2022 Women of the Year: Heather Britt's Dancefix aims to make dance available to everyone

Heather Britt was practically born dancing. From a young age she'd dance anywhere she was standing.

Cincinnati's School for the Creative and Performing Arts helped her realize her dream, launching her into a career of dancing professionally in New York and San Francisco after graduating from high school.

In 2000, the lure of her hometown beckoned. Back in Cincinnati, Britt, 49, started a dance company that today is known as Dancefix.

There are several classes a week at Britt's Blue Ash studio and at the Cincinnati Ballet, where people of all dance abilities gather for what's billed as a workout, but devotees of the class liken to therapy and a party, of people from all backgrounds.

This is no beginner dance class where you start easy and move on to complicated moves. Participants jump into routines choreographed by Britt, who also runs HBDC (Heather Britt Dance Choreography.) Britt promised there is no judgment and, over time, all the dances can be mastered.

"It's important for Dance Fix to be a mirror of the whole community," Britt said.

Dancefix is Britt's full-time job now, but she's also a choreographer for the Cincinnati Ballet, has worked at the ballet in education and outreach and at Northern Kentucky University.

Her mission has always been the same: To give people the chance to dance.

Ask anyone who's taken a class and they'll sing the praises of Britt and Dancefix.

Cincinnati City Councilman Reggie Harris, a Dance Fix devotee, said "DanceFix is a great equalizer in the community. People from all walks of life, all parts of the region, and folks with differing social and political beliefs all come together to dance and enjoy each other’s company. This didn’t happen by coincidence. It is a direct result of Heather’s vision, leadership, and humanity.”

Britt says she is able to lift people up because she had three women who guided her career. She ticked them off:

• Consuelo Faust, owner of San Fransico-based Rhythm & Motion, showed Britt what it was like to be a successful woman business owner in the dance world and have a family at the same time. She empowered Britt to lead Rhyt&M when I brought it here to Cincinnati in 2000.

• Lois Rosenthal, a Cincinnati arts patron who died 2014, hired Britt to teach at Uptown Arts, an organization whose mission is to nurture young artists. Britt said Rosenthal saw Britt's potential in higher education. "Lois Rosenthal first hired me to teach at Uptown Arts and saw my potential in higher education. She opened the door by introducing me to the Chair at NKU which was a giant step in my career."

• Victoria Morgan, the Cincinnati Ballet’s former artistic director, provided opportunities for Britt to choreograph with Cincinnati Ballet at the professional level.

Britt worked at Northern Kentucky University for several years before dedicating herself to Dance Fix full-time in 2016.

Britt has also choreographed contemporary ballet works for multiple organizations, including the Cincinnati Ballet and the Nashville Ballet, theatrical productions for Playhouse in The Park and commercial choreography for Zone Perfect Bars and Fleetwood Mac through Lightborne.

Cincinnati Enquirer reviewers have called Britt's work “mesmerizing”, “exuberant”, “moving”, “eloquent” and “heartbreaking.”

Britt grew her company to 14 employees. She weathered the pandemic with online and outdoor classes.

Now her dance community is giving back to her. Britt was diagnosed with cancer earlier this summer and is in the midst of treatment. Before she had told anyone about her diagnosis, she went to a Dancefix class herself.

She had choreographed the class and chose the music. Still when Pink's "All I Know So Far" came on, tears flowed.

"My community is coming full circle for me," Britt said. "It’s what’s giving me energy. When I found out, I just wanted to go away and hide, I felt so vulnerable. But I felt the energy. It let me know things were going to be OK."

What inspires you to give back?

"I have expressed myself through dance since I was a young child. I want people to have that same experience. "

What need in the community would you like to see addressed?

"More access to the arts. I know there is programming that offers help, but there remains a disparity. I feel like there could be a way to reach more people."

Who most influenced or inspired you to care about others?

My mom. She has always treated everyone with respect and love. She is about everything being fair. I look out for the underdog and want everything to be fair, just like she has done.

About Heather Britt

• Birthplace: Westwood.

• Current residence: Columbia Tusculum.

• Family: Mom, two college-age daughters.

• Education: Graduated from the Cincinnati School for the Performing arts and became a professional dancer.

• Occupation: Business owner, Dance Fix, choreographer, dance educator, performer.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Heather Britt's Dancefix aims to make dance available to everyone