We recently connected with Kayla Mutterer and have shared our conversation below.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
Hello all you beautiful humans, for those of you who do not know me, my name is Kayla Mutterer. I grew up in Charlotte, North Carolina. This is where I began my dance training at the age of two. I began my dance training at Charlotte School of Ballet and then later at Piedmont School of Music and Dance, I trained intensively in their young dancer and pre-professional track programs. I also trained at multiple summer dance intensives such as, The Juilliard School in 2012, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago in 2013 and 2015, The Bolshoi Ballet Academy in 2013, The Alonzo King LINES Ballet in 2014, Bodytraffic in 2022, Orsolina 28 Nunes/Flock Creation Program in 2022 and 2023, and Flock Winter Intensive 2023. Upon graduating in 2015, I went on to study at Dominican University of California with the Alonzo King LINES Ballet BFA Program under Presidential Scholarship. During this time I had the amazing opportunity to travel with Juntos Collective, non-profit organization that uses dance to develop leadership and collaboration building in vulnerable communities. I was blessed to be able to travel to Nicaragua where we held free dance workshops and performances in orphanages, migrant safe houses, public hospitals, retirement homes, homeless shelters, and more. In 2017, I relocated to Southern California and started working as a dancer for GEOMETRY Contemporary Dance Company under the direction of Mackenzie Martin. I performed in the production of the Nutcracker as a guest artist in 2018 with Richter Academy of Classical Dance and performed in the Capezio ACE awards in New York City. I started working for Universal Studios Hollywood as a Beauxbaton dancer in 2019 along with performing in Disney’s D23 Expo in Anaheim for Disney and had the privilege to participate in the Utah Dance Film Festival 2019, 24-hour Film Festival I have worked for Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines as a dancer, along with being a company dancer with Vixens under the direction of David Slaney. My most recent works have been with Nickerson Rossi Dance Company under the direction of Michael Nickerson-Rossi, Insomniac Events, and other Entertainment Companies. I also teach at various dance studios such as Millennium Dance Complex of Orange County and take part in various dance projects. Building on one of my goals I have been working on is tapping more into the commercial /print industry. I just signed with Naturally Fit Agency for commercial/dance work and I am so thrilled to expand my knowledge and dive deeper into this area!
I love being able to experience new challenges and pick up new skillsets. Although I have a consistent paying dance job I also love the excitement of freelance work that I get to experience, where you have to quickly adapt and learn from your environments.
Although I am constantly learning and growing not only as an artist but as a human, I am truly proud of myself looking back at how far I have come since 2017. I have so many more dreams and goals I want to experience and achieve but any victory big or small is a victory in itself and will take you further in life each time.
We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.
At a very young age my parents instilled in me that, “if there’s a will there’s a way”. My whole life my parents always supported my goals and dreams, however were unable to assist me financially. Determined to not let finances stand in the way of my dreams, I pursued any viable options that would help me continue to progress in the career I so deeply love. With each obstacle I faced throughout the years I knew there was a way to overcome each one. I have been blessed with the opportunities to attend The Juilliard School, Hubbard Street, The Bolshoi Ballet, The Alonzo King Lines Ballet, Bodytraffic, Orsolina 28, and Flock Winter Intensive.
Although it has never been easy financially to pursue my dreams, I am very grateful that I had amazing parents that never left my side and always supported me along the way. I believe my parents played a huge role in my work ethic and who I am as a human today. This financial obstacle I have faced my whole life has truly shaped who I am as a person and has really made me appreciate all that life has to offer.
The studio I primarily grew up dancing at was not financially obtainable for my parents to take me, however, this did not stop me. I started cleaning the dance studio to help pay for my dance tuition, I did this until I had graduated high school. Through ambition and hard work I was able to move across the country to pursue my dance career to even higher levels. I knew that even at 15 years old when I attended my first summer dance intensive, that I would have to go above and beyond to make this a reality. I did this in many ways; applying and receiving scholarships, raising money on my own, selling my hand painted pointe shoes I had collected over the years (I would spend hours hand painting each one and selling them to earn money to be able to attend each of my intensives.)
I attended the Alonzo King LINES Ballet BFA program back in 2015 and wrote letters seeking out financial aid. I knew that the dance program did not offer financial aid at the time but after my many pursuits I was given a presidential scholarship. I only attended two years at this school but during this time I worked three jobs in order to support myself through school, while also making the dean’s list both years.
After my sophomore year I made a difficult decision to leave college to pursue other avenues in dance. In 2017 I relocated to Southern California and started from scratch. I left college with no set plans in Southern California and had to put dance on hold while I worked three to four jobs in order to make ends meet. It was one of the most challenging and difficult few years I had to experience, not being able to do the one thing I loved, but I knew it would pay off in the end. I remember walking to all of my jobs when I first relocated to Southern California. Waking up at 3am every morning to walk to my Starbucks job, back home for a quick snack and then off to my next jobs, then returning home and starting my online schooling I had started through Starbucks with Arizona State University. Juggling so many jobs, working about fifteen hours a day everyday just to make ends meet with no end in sight was mentally and physically challenging. I set goals for myself along the way and with each triumph came so much gratitude. In 2018 I bought my very first car along with getting my very first paying dance job. Soon after the stars started to align, although I started the see the light at the end of the tunnel does not mean I still did not have obstacles to overcome. With great persistence and determination I now get the privilege to say I am working in the dance industry pursuing my many dreams!
For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?
Being an artist is a true gift in itself. Although it can come with so many hardships the final product is the most beautiful and the most rewarding thing. It’s truly magical sharing this passion with other artist, seeing their gifts from a different perspective and having that influence you as a human and artist.
As an artist living in the human experience I seek to expand my palate in various ways to help nurture, grow and inspire the artist and human I strive to be. This constant shift and movement always helps me to discover and rediscover myself as an artist.
Dance continues to fill my heart, but the beautiful thing about art forms like this is that it can create an escape for humans. Art is a way for humans to get lost, to find themselves again, to feel something. Dance is moving and it moves others. Being able to connect and communicate without words is a raw and magical thing.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kaylamutterer/
- Other: TIKTOK: https://www.tiktok.com/@kaylamutterer
Image Credits
going left to right: 1) Randall Hobbet IG: @rdhobbet 2)Randall Hobbet IG: @rdhobbet 3)Randall Hobbet IG: @rdhobbet 4) Andrea Domjan IG: @andrea_domjan_photography 5) Michelle Taylor Jones IG: @michelletaylorportraits 6) Cat Ford-Coates IG: @atelierunforgettable 7) Hector IG: @myharrypottercorner 8)Randall Hobbet IG: @rdhobbet