiz Brazil Dance Company.
For me as a Director and Manager , I also make sure to build and keep a credibility between me and my Dancers and me and my clients.

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

A funny story happened during the 2014 Soccer World Cup, where we trained as a Company to be able to dance a choreography with Samba and House dancing and Soccer ball moves.
We performed that number in a residency at the Hollywood Park Casino during the World Cup and we had a big performance on the stage of the Ford Amphitheater. Once we got there for the tech rehearsal, we realized the stage at that time was inclined, and the soccer ball that each dancer had to handle with the feet moves in the dance, wouldn’t stop in place. As a choreographer and problem solver , I immediately said to everyone deflate their soccer balls, and taking the air out would make possible for us to execute the choreography.
Then I gave the music to the sound person and it worked well during rehearsal. But when the showtime came, something happened and the DJ couldn’t play our music, then we were on the stage waiting and no music. Then the DJ made a decision to play a different music and I just yelled for all the Dancers to hear “let’s dance to this song,” and we did the whole choreographed number with a totally different music from the edited music that we rehearsed. Haha it was very interesting challenging performance. It caused a little stress, but we overcame and instead of giving up on the moment , we still did it and delivered and showed our resilience as a company.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.raizbrazilsambashow.com
• Instagram: Company IG: @raizbrazildancecompany My individual Artist IG: @joniaqueen
• Facebook: @Raiz Brazil Dance Company and @Jônia Queen
• Linkedin: Jônia McClenney
• Twitter: RaizBrazilCo
• Youtube: Jônia Queen @joniadeemc
• Yelp: Raiz Brazil Dance Company

Image Credits

Photographer: Lindsay Rosenberg
Shutter Euphoria Photography