Category

Work

Director Brazil Launches One Take Sparks

By | Dance, Family, Friends, Vlogs, Work | No Comments

I have been working with Director Brazil – Helton Siqueira – on my videos since I started my YouTube channel in 2013. Brazil and his longtime friend Will Willdabeast Adams invented today’s popular class video format in the dance scene around Los Angeles, California in February of 2013. Shout out to Will for introducing me to Brazil. Being a member of immaBEAST has been a great learning experience for me. Not only have I learned how to train hard, but how to be a citizen of the dance community, a better person, and a better professional. Brazil gave me the experience in front of the camera, knowledge about YouTube, editing, and other things that I would have not been able to get from just doing jobs.

At first, my video channel was a way for sharing what I was doing in dance to family and friends. As my channel grew, I started to experiment with how to monetize my channel. Now my channel is different thing for me. It’s a place to curate my development as a dancer.

One of the things that you do not see much in dance videos today is one take videos. For a million different reasons, one take videos are rare because it’s incredibly hard to get everything right in a dance shot. Sometimes the camera angle is better in a particular run, other times the lighting is better, and a lot of times the dancer is better at different portions of the dance on different takes. You can do a lot to cut videos and add effects today to make videos look great. But it’s a bit harder to try to get it in one take.

One of the benefits of shooting over 100 videos with someone is the relationship and trust that develops between the director and the artist. So many of my videos were made better by Kalyne Lionheart who is an amazing editor. Between Brazil getting footage and Kalyne doing the edits, they turned out amazing. If you want to work with a great team, Brazil-Lionheart Productions is the way to go. They have so much experience.

Brazil has always been an innovator. When we set out to shoot 4 videos in a day, we knew that we were in for a long day. It was over 100 degrees in a warehouse in downtown LA the day of our shoot. When we started shooting, everything just clicked. We shot the first video 4 times and we honestly thought that every shot was great. So we stopped. That was when Brazil came up with the concept of One Shot Sparks – a series of one shot dance videos with no cuts. It is so different from the class videos you see everyday, or your typical concept video. So, we went with it. All of these dances were one take videos.

There are four videos in this series. The first one dropped on September 16, 2018. I danced to a song and an artist that I really love, Jade Bird. The choreography is special to me. One of my favorite people to work with is Cat Cogliandro. I love her work and am blow away by what an amazing woman she is. This video was my contemporary solo for the 2017-2018 season. It is very different than competition pieces that you see. It celebrates the spirit of Jade as an artist, and I really found a lot of sincerity in the dance. Thank you, Cat! Something American will always be one of my favorite dances ever. I appreciate you giving that to me.

The other three videos are choreographed by me. I have been working on my choreography for the past couple of years. I am teaching 5 classes a week and setting pieces on junior and teen dancers. I booked my first choreography job with a major TV studio this year (Thank you Disney and Bizaardvark). I hope that I will get more of those.

Thank you so much Brazil. You picked a great location for the shoot and made it all work for One Take Sparks #onetakesparks – 

Buildabeast Re-Cap 2017

By | Convention, Dance, Work | No Comments

Buildabeast was a huge success this year! For those who are new here, Buildabeast is an animal convention……lol…..annual convention put on by the owners and co-founders of ImmaBeast: Willdabeast Adams and Janelle Ginestra, aka: Mama and Papa Beast. I have been training under this newly engaged couple for going-on 4 years and I have learned so much. They ask us to bring improvement to every class. One thing for sure, they brought enormous improvement. Will and Janelle have probably improved more in the past year than any dancer or choreographer that I know. It’s a blessing to witness and completely inspiring to work with immaBeast.

With that being said, let’s get into the recap.

with Mallory Jul

Our whole team began rehearsals weeks ago, to ensure a phenomenal show. On the Friday before the event started, our crew arrived at the venue in Pomona to block the show and smooth out traditions. We rehearsed from Friday until Monday, and then on Tuesday, the event that we had all been looking forward to finally began! The first class was taught by Laura Edwards, followed by Noelle Marsh, etc.  That night, we had show rehearsal once again.

The next day, class, etc. After a long day of classes, we had rehearsal for a very special concert that I will get to later…. The next day, same schedule, except now it is the night of the concert for none other than Jordan Fisher! I met Jordan the first time I auditioned for immaBEAST back in 2014, and we’ve kept in touch ever since. He is killing the music game right now so make sure you check him out. The next day, we had a super early rehearsal before class even started and after that rehearsal I took a real good nap. I mean a girl’s gotta rest right? After my “recharge” I assisted Allison Holker which was so life changing! We ended the day with the spectacular Sean Lew’s class. Then it was finally the night of our much-anticipated immaBeast showcase!

Our show opened with the world renowned Chapkis Dance Company. Their set was absolutely insane and set the bar very high for the rest of us. Seeing their greatness just motivated the rest of us to dance our best, which we sure did! The show went great and we finished off the night with a fun after party DJ’d by the one and only DJ Marv.

The final day consisted of the heart and soul of Buildabeast: AUDITIONS FOR 2018 IMMABEAST! We had to audition Will’s combo from earlier in the week so everyone had a chance to practice before-hand, but the extra time also raised the standard because everyone rehearsed the combo to perfection. The audition was stressful, but overall a great experience. The last part of the day were the immaBeast awards, where I received “On the Rise” which means I show “constant improvement and really on the way to greatness” – once I got a “Girl On Fire” award – feels the same.

with Jordan Fisher

This week was so very inspiring and I can’t wait for next year. – To see the faculty members – click to check out this post

Next Up……..

DPAC has their annual summer show at the Clark Center called Eat, Sleep, Dance, Repeat. That is a must see event for locals! Tickets at the door – 6 PM Curtain Up.

I am looking forward to working with #teamcapezio at DancerPalooza! Watch @capezio on instagram for the live streaming all weekend during Beat Street. I will be interviewing Tate McRae, Melinda Sullivan, Emma HellenKamp, Kalani Hilliker, and photographer Jordan Matter. You will also be able to watch behind the scenes of my photoshoot with Jordan! Of course, I will also be doing spot interviews with my other favorite dancers and choreographers – some special guests guaranteed!

 

JANELLE_GINESTRA Sparkles Lund

Janelle Ginestra Choreo to Marian Hill Down

By | Dance, Stuff I Like, Uncategorized, Work | No Comments

Janelle Ginestra Crushes This Choreo to Marian Hill – Down

If you follow me on Instagram, you know that I was training last week in Los Angeles. Every Monday we have IMMABEAST company class, and the rest of the week I took class at Millennium and IMMASPACE. IMMASPACE has really begun to attract some of the hottest choreographers on the planet that are innovating in dance. (download IMMASPACE app here to see class schedule). It has become a special place to train, not only because of the great choreographers, but the IMMASPACE itself has developed a special character. Most of all, the general dance public does not know about IMMASPACE yet – so the dancers that it attracts for training are typically a combination of IMMABEAST dancers and that choreographers’ biggest fans. The room caps out at 60 dancers, so there is lots of room to move.

Of course, when you think of IMMABEAST, you think of Willdabeast. But when you dig in, you see that IMMABEAST is as much about Will Adam’s fiancé Janelle Ginestra as it is Will. They are truly partners in everything. Like yin and yang. It is outstanding to witness. Each of them make powerful contributions to the dance industry in so many ways, but most importantly – they help dancers like me to get better and to focus on the things that will help drive success both personally and professionally.

Stylistically, I think that my style of dance is closer to Janelle’s than it is to Will’s. Ginestra blends the hard-hitting style of hip-hop with contemporary movements of powerful female bodies. You feel like a strong woman when you dance to Janelle’s choreography. Some hip-hop is so strong that it drops the femininity that women bring to dance. Janelle’s style lets girls be girls, and lets boys be boys. I love it.

About Marian Hill

Marian Hill is actually two people: Jeremy Lloyd and vocalist Samantha Gongol. The two hale from Bryn Mawr Pennsylvania – outside of Philadelphia. They met in junior high, and really became relevant artists in 2015 when the release of their single “One Time,” leading up to their debut album; Once Act in 2016. Apple gave them a big boost when they debuted their iPhone 7 + AirPods to this song, “Down” during the Atlanta Falcons and Seattle Seahawks playoff game. The commercial featured Lil Buck gravity dancing to “Down.” The combination of Samantha’s iconic voice with the creativity of Jeremy’s electronic musicality makes for excellent dance music. (If you need some good solo music – check this out. If you have not seen the YouTube video for “Down,” you gotta check it out .

The director for the video was Jack Begert of Psycho Films  – produced by Sam Canter and Tyler Sobel-Mason. What they did with the elevator was truly outstanding. Awesome work in post production too! Graphics editing was WOW!

Janelle Ginestra did an outstanding job developing choreography for the song. Its quirky, artistic, and both hard and soft at times. There is a lot of intricate movement with hands, and great opportunities to play with the choreography as a dancer. I loved the class and am so excited that Janelle featured our group in her class video.

Check it out here – I come in at about the 2:44 min mark – Front Row, Far right – yellow shirt.

If you like my posts, please share and subscribe.

Robert Schultz Flash Mob America

Flash Mob America Hits Record With Robert Schultz Choreography

By | Dance, Friends, Work | No Comments

Los Angeles, CA July 7th, 2016 – Flash Mob America is the #1 booking Flash Mob Company in the world. I guess that makes for a good name, right? What you may not know is that the choreography genius behind Flash Mob America is Los Angeles choreographer Robert Schultz.

Robert Schultz has choreographed over 200 flash mobs for Flash Mob America during the past 6 years, making Shultz one of the most productive and successful flash mob choreographers and directors in the world. Recently, a piece choreographed by Schultz topped over 1 Million views on You Tube! You must watch it. But grab a tissue. You cannot possibly hold back the tears of joy as you see the story unfold

The Flash Mob event was to celebrate the anniversary and vow renewal for Stacey and Rick who had been married for 30 years. For the flash mob, Rick hired Flash Mob America, a camera crew, and threw a party on the rooftop to surprise Stacey. All Stacey knew was that Rick was taking her out for a romantic evening. Rob Schultz made the event amazing with the creativity of having hired dancers and street vendors subtly hand her roses as she walked down the street to meet Rick at the restaurant. As she turned the corner toward the restaurant, a group of family, friends, and professionals break into a huge flash mob for her.

At the end of the dance, everyone points up to the roof top of the building where hundreds more family and friends are looking down, waiving, and welcoming Stacey to her special day made possible by Rick!

Schultz got started as a flash mob choreographer through the help of his long time friend and fellow choreographer, Ms. Lisette Bustamante. Lisette was hired by Flash Mob America to do a piece and she invited Robert Schultz to help. Whenever Bustamante was not available, Schultz began to work directly with Flash Mob America to do pieces.

The most memorable flash mob that Schultz has choreographed was for the ABC hit TV show, Modern Family. Season 2, Episode 8 is called Manny Get Your Gun. In this episode, Cam says Mitch is not spontaneous enough. So Mitch organizes a flash mob at the mall to impress Cam. The flash mob was epic, and in true Modern Family fashion, Cam gets upset because he was not invited to dance in the Flash Mob.

Schultz also choreographed a piece for WAV Group clients, CoreLogic. They had the crazy break out into dance during the peek of the National Association of REALTORS® trade show in San Diego. It was so funny. All of these REALTOR types walking around and suddenly surprised by mob chaos. To Join a Flash Mob, visit http://www.flashmobamerica.com//event-registration.  Follow Flash Mob America @FlashMobAmerica (Instagram & Twitter)

About Robert Schultz

I have known Robert Schultz for years. He taught at my first convention when I was 8, Hollywood Connection. At age 9, I qualified at regionals for Dancer of the Year, called Icon of the Year which I was fortunate enough to win. Schultz choreographed the Icon dance that was a tribute to movies. Schultz cast me as the lead in Afro-Circus from Madagascar and I loved the goofy wig! Aside from private training over the past few years, I have begun to work with Robert Schultz on some of my You Tube videos. Perhaps the most memorable is my duet featuring my Grandma Anne and fellow dancer Trevor Quezada to When We Were Young, music by Adele

The Beast Netowrk

The Beast Network Officially Announced

By | Dance, modeling, Stuff I Like, Work | No Comments

The Beast Network was announced today! All of us at immaBEAST are so excited to follow and support Will Willdabeast Adams, Janelle Ginestra, BTB Creative Agency (John, Brazil, Nelson) on this new journey. If it grows like immaBEAST has grown the past three years, who knows how big it will be.

Will and Janelle had a BBQ for the team at their house this week to share the news with the team. Looking around at the team, my friends, I could not help but to feel grateful for the opportunity to work and train with so many talented, hardworking friends. The immaBEASTS are strong at every level – adults, teens, juniors, and minis. My manager Nelson Diaz posted on Facebook this week that if you want to be a lion, you must train with lions – surround yourself with people on the same mission as you. So true!

Will gave an inspiring speech to announce The Beast Network. He started by putting his hand on Janelle’s belly like they were announcing that they were having a baby – PSYCH! Then he told us about how he and John Hyland went to Toronto to discuss a TV deal. I guess a lot of networks – Disney, Nickelodeon, and others expressed interest in making a documentary about Buildabeast 2016 – the hip hop intensive that immaBEAST is having this summer (I have discount codes :-).  Apparently that meeting was inspirational because it resulted in the launch of The Beast Network.

The Beast Network will be a bit different. Will grew up with TRL, 106 and Park, Freestyle Friday – I am part of the DanceOn Network (until The Beast Network goes live!). The Beast Network will produce and publish videos about Lifestyle, Music, Dance, Fashion, Health/Fitness, and Reality. So many members of the immaBEAST team have talents far beyond dance. The Beast Network will deliver a place for us to collaborate and continue to grow together.

COMING THIS SUMMER

#TheBeastNetowrk #TBN #immaBEASTdancers @immabeastco

Check out the new website were you can sign up for ongoing notifications

Http://www.thebeastnetwork.com

Here is Will’s announcement video

I Performed on The Voice Monday

By | Auditions, Work | One Comment

Sparkles Lund on The VoiceLike any other middle school kid, I got up Thursday morning and went to school. We are in the middle of state testing. At 1 p.m. my world took and unexpected turn and I was pulled out of class to head to Los Angeles for an audition. There was very little information other than it was a SAG job, small audition, and those two little words “The Voice!” After the audition, I went to Millenium Dance Complex and took a great class with Nick Demoura. My wonderful agent Shayna Brouillard called later that night to tell me that I booked it! It was late and I was tired, but the excitement was overwhelming.

I was not able to go to school on Friday because we had rehearsal. We met at Center Staging, which is a spectacular place. That night I met the amazing Hi-Hat – Grammy Award winning choreographer for people like Justin Bieber, Shakira, Rihanna, Willow Smith, Big Time Rush, Ke$ha, Selena Gomez, Missy Elliott, and my favorite – the Kia Motors commercial with the dancing “Hamstars” …..you get the picture. She’s got skills, and the opportunity to work for such a great choreographer is an honor. Here’s a twist. I also sang backup in front of a live audience with 14 Million TV viewers! This video is from the last time I sang in front of a live audience when I was 4. I hope I did a better job!

Here was my schedule for Saturday

11am – Call Time

11:30-11:50 – Rehearsal on Stage 6

11:50-12noon – Walk to Stage 12

12-1p – Rehearse on Stage 12

1-1:15 – Go to Suite F

1:15-3:15p – School (Suite F)

3:15-3:45p – Meal (Suite F)

3:45-4p – Go to Rehearsal Hall

4p-5:30p – Wardrobe Fittings (Rehearsal Hall)

5:30-6p – R&R

6p-7p – Pre Records (Suite G/H)

Sunday was a day off – well sort of. I had a meeting with my friend and choreographer Brooklyn Jai and Alix Garza. Sunday night I had an audition to be a dancer for the Los Angeles Sparks professional basketball team – they call the group SparKids. A lot of my friends are on the team – so it should be a lot of fun.

Monday Schedule

11:15-12:15 Dress Rehearsal

12:30-1:30 School in Conference Room

1:30-2:00 Meal in Conference Room

2:00-3:00 R and R in Conference Room

3:00-3:15 Walk to Stage 6

3:15-4:00 Team Hat rehearses with the kids on Stage 6

4:00-4:45 Glam touch ups

5 PM Live Show! 14 Million Viewers!

I was very excited for the show and glad that I got to work with my friend and fellow #immaBEAST and #lilBEAST Sean Lew. I have known Sean since 2009 when we were both Minis and we met at Hollywood Connection. He is amazing. Subscribe to his YouTube channel if you don’t already https://www.youtube.com/user/SarahSerrisSean

I cannot thank my parents and everyone enough who has helped to train me to prepare for these amazing opportunities.

Here is the video – I come in at the 2 Min mark right behind Hannah

Happy Valentines Day

By | Dance, Vlogs, Work | No Comments

Sparkles Lund and Taylor HatalaA few weeks ago I had the opportunity to do this collaboration video with one of my friends, #lilBEAST team members, and favorite dancers, Ms. Taylor Hatala. Choreography for the video was none other than #immaBEAST team member Antoine Troupe. Of course, the video was produced and directed by my friend and life coach, @directorBrazil. The concept was focused around a Valentines Day release using the hit Meghan Trainor song, Dear Future Husband.

I hope you like it.

Press Release

LOS ANGELES, Feb. 13, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Valentine’s Day is not a romantic Hallmark card for 11-year-old Taylor Hatala and 12-year-old Sparkles Lund. Too young to date and too soon to have found love, these two young professional dancers worked with renowned freestyle and hip-hop choreographer Antoine Troupe to produce a Valentine’s Day video to Meghan Trainor’s song, “Dear Future Husband,” being released February 14 on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ER6O55iAPZk).

“When you are our age, boys are just friends,” says Edmonton-born Taylor Hatala. Hatala is commuting to Los Angeles and working part-time as her burgeoning career develops. As testament to Hatala’s talent, her YouTube videos to Nicki Minaj’s “Anaconda” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rgfF_c6uPaU) and Meghan Trainor’s “All About That Bass” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4pfloxVMJGw), have been seen more than 30 million times, garnering appearances on “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” and RyanSeacrest.com, among others. Troupe, Hatala and Sparkles Lund became friends dancing on the immaBEAST hip-hop crew, under director Will ‘WilldaBeast’ Adams.

According to Troupe, the concept for the video was born during the filming of the immaBEAST routine for the Choreographers Carnival Anniversary show this past January.

“Although dance is my life,” says Troupe, “I am driven by the impact that dance has on developing healthy, active, and confident kids.” Troupe selected the piece that he claims was ready made for Sparkles and Taylor.

“Meghan Trainor’s work is perfectly kid-style,” says Sparkles Lund, who recently released a video last week to Trainor’s hit “Lips Are Movin” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-hA5VLVq7dc). “What girl doesn’t want a future husband that brings flowers, open doors, and wants to be her one and only?” Lund asks.

Sparkles Lund began her professional career in dance at age 10. Her recent work includes a three-city tour for Macy’s Glamorama and an appearance on the finale of ABC-TV’s Dancing With The Stars, performing to “Hard Knock Life” from the new Annie movie.

“Working with superstars like Taylor Hatala and Antoine Troupe is a blessing,” confesses Lund. “It’s so exciting to see Taylor’s career skyrocket, and I am so happy that Antoine was able to work with Prince to choreograph his latest video ‘Breakfast Can Wait.'”

YouTube is fast becoming the path to rapid stardom for many of today’s young performers, circumventing the previous paths that were largely limited through New York and Los Angeles.

Lund, who lives in Arroyo Grande, locate on California’s Central Coast near San Luis Obispo, and Hatala, who lives in Edmonton, Canada, are adopting the strategy started by Willdabeast by creating their own YouTube channels to self-publish their work. Willdabeast is teaching young dancers that YouTube is a place where you can make a mark and punch up your career. His YouTube page has more than 735,000 subscribers and more than 100 million views. Hatala’s YouTube channel is at http://bit.ly/taylorhatala and Sparkles Lund YouTube channel is at https://www.youtube.com/user/sparkleslund.

About the Video
Dancers: Sparkles Lund & Taylor Hatala
Choreography – Antoine Troupe
Director – Brazil Siqueira
Music – Meghan Trainor, “Dear Future Husband”

Dancing In Super Bowl Halftime Show

By | Auditions, Dance, Friends, Work | No Comments
lilBEAST and Tricia Miranda

Gabe, Will, Tricia Miranda, Kaycee, and Charlize

Don’t get me wrong – dancing in Super Bowl XLIX with Katy Perry would be absolutely amazing. The halftime show set list was perfect and included a surprise performance by wrapper Missy Elliott with choreography by Tricia Miranda. Katy is among my favorite artists and the ability to work with her on the biggest stage in the world would be beyond my dreams. The good news is that I had a shot at an audition video. Better news is that four kids I dance with on team #lilBEAST with Willdabeast Adams booked the job!

Today’s Super Bowl half time show featured Kaycee Rice, Gabe de Guzman, Will Simmons, and Charlize Glass! I feel so blessed to be able to work and dance with so many talented kids! My friend and fellow #lilBEAST, Soni Bringas was on TV last night staring in the the primer of Lifetime’s new show, Beautiful and Twisted opposite Rob Lowe, Pez Vega (Spanglish), and Candice Bergen (Murphy Brown, Sex in the City). #lilBEAST Nation taking over!

I was not able to go to the audition for Katy Perry. At the time, the audition call did not mention Missy (Surprise Guest!) I had already committed to travel to Pittsburgh to work with Liz Imperio and the Hollywood Vibe team. It was my first time representing Hollywood Vibe and it would not have made a very good first impression if I bailed on them. But turning lemons into lemonade, I was able record and send in a video audition. My agent, Shayna Brouillard of Clear Talent Group told me it would be a long shot, and she was right. I did not book the job or get a call back. But I still had fun shooting the video!

I was so excited to see my friends during the Super Bowl halftime show. They killed it. (Trivia – XLIX is the number 49. Next year, in MMXV or 2015 the letter for the Superbowl will be L).

In other news – my YouTube channel went over 200,000 views this week and my subscribers hit 700. Still a long way to go to hit my goals, but hey – a girl has to celebrate milestones. Right? Here is the audition video I sent in.

 

 

 

 

View Sparkles Lund on Dancing With the Stars

By | Work | No Comments

Oh my gosh, I am so thankful for the outpouring of well wishes for my television debut on Dancing With The Stars #dwts. Below is the video of our act, choreographed by Mandy Moore. If you read this blog, you will know that it all started with my best friend Camille’s mom, Maureen Cattaneo getting me to the audition when my parents were out of town. Had it not been for her help, none of this would have happened. I was also thrilled to be able to meet so many new friends during the shoot and am especially grateful for ABC and The New Annie Movie with their star Quvenzhane Wallis. Our excitement to be on national TV must be nothing compared to her excitment to be a star in a movie. Someday? Ya never know?

So…….

Here is the video from last night’s episode of Dancing With The Stars for those who missed it or want to watch it again!

Here is the press release that went out today

11-YEAR OLD DANCER PERFORMS ON “DANCING WITH THE STARS” FINALE

ALEXANDRA “SPARKLES” LUND FEATURED IN YOUNG DANCER ENSEMBLE

November 25, 2014 – Arroyo Grande, CA – Eleven-year-old Alexandra “Sparkles” Lund last night made her network television debut on this season’s performance finale of ABC Network Television’s “Dancing with the Stars.”

Sparkles Lund appeared with a talented young dancers ensemble that promoted the new “Annie” movie, starring Oscar®-winner Jamie Foxx, Cameron Diaz, Rose Byrne, and the youngest performer to ever be nominated for a Best Actress Academy Award®, Quvenzhané Wallis, as Annie. Sparkles Lund joined Wallis last night and performed a dance to “It’s The Hard-Knock Life,” choreographed by Mandy Moore.

Moore is best known for “So You Think You Can Dance,” nominated for Emmy Awards for the show in 2007 and 2011. She also choreographed several seasons of “American Idol,” “America’s Got Talent,” “Dancing with the Stars,” and U.K.’s “Strictly Come Dancing.” Sparkles Lund’s performance celebrated the new, contemporary spin on the classic show “Annie,” due in movie theaters December 19th.

“It was incredibly exciting to be part of the most popular show on television,” said Sparkles Lund about her experience on “Dancing with the Stars.” She spent five consecutive rehearsal days that began at 8 o’clock in the morning and ended at 5:00 p.m. On meeting Wallis, also 11-years-old, Sparkles Lund said, “She’s really fun to work with. She’s very professional, but really full of energy.”

An award winning featured dancer, actor and model, Sparkles Lund is fast becoming one of the entertainment industry’s hottest young commercial dancers. She is a member of the renowned immaBEAST Dance Company and has performed nationally for Macy’s and Hello Kitty brands. Her dance styles include jazz, ballet, tap, hip-hop, lyrical, contemporary and pointe.

Next up for Sparkles Lund: Top choreographer Liz Imperio, a major director and choreographer in the entertainment industry, including the staging and choreography for Jennifer Lopez’s “Live From Puerto Rico” concert; director/choreographer of Gloria Estefan’s most recent concert tour; and three numbers for Madonna’s “Re-invention Tour 2004″, chose her to be on the Hollywood Vibe’s Vibe Dance Company, and Sparkles Lund will be part of its national tour.

A resident of California’s Central Coast living in Arroyo Grande outside of San Luis Obispo, Sparkles Lund has won several national dance competitions. She also appears in “Just Dance Kids” video game and is in the CBS Comedy Series, “The Millers.”

About Sparkles Lund

Sparkles Lund is an 11-year-old dancer, actor, blogger and YouTube personality. She started dancing when she was 3 years old and began her professional dancing career at age 8. Sparkles Lund won a national competition as “Dancer of the Year” at the age of 9. She recently toured nationally with Macy’s Glamorama, promoting its Hello Kitty line, chosen from 500 professional dancers who auditioned. Featuring pop artist Jason Derulo, Sparkles was part of a three-city tour this summer that raised funds for Children’s Cancer Research Fund in Minneapolis, Chicago and San Francisco. Sparkles Lund is part of the renowned Hip Hop crew, lilBEASTS, with the highly talented choreographer and director Will Adams “Willdabeast.”

Alexandra Lund was given the stage name “Sparkles” at a dance camp by choreographer Tahirih Ellison, as a tribute to both her taste in outfits and her personality. She is a dancer with Dellos Performing Arts Center in Arroyo Grande, which is recognized as among the top studios in America, where she is under the guidance of Johnna Clark. Sparkles Lund is represented by Clear Talent Agency in Los Angeles.

VIDEO LINKS & ONLINE BACKGROUND:

Dancing With The Stars Red Carpet

Dancing With The Stars Red Carpet

Sparkles Lund Radio Publicity Tour For DWTS

By | Dance, press, Work | No Comments

The public relations firm sent out a media alert for my appearance tonight on Dancing With The Stars. This morning I had two in person publicity events at radio stations and another interview for public radio by phone. These were my first solo radio interviews. Many thanks for 98.1 KJUG Country morning show hosts Andy Morris and Kristen Webster.

My second interview was with Q104.5 and a hilarious radio host who does not seem to have a last name – he calls himself Adam in the Morning and his show is called Up and Adam.  Too clever, right? Guess I should not say much given that my entertainment handle is Sparkles.

All of the hosts were super nice. I am super thankful for everyone at #DWTS – Dancing With The Stars, Clear Talent, The Amazing Mandy Moore and all of the other dancers who were great to dance with. Truly blessed.

Sparkles Lund DWTS Publicity

 

WilldaBEAST Launches Trey Songz Video

By | Dance, Friends, Uncategorized, Work | No Comments

I am so lucky to be able to work with so many great choreographers like Los Angeles based Willdabeast. I am on his kids hip-hop crew #lilBEASTS. He has an older team that he works with called #immaBEAST. As I mentioned in my post last week – I have a secret…..

WilldaBEAST with his awesome partner Janelle Ginestra filmed an amazing dance to a new song called Touchin, Lovin by Trey Songz featuring the AMAZING Nicki Minaj. Janelle choreographed all of the parts with the girls in it and Will choreographed all of the parts for the boys.  Janelle is the one in the gold shirt with the cute tall bun.  I just love her style – she is SO full out!  I think this song is going to be a hit and that all of us will be learning to dance to it this year.

I was on set when they were filming and had a chance to interview WilldaBEAST about what he calls “a concept video/music video.” He told me “The inspiration for this piece was big, clean – line choreography with the new swaggy style of 2014. ” If you follow WilldaBEAST, you know that his career is taking off in a huge way.   He just won the Next Generation Award at the World Dance Awards 2014 signaling the industry’s view that he is the next exciting up and coming choreographer. All of us who know him already know that he is the BEAST!

I am so happy for Will. The new video is below. Be sure to click on his DVD offer at the end of the video. I was in that! You know that all of us dancers need all of the help we can get!

It is so great to be on Will’s team.  I’m having so much fun!!!

If you want to download the song from iTunes click here.  I gave you the link to the “clean” version by the way – the only one I’m allowed to listen to!

I will be releasing some new stuff that I worked on with WilldaBEAST in the next few weeks. Be sure to subscribe to my blog and/or subscribe to the Sparkles Lund YouTube page if you want to be notified when it drops.

Here is my #lilBEAST story

 

Here is the making of the trey songs video .  The not-so-secret romance between Will and Janelle goes public in the video  #outted by @directorBrazil

 

About WilldaBEAST Adams

Instagram: http://instagram.com/willdabeast__

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/willdabeast

 

About Janelle Ginestra

Instagram: http://instagram.com/janelleginestra

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/MissJanelleG

 

About World Dance Awards

http://www.worlddanceawards.com/

 

 

#immaBEAST crew selected for Dancing with the Stars

#immaBEAST crew selected for Dancing with the Stars

 

Otis Parson School of Design Fashion Show

By | Auditions, Friends, modeling, Work | One Comment

Otis Parsons Fashion ShowRecently, I had an audition at Otis parson school of design. It was for modeling, so the audition process was really fun and that is what I’ll be telling you about today.

When we got there, the audition was supposed to end at 3:00 and we got there at 2:59. Yikes, right! After we walked into the room, the guy said, “I remember you! I picked your headshot; adorable!” I was glad he said that because we weren’t even sure if I was going to be able to audition given our arrival time. After that, a woman walked in and said, “Have her try the one that no one fit into.” When she said that, the guy picked up an outfit and handed it to me. There was a small room guarded by curtains that he signaled me to go inside and change. The outfit fit perfectly! I think that that was a good thing because remember how earlier I told you what the woman said about how it was the outfit that know else fit into. Well, it fit me!

Pre Show Party DanceAfter that part of the audition, I put my own clothes back on, and I had to freestyle to Happy, by Pharell. It seems like every audition I’ve gone to lately has always been to that song. It’s super weird! I felt really good about it and the casting director seemed happy.

A few days later my mom got a call from my agent saying that I got the job! I was sort of expecting it because the casting director seemed really pleased with my audition. I was excited that I did get the job, but if I didn’t I would still be happy because I knew that I did the best I could. This is one of those occasions when I feel really lucky being fun sized.

After about two weeks I had the fitting for the job. It was a little bit weird because they just gave me the outfit and I had to undress in front of everyone in the room! After I put it on, they had me improv to Happy, by Pharell, again. As you can see, I’m getting a little sick of that song. I hear it basically every single day, but anyway back to the point. I improvd and then they made a few modifications to my outfit like put a pin here, tuck this in there, stuff like that. That was actually one of my favorite parts because I felt like a real life runway model! Then, once they made the modifications, I had to improv again. That was pretty much it! The whole fitting really only lasted roughly 10 minutes! But the whole thing was super fun and a great experience.

Two Thursdays later, I had my first rehearsal. I found out that the choreographer was Jackie Sleight, one of my favorite teachers at, as well as the owner of L.A. Dance Magic, a popular convention/competition I went to earlier in the year. The rehearsal was 5 hours long! We started at 1:00 in the afternoon and went until 6:00 p. m. First, we learned a big piece of the choreography and then had a break. Next, once the break was over, we learned another large chunk of it which was the part where we model the clothes for Under Armour, the sponsored brand. After that, we were pretty much done with all of the choreography and we just got to run it and get it in our minds better. The next day, we had another rehearsal but on the actual stage that we would be performing on. We did basically the same thing as the previous day, except it was on stage and the rehearsal was shorter. We also got to have some delicious food provided by the hotel the event was at.

Finally, the next day, we had the show! There were two shows, one in the afternoon and one at night. The night one was for some very important people like famous designers and photographers. In our preparation for the show, we had a few of the students that designed our outfits in the room with us, helping us get dressed and keeping us in order. They were really nice. I was so excited before we went on stage but I was also a little nervous. Once we went on, I felt this big boost of adrenaline and the show was great. The second show was just as great, except better! After both shows, I went swimming with two of my friends that also did the show, Hannah and Hayden. We had a bunch of fun in the pool, and then we had a delicious dinner.

The whole experience was super fun because of all the friends I made, the amazing designers, and of course, my loving parents.

Here is the video from the fashion show. I am at about the 22 second mark.

JuJu Plays Applejack In New Commercial

By | Friends, Work | 2 Comments

Juliana KellerOne of the great things about Dellos Performing Arts Center (DPAC) is the opportunity to be friends and dance with so many amazingly talented kids. One of my besties is Juliana Keller (aka Juju). She works really hard and is one of the top dancers at our studio. I learn so much from watching her. She is awesome.

Juju and her family have also been working on developing a career in the entertainment industry. Doing commercials, acting, dancing, singing, and that sort of stuff helps us offset the costs of our dance training. Auditions are always better when you get hired! I am so happy for Juju who is the absolute STAR of this video for My Little Pony. She plays the role of Applejack – sporting the hat and rocking out on the guitar.

I have known Juju ever since I started dancing at DPAC. She has always been really nice to me and we have learned so much from each other. I’m really proud of her booking this commercial. She always looks like she’s having so much fun when she’s dancing, and I’m pretty sure that she actually is! I love you Juju!

Please watch this video and share it with your friends.