Humble Beginnings…

My dance journey started when I was quite young - a wee lassie, in fact. After trying soccer, and after a brief stint with gymnastics (let’s just say, not my scene), my mom was - to be completely honest - running out of options for extracurriculars to enroll me in. You see, I was a rather energetic child with an on-the-go nature that my mother wanted to put to productive use, bless her soul.

I remember crystal clear the day we decided to try dance. It was quite the dramatic event. After school one afternoon, we were in the car and my mom asked, “Would you like to take dance classes?” and me, not really knowing what exactly that meant at my tender age, said something that would alter the trajectory of my life forever… “Sure”. And thus, from then on, I was Allison Bridgeman - the dancer.

The PRe-professional years…

Dancing with the Stars…

My love for performing was at its peak during the final years of my high school career, but I was still at a loss for what to do with my training. Working for a ballet company did seem appealing at first, but I would have been lying if I said that I was not looking for something a little different; something with less structure and more spontaneity; something that had more of a show-biz quality where I could play a more diverse array of characters. Then, one day, my director handed me a brochure that she had received from one acclaimed “Oklahoma City University Ann Lacy School of Dance and Entertainment”, and it immediately caught my eye.

The rest is honestly history. I had researched the mission and curriculum of the school and found it to be just what I was looking for - diverse, well-rounded, and with plethora of opportunities. I can now proudly say that I am a graduate of this fantastic school and have received my BPA in Dance Performance and Summa Cum Laude recognition. Every year I become more and more honored to have been a member of the American Spirit Dance Company, the Star Dance Company, and the Rep Company and to be receiving an exceptional education in all facets of the artform all the way from costuming to pedagogy.

Future goals…

Quite soon after I had started dance, I became absolutely enthralled with the artform. Eventually, I began to focus on more long-term goals, decided to take my training to the next level, and enrolled at The Ballet Academy of Texas. Here, under the excellent tutelage of Lisa Slagle, Alan Kinzie, Thom Clower, and Tammie Reinsch, I was classically trained in the ABT curriculum and received training in jazz and modern dance as well. I was accepted into and performed for the studio’s company, The Ballet Ensemble of Texas, for many years. This, of course, meant that I have performed in too many Nutcrackers to count, leading to chronic heart palpitations when Waltz of the Flowers plays anywhere in my vicinity, but, nevertheless, they are still years that I am immensely grateful for.

The ‘casual comic’…

As you can see from one of the first pictures on this webpage, I was rather expressive and dramatic from a young age. Making people laugh was a passion of mine that began in early elementary, where I became the oh-so revered class clown, and that passion continued throughout my life. Personally, I like to thank television, Jim Carrey, and the show Spongebob Squarepants for enhancing my comedic timing and inspiring my facial dexterity.

It certainly was not long before my comedic inclinations were noticed by many a choreographer and director, and, thus, I was given opportunities to use my natural comedic timing and highly expressive features in my dancing. At BAT, I was selected to perform in Nightcrawlers - a comedic ballet choreographed by the famed Peter Anastos - where I got to actively mope onstage, scratch my leg with my foot in a sous-sus, and threaten other dancers with a bull whip. In my junior year of college, I was also given the opportunity to perform in a tap piece choreographed by Shadoe Brandt where I played a crazed choir conductor with high expectations for her performers, forcing them to dance to the increasing tempo of God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen by Pentatonix. This dance was especially fun to take part in because I was given a lot of artistic freedom to craft my own bits and acting moments with. And, lastly, I was even selected by a student choreographer, Madison Pivonka, to play in her comedic piece the Forgotten Waltz where I played a high-drama, rarely satisfied dance teacher. Thus, while I love performing anything and everything, comedy is where I truly shine.

My mission heading forward into my professional career is quite pragmatic, but it is one that I whole heartedly commit myself to:

“To use my passion, ingenuity, sense of humor, and intelligence to be a performer who effectively entertains my audience by conveying characters and narratives in a compelling, creative, and authentic manner.”