Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Toni Mason. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alright, Toni thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?

I call myself the Mary Poppins of Preschool Dance. I am full of energy and love teaching little dancers.

How did I get started? Well, this has all been a childhood dream. I remember being 6 years old, riding down Pendleton Street here in Memphis seeing slippers on a churchyard sign. My eyes grew big when I saw those slippers. Keep in mind, I had never seen a ballerina nor a ballet. But I was glued to those slippers. I asked my mom could I take classes and she replied, “No, Toni, I don’t have the money.” I didn’t say a word. I sat in the back seat of that blue Ford four-door car in silence.

I had finally taken my first ballet class at 23. Yep, I said 23. My first class was with 4 & 5 years olds. I’m sure you’re thinking… WHAT!!!!!!!! I didn’t care. All I wanted, were slippers and to take a class. This was the setup. A year later, after my last contract ended in Information Technology, I entered back to school to major in Dance in 2010. I was 25 at this time taking class with students who had danced longer, and who had more formal training. I was determined.

Towards the end of the program, I left due to personal reasons in 2012, and couldn’t complete the degree. A scholarship had opened two years later and I came back to complete 9 hours. I literally graduated with my dance degree at 30. My dance professors fought very hard for me, and not only that, God was making sure that the talent he had given me was going to play out just as he said it would.

I’ve been in business since 2010. I began as a preschool onsite ballet and movement program for ages 3-5. From there, I went into the studio space in 2012. I taught in a shared space of a Sunday School Room from 2012-to 2016, I moved into my very first studio space in 2016, inside the Hickory Ridge Mall. In 2019, I moved the studio to Cordova and opened a storefront studio space.

Today, I’ve had the honor and privilege’ of teaching hundreds of little dancers, not only from my studio but from City Schools, Private Schools, daycares, and local studios as well. My reach has been more than I could have imagined and it keeps getting better. Not only am I a studio owner, and teacher, but I am a dancer too.

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

I teach little ballerinas every day. I get to create an experience for my students and come alive in class. I specialize in working with preschool-aged students.

I started out as a mobile preschool program for daycares and preschools in 2010 and then moved into a more formal dance setting as a studio in 2o12.

As simple as it may sound, I am most proud of not giving up. It was easy to get defeated and throw in the towel on this journey. Our minds tell us, by this time we should have arrived, but that’s wrong. You really never arrive until life has ended. As long as there is breath, the journey continues.

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

Society can support artist/creatives/thriving creative ecosystem by getting involved whether that is paying for a ticket for a show and/or getting lessons. Creatives spend so many hours perfecting their craft. studying, going to conferences, and training and the short lived moments that society sees, it’s almost as if we are taken for granted. That 1-2 minute piece we put on stage may have been 500 hours in the studio. Our talents deserve the space and platform just as a Dentist, Lawyer or Scientist. I BELIEVE that there is a Creative inside of everyone whether you consider it as a hobby or not. The arts brings out creativity that sparks conversations and that also builds relationships.

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

I began growing my program on Facebook by posting pictures and running Ads. It was rather basic at that time, but it worked to put my studio in front of an audience. If you are just building a platform, remember to keep it simple and post your content. I always tell myself, “There is someone looking for you.” as a reminder to keep posting. As you post and build your audience, other like minded people will also began to reach out to collaborate or interview. You never know when that IT moment will happen.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://linktr.ee/the.mstoni
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dazzle_babyballerinacertified/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dazzlecreativedance