Jason JASON SAMUELS SMITH (performer, choreographer, director) has emerged as a multi-talented leader in the art form of tap dance. Jason has performed at the White House , on the Regis & Kathy Lee show, in Savion Glover’s   NuYork, and for ABC’s Monday Night Football opening.  In 2004, he won both an Emmy and an American Choreography Award. He was recognized by the City of Los Angeles for creating the L.A. Tap Festival. Jason co-starred with Arthur Duncan in Dean Hargrove’s film Tap Heat, and is featured in the Outkast movie Idlewild. Credits include Debbie Allen’s Soul Possessed,  AMC series Cool Women, Sammy (a tribute to Sammy Davis Jr.), Broadway’s Bring in Da’Noise, Bring in Da’Funk, Savion Glover’s NYOTs, Cross Currents:Turned on Tap (London), and The Cotton Club Returns: A Tribute to Great Jazz Legends. He founded the tap company A.C.G.I. and JaJa Productions, featuring original jazz-influenced hip hop music.  Jason headlines productions and festivals worldwide.

"...rhythmic brilliance..." - Chicago Sun Times
"...smashingly inventive..." - The NY Times


Lady Di DIANNE "LADY DI" WALKER is one of a handful of internationally acclaimed women in the field of tap dance and instrumental in its recent resurgence. She is a frequent performer and master teacher at many of the dance world's major events. For more than 20 years, her career has taken her to Broadway, television, theater,  universities, and venues throughout the world. Dianne appeared in the movie "Tap" and the PBS special "Tap Dance in America”. She was featured in the original Paris production of "Black and Blue" and helped remount the show for the new European and American tours. She has shared the stage with many of tap's legends, including Gregory Hines, Steve Condos, her mentor Leon Collins,  and recently completed a tour with Jimmy Slyde and Savion Glover. Dianne has received numerous awards including in 1998 the prestigious "Living Treasure in American Dance".


Tre MARTIN “TRE" DUMAS III is a performer and choreographer from Chicago.  Tre had a leading role in the national tour of Broadway's the Tap Dance Kid and was featured in the North American and European tours of Riverdance. With the group Steppin’ Out, he performed at the St. Louis Tap Festival, Detroit Tap Festival, and the Democratic National Convention. With Bril Barrett, he created the internationally renowned company, M.A.D.D Rhythms, M.A.D.D. Rhythms Tap Academy, and the Chicago Tap Summit. In 2006, he was a soloist in Derick Grant’s musical extravaganza, Imagine Tap, and recently joined Jason Samuels Smith’s ACGI in their London shows. Mr. Dumas has taught and performed extensively throughout the continental U.S., Canada, South America, and Europe, including a six month residency in Germany.


Chloe CHLOE ARNOLD (dancer, director, choreographer) was recently featured in Imagine Tap, Outkast’s movie Idlewild, Beyonce’s Upgrade You video as her dance double, Sean Paul’s music video for the movie Step Up and in NYC with Jason Samuels Smith’s ACGI. Co-director of the Los Angeles Tap Festival, Chloe choreographed for Debbie Allen, ABC’s American Celebration, and her own group Syncopated Ladies. Performance credits include Brothers of the Knight, Soul Possessed, Savion Glover’s All Star Tap Revue, and the Oneness Awards. Film and television appearances include UPN’s The Parkers, One on One, Nickelodeon’s Brothers Garcia, Dean Hargrove’s  Tap Heat, and the AMC documentary Cool Women. Currently on faculty at the Debbie Allen Dance Academy in L.A., Chloe has taught at the Broadway Dance Center, P. Diddy’s Summer Youth Program, NYCDA, and in Brazil, Japan, and Germany.

“Arnold, a tapper with sizzle to burn.”
-L.A. Times, Victoria Loosleaf

“Chloe Arnold blows you away.”
-Chicago Tribune, Sid Smith
 

John JOHN KLOSS gained his early training in Chicago with many of tap’s masters.  John is the artistic director of  the Bay Area Tap Festival and the critically-acclaimed  Bay Area Rhythm Exchange.  He appeared in the short film Tap Heat, as “the Guide” in the Universal Arts production of the Beat in San Francisco, and as a soloist and ensemble member of The Swift Brothers, Especially Tap Chicago,  the L.A. based Jazz Tap Ensemble, and in early incarnations of Jason Samuels Smith’s ACGI . John’s versatility has led to a performing resume that includes a notable list of tap artists and work in a wide range of settings, as well as festival productions such as the St. Louis Tap Festival, the Chicago Human Rhythm Project, and the Maui Tap Experience. He teaches ongoing classes at the San Francisco Dance Center, the ODC Dance Commons, and the S.F. City Dance Center.
 

Smilie YUKIKO "SMILIE" MISUMI is a performer, tap percussionist, choreographer and tap instructor from Tokyo who studied extensively with Henry LeTang, Jimmy Slyde, Brenda Bufalino, and Dianne Walker. She was a soloist and choreographer with Japan’s Jam Tap Dance Company and launched her solo career in 1997, performing in numerous clubs in Japan.  She created the African Rhythm Tap Series and is director of the Artistic Rhythm Tap Network. Yukiko is a featured performer at National Tap Day in Japan and has been a guest artist at the St. Louis Tap Festival and the New York Tap Festival. She has performed and taught in Taiwan and Hong Kong and is a guest artist for the 2006 and 2007 Chicago Human Rhythm Project. Her sharp rhythms and percussive tones create her own "Misumi World". Yukiko opened her own studio, ARTN Tap Dance Studio in Tokyo in 2001 and is Japan's International Tap Association Representative.
 
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