Meet Savannah Svoboda | Executive & Artistic Director

We had the good fortune of connecting with Savannah Svoboda and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Savannah, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
Starting Full Expression! A Dance Collective was born out of a deep desire to connect with my local performing arts community and create a space that I dreamed of having when I was a little girl. Though I have been studying and performing since I was 10, I had decided that dancing as a career or owning a dance studio was out of the question after listening to those around me – who were saying, very clearly, that I didn’t have what it took to be in this space. Whether it was my body, my lack of a performing arts degree, my queerness, it really didn’t matter, there was always a tone of “how dare she” when I was dancing or auditioning growing up. It wasn’t until after an almost 7-year hiatus, that I decided to get back into the scene and landed a Dance Captain role in a local community theater production. During that experience, another actor (who now happens to be a director at the collective) simply asked, “where can I take your dance class?” I was almost in shock when she asked me because really until then, I didn’t have anyone in my community reflecting back to me the value that I brought. And since that day I have been committed to my dream of owning my own dance collective and always supporting my students however I can. As dance educators, we have immense power to either build up our students or leave a continued legacy of tearing them down and at Full Expression! we are very committed to not letting the continued legacy last.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
Sometimes I actually forget that what I create is under this beautiful umbrella of “art” – I feel so lucky to even answer this question because art and artists are the lifeline for so many and how wonderful I get to be part of that ecosystem. My art is intertwined with my own love and life story. I took my first dance class at 10 and I had never felt anything lie it. The connection to my body, my thoughts, my emotions, and to be able to articulate them through my movement was mind blowing for me. What we create now at the collective is layered in training, performing, and creating and a specific experience for our patrons and dancers. I know there are versions of me trying to create more safe and equitable experiences for dancers in their community but when I look around my community I see us working to break down the barriers that keep people away from dance. Dance should not be for the elite or just skinny white people but how you actually do that needs to show up in every aspect of your work and that in itself is art. Going against the grain of systems is brutal and powerful art.

2o23 has become our most booked year yet and my head is still kind of spinning. What I am most excited about is the amount of opportunities that we get to create for others this year. We are currently working on a performance for CSU and then an immersive dance pop-up experience with the city where we will combine dance, history, and music. To be able to connect local artists with opportunity is part of this collective’s job and I don’t take that lightly.

I feel like this is cliche, but if you would have told me in 2013 that I would be getting interviewed for my art and owning a dance collective, I would have laughed in your face because I didn’t believe in myself. Dance was always on the peripherals of my life, luring me in until I ultimately couldn’t ignore the signs that I was meant to be doing this. Was it easy? In a huge sense, yes because of the amount of privilege I have and resources available to me, I can’t deny that. Now, was it easy to shift back into a system at 27 that typically tells you to retire at that age…no, not really. But once I started finding others who had their own stories and stopped listening to those who really didn’t support me, a lot shifted.

I find the more I learn in my business and craft the more I shed old versions of myself and allow for new. I have learned that every moment is part of the bigger picture. No one is going to do the work for you – whether that is actual admin work or going to therapy to work on yourself, you have to commit to your journey as well. And if I am ever feeling insecure or hear the loud imposter syndrome, it means it is time to stop comparing yourself to others and time to create because those nasty negative thoughts are not real. And you better go create the things you want or someone else will!

I want the world to know that you worthy of an experience where you can connect with your mind and body! Dance can fit into our lives in many different ways and stages. I work with newborns to dancers in their 70s on a weekly basis. All with different stories, needs, and experiences, and the common denominator is dance!

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I happen to love organizing trips, so I love this question. Movement, music/art, and food are definitely my go-to’s for when folks visit. For movement, I won’t lie I will ask visitors if they want to come dance at the collective or I will connect them with whatever class they are looking for.

Hikes at Horsetooth or walks at CSU are always a must. For music and art, going to a show at The Lyric or R Bar.

New Belgium for beers, Wolverine Farm Publick House for a warm drink and a quaint chat, and Slyce for the best pizza, in my opinion!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I am a firm believer that no success is done alone and I definitely did not get here by myself. We are, as is in our name, a collective and we center the collective experience. To have gotten as far as we have in the last 5-years surprises me everyday and I have to really center who wakes up with me every day and that is my partner Will. When I first started Full Expression! we were dating and now we have been married for 2-years. He has seen every moment of growth and challenge and is really the collective’s biggest supporter – from taking classes when we didn’t have enough dancers to enroll, creating music, dropping off costumes, giving flowers to performers – he uplifts everyone!

Aside from the day-to-day support, our collective shifted from a “every body can dance space” to a more intentional experience where we are creating more safe and equitable experiences. This shift and realization of responsibility as dancer and business owner would not have happened without the teachings of Dance & Race History Educator Karida Griffith. Her curriculum and challenge to dance educators (and especially white dance educators) is something I continually revisit and is a guiding compass at the collective.

Website: www.fullexpression.net

Instagram: @Savboda

Other: TikTok: @fullexpression

Image Credits
David Ovitsky – only the two solo shots of myself