Nothing Slight About Her.

Jazz teacher Jackie Sleight gives students a strong foundation.

It's hard to overlook Jackie Sleight. Though five foot three, she's all determination. When she decided to become a dancer, Sleight changed the direction of her life with the same speed that characterizes her fast-paced, rhythmically intricate choreography. She had been headed for law school at the age of 18 when a friend happened to bring her along to a dance class. "I had never even paid attention to dance before, and had not been involved in the arts at all. I was an academic kid," Sleight says of herself.

She was sold after one class, abandoning all thoughts of law school and leaving her parents wondering what had happened. They negotiated with her, asking, "Well, if you can't be a lawyer, can you work in a law office? Can you be a law clerk? Can you be an errand person, can you be anything in a law office?" Sleight said no; she wanted to be a dancer. Little did she know that along with building an impressive career as a dancer and choreographer, she would become one of the most sought-after jazz teachers in Los Angeles.

She began by taking three ballet classes a day with Sally Whalen at the American School of Dance in Hollywood (founded by Eugene Loring) and immersed herself in jazz classes with Roland Dupree, Joe Tremaine, Joe Bennet, and Rick Morand. Sleight had one goal: to become a professional dancer. She auditioned on three occasions for studio scholarships at Dupree Dance Academy, but was turned down. The last time, she was told that she had no future in dance. Even that didn't stop her.

Tremaine, an L.A.-based master jazz dance teacher, innovator, and choreographer, recalls that as a student, Sleight's determination stood out. "She was not necessarily the best dancer, but a fabulous student because she would work hard to get [the choreography] right and make it look good," he says.

Sleight jumped at any chance that fell into her path. She was asked to fill in for a teacher while dancing at Dupree's when she was only 20 years old. In her self-deprecating way Sleight says, "I didn't have a clue. I taught this horrendous class, I'm sure." Dupree must not have agreed, because he offered Sleight her own class shortly thereafter. Two years after she had begun dancing, she was already teaching, while simultaneously beginning to perform.

"Every once in a while you get a dancer who's just got it in their heart, and they're going to dance--they're just going to," Sleight says of one of her current students. The same might have been said of her.

Her drive to succeed began to win out as her career developed further into both choreographing and producing. Doug Caldwell, another contemporary of Sleight's, says, "Jackie had a tough edge that she needed early on in her career to succeed in what was primarily a man's business at that time."

Sleight was dancing with Roland Dupree's company in a club in Los Angeles when the owner mentioned that he needed a new act in three weeks. Without a second thought, Sleight announced, "I have one!" At once, she created A Sleight Touch, a company that would go on to tour and perform with Earth, Wind & Fire, Rod Stewart, Paula Abdul, and other pop/rock music acts. She also developed a system of movement called "Freedance" (not to be confused with the form called freestyle, developed by jazz-dance pioneer Matt Mattox) with collaborator Marine Jahan, who did the dancing for Jennifer Beals in the movie Flashdance. Later, Sleight choreographed for the Reebok team's National Aerobic Championships. Her companies, A Sleight Touch and The Boy's Club, won the top prizes on Star Search (a TV talent show popular during the 1980s), and she choreographed commercials for Coca-Cola, Levi's, McDonald's, and Butterfinger, among others.

Throughout this time Sleight's teaching career was steadily growing: She had begun to teach nationwide on the Dupree, and then later on the Tremaine, convention circuits. Her energetic, direct teaching style, coupled with the complex combinations she taught, kept dancers wanting more.

"Sleight's choreography has a wonderful dash of humor that gives it the extra edge," says Tremaine. She is always current, doing everything from lyrical to hip-hop, but what stays solid throughout is her strong foundation in the roots of jazz. She has remained true to the art form of such jazz masters as Jack Cole and Lynn Simonson, while keeping things contemporary. By staying on top of musical trends, her choreography is always fresh. Since jazz dance has always been musically driven, this comes as no surprise.

"Interpreting the music is where my emphasis lies. [Choreography] becomes complete for me if I can see the music," Sleight says.

Sleight's classes are packed nowadays. Students love her challenging work. She will ask students who have just learned a combination to do it again, this time facing the back of the room, testing their orientation, or have dancers spotting the back and the front of the room alternately while performing a chaine combination. There is no limit to what she can create in class, assuming that there is no limit to what her dancers can do.

Staying true to form and building a solid foundation are the groundworks for Sleight's teaching philosophy. Mark Meismer, who dances with Mia Michaels's R.A.W. company in New York, takes class with Sleight while in L.A. because "she has the firmest foundation in jazz technique that I have found. She is a passionate teacher, and she cares about how you dance. She challenges [you] physically, mentally, and emotionally, and makes you want to work for her because she never comes in not wanting to be there. Good dancers like her class because she'll make you an even better and more refined dancer, improving on your technique and placement. It's never-ending with her; you keep working because you're never done."

Though her students love her, "Jackie's greatest strength is that she is a teacher's teacher," says Tremaine.

"She gives out the material and shows teachers how to work with it," Caldwell says, "She is a gifted motivator."

Sleight brings these strengths to teachers across the country with L.A. Dance Magic, a touring dance convention that she owns with her fellow choreographer, dancer, and husband, Dave Carter. Together, they work closely with eight teachers, whom they consider family. Though touring can be grueling, Sleight looks forward to the experience. Recently, while judging 137 numbers at the last competition of the year, Sleight noticed a girl who had performed with her group three times already that night. It took the third viewing for her to realize that the girl had a prosthetic leg. She recalls, "I thought, `Oh, now isn't she completely amazing? I worry about these little details of my life, and look at her.'"

Sleight offers that as far as she's concerned, a competition is a place for kids to just do their thing. It's not about winning or losing, but about doing your best. "If you've done that, you should walk off the stage feeling pretty great about yourself," says Sleight.

This was not always the way she saw things. She used to be much more results oriented than she is now. Sleight has changed since the birth of her two sons, Joshua and Aaron, and notices this transformation in herself. "My patience level has definitely grown. I allow kids to evolve at their own pace, not on mine. I am more hopeful for kids because I have so much hope for my own kids.

"Teaching dance is the same as raising a kid, isn't it?" Sleight reflects. "You make the strongest foundation you can, so that when they come out the other end, the kids know the right choice. You teach them how to be prepared for the worst day--here's what happens when you fall out of the three pirouettes--and then they're OK. They have the tools and the foundation to handle it."

She tells her students that "you have to be willing to fall down and make mistakes, because in the end, does it really matter? So you make a mistake, so what? You have to take a big step or a big risk or a big leap, and then the payback will be as huge as that risk taken."

FROM TOP LEFT:

1."I feel so grateful to all the teachers who have taught me; I just want to give back," says Jackie Sleight.

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2. Starting a family with Dave Carter softened Sleight's teaching style.

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3. Sleight hopes that kids leave L.A. Dance Magic feeling motivated.

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4. A Sleight Touch [company] began by performing locally in Los Angeles during the late 1970s.

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5. Sleight "making sense" of her dancers on the shoot of a Butterfinger commercial.

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6. Sleight brought her Freedance system of conditioning to health clubs around the country.

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7. A hug for student Jenna Young reflects the sense of camaraderie that draws students to Sleight's competitions.

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8. Faculty performances are a highlight for many at competitions and workshops.

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Heidi Landgraf is a graduate of California Institute of the Arts and has studied with Jackie Sleight. She is Assistant to the Editor in Chief of Dance Magazine.