Hey ya'll! We're back with a special guest joining us the from Philippines! Our special guest is Mycs Villoso, the artistic director of the LSDC-Street,  director of The Hip-Hop Dance Convention and co-founder of AcadeMYCS dance program. As a practitioner and dance coach respected in the global dance community, Mycs shares how the art of dance is critical in self-development and identity formation. She shares with us on how to properly use hip-hop and traditional Filipino dance respectfully to avoid appropriating our own culture. (*Hint: do your research) By promoting our values and expressing our culture through dance, we must take the first steps to understanding the Filipino part first. She guides on how to be culturally sensitive with Filipino dance by being mindful of the indigenous materials, instruments and the history of the people that practice them. She also shares why its important to foster women empowerment in a largely male dominated dance community.



We also discuss why Filipino representation is more highly visible in the world of dance, as well the difference in the dance landscape between Manila and other regions. We talk about how dance became a part of our culture - stemming from our social gatherings, traditional games, and love for entertainment. She also shares with us on her Top 3 recommendations on where to visit in the Philippines. Lastly, she leaves us with profound words to describe why dance becomes a part of the Filipino identity - as people who feel emotion deeply, therefore it makes our art soulful.



"Knowledge feeds your brain, but arts feeds your soul" - Mycs Villoso



ABOUT MYCS VILLOSO

A practitioner and teacher, Mycs Villoso is the proponent and director of The Hip-Hop Dance Convention (2016 and 2017), the largest gathering of hip-hop dance in the Philippines, which brings together practitioners from all over the country to converse and practice. As the Artistic Director for more than 15 years of La Salle Dance Company-Street of De La Salle University, Mycs has directed multiple productions, choreographed for competitions, mentored dance teachers and represented the country. Committed to following the progress of the Hip-Hop Dance Convention, Mycs is presently collaborating with different dance community leaders in different islands of the Philippines for community projects, promoting dance education and continued relationship-building towards a stronger dance community. She co-produced Street Styles Summit in Iloilo City (2019 and 2020) to shift the focus of major dance events towards other islands in the country. During this pandemic, Mycs co-created AcadeMycs with the purpose of re-evaluating the state of dance teaching in the Philippines. Mycs is based in Manila.



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