Tahlia Joanna Byers

Tahlia grew up submerged in the theatrical influences of Bob Fosse, Jerome Robbins, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Sondheim and Tchaikovsky thanks to her mother's passion for all things ballet and theatre. She first stepped foot into a dance studio at seven, when she was forced to choose between competing professionally in gymnastics or taking her very first ballet class at the Sarasota Ballet of Florida. She chose ballet under the instruction of Tessa Williams, and soon after added tap (Steven Vincent) and voice lessons (E. Susan Ott) into her training. Thanks to her quick-study capabilities and natural sense of rhythm, she catapulted to the front of her dance classes, skipping levels and growing increasingly determined to master each skill and style. When the Prima Ballerina of the Sarasota Ballet -- Diane Partington -- retired, Tahlia decided to follow her quality and became one of her first students and company members of the Parrish Youth Ballet at the studio Partington opened with her husband Rey Dizon, The Studio of Classical Ballet (http://partingtonclassicalballet.com/). She trained there under their tutelage and that of Filipe Gadar, Gloria Gaither, Martine Moore and other guest artists for the next eight years, featured annually in The Nutcracker each winter, and varying full-length classical ballets each spring. Eager to expand other aspects of her training, Tahlia enrolled at both the Players of Sarasota Dance School and the Cheryl Carty Academy, broadening her appreciation of quality and competency in Tap, Jazz, and Irish training.

Meanwhile, Tahlia had found her true calling in the form of musical theatre. She knew she would never be a ballerina (having always been a little more curvy and muscular than the average ideal), and had grown to love the variety of musicals she had experienced at the world-class theatres in the Tampa Bay area. Her first show (Oklahoma! - Dir. Cheryl Carty)was a classic, and she soon expanded her worldview to that of all the local community theatres. A highlight of her youth was playing her first lead at the age of 15, starring as Peggy Sawyer (42nd Street - Dir. Rick Kerby) at the award-winning Manatee Riverfront Players. Of all the theatres she's worked at in the Sarasota/Bradenton area -- Golden Apple Dinner Theatre, Venice [Little] Theatre, Players of Sarasota, The Sarasota Opera House, The Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall -- the Riverfront Players stole her heart. She has been fortunate enough to perform most of her career on the little bitty stage in the original theatre, and was privileged enough to be involved with the Premier show at the brand new Manatee Performing Arts Center (Miss Saigon), and evolution that took a decade under the careful direction and tireless vision of the Managing Artistic Director, Rick Kerby.

Tahlia attended the Manatee School for the Arts, where she tapped into Ballroom/Dance Sport under the guidance of Pamela Callender and Jason Raimey. She also studied straight plays and classical theatre, and even took "The Glass Menagerie" to the Florida Theatre Conference, where she won Best Actress in a Play for her portrayal of Amanda Wingfield (Dir. Dr. Joseph DiCicco). She graduated with Honors and, thanks to Dual Enrollment through the State College of Florida, spent only a summer obtaining her Associates Degree (Dean's List/National Honors Society).

And then New York came calling. She moved to the city (courtesy of her transferable position with Starbucks Coffee Co.) and took up residence between Starbucks (47th and Broadway), Broadway Dance Center, Steps on Broadway and Alvin Ailey Studios. Thanks to her truly talented friend Brianne White, she met Sue Samuels (of JoJo's Dance Factory and BDC fame, mother of tapper Jason Samuels-Smith) and was delighted to be a founding company member of her new company, Jazz Root's Dance (http://www.jazzrootsdance.com/). She spent the hours she wasn't working to pay her rent between the various studios, absorbing as much knowledge as she could and finding out the hard way that she was still quite green in the professional world. After auditions and classes and work and two winters, this Island Chick decided to take a breathe and a temporary hiatus from city life.

Tahlia moved back to Florida to calm her mind and re-focus, all the while exploring multiple crafts and performing in her home theatres. After trying her hand as a dancer with Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines, she bought a house with potential and completely renovated it (mostly) by hand. Life seemed to be going rather well for a while... and then she experienced theatre that reignited her passion and reminded her exactly why she needed to be dancing -- Noah Racey's "Pulse". It was brilliant, inspiring, and something she absolutely HAD to be doing. After stalking the cast and seeing the show five times, Tahlia decided she needed to reassess her priorities and follow her dreams. Equity or not, you have to start somewhere!

So here we are, present day, auditioning and training like mad. Tahlia hopes to embark upon many more wonderful adventures, and will continue to learn and grow and go into waaaaay too much detail to anyone who asks how she's doing and what she's been up to and where she'd like to go.

Help her add to her repertoire!

Merde!