Stir Q&A: Dancer Billy Mustapha talks Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist and training in a box
In-demand in the commercial world, he’s been able to keep his career moving through COVID
Photo by Ernest Von Rosen
IF YOU HAD to describe today’s dancers with only one word, it would be “resilient”.
With changing pandemic restrictions, artists are on their toes, ready to adapt to new guidelines as they come up. Many are still practising their passion and building their careers, now equipped with new approaches and a burning desire to create.
That kind of resiliency is what brought Vancouver-based commercial dancer Billy Mustapha to the set of NBC’s comedy Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist.
Mustapha is a recurring dancer on the locally shot show about a young woman who has the magical ability to hear the innermost thoughts of people as song-and-dance numbers. That means he gets to work under the direction of Emmy Award-winning choreographer Mandy Moore. He’s also a member of the skeleton crew, which gives him the chance to develop choreography with Moore before it’s taught to the rest of the performers.
Mustapha has built a name for himself here and in Los Angeles, however, his dance journey began in Calgary, where he was training in all genres by the time he was 11. His passion for movement brought him opportunities in his hometown, but he realized after graduating high school that moving to Vancouver was what he needed to cultivate a career.
Since then, Mustapha has established himself as one of the industry’s go-to dancers. His success began with the Triple Threat Dance Convention, where, as the Definite Threat scholarship winner, he worked closely with renowned professionals such as Luther Brown and Tina Landon. From there, he performed for Kenny Ortega in Disney’s Descendants 3, and even landed the role of assistant choreographer with Jillian Meyers for Apple’s commercial The Stuntman. And he juggles all that with teaching.
Stir had the chance to chat with Billy Mustapha about his rising stardom in the commercial dance industry, and his thoughts about building his career in the COVID-19 pandemic.
Did you always see yourself doing commercial dance, or had you considered the concert or academic dance approach?
“When I was in grade 10, I fell in love with the math of ballet—it’s either right or wrong. That excited me, and I wanted to be a ballet dancer for the longest time! But, commercial dance is heavily influenced by jazz and the urban hip-hop flavour, which I love, and I saw all that once I moved to Vancouver. Once I got a taste of it and started freelancing here, I knew commercial dance was something I wanted to pursue.”
How do you think your career would look if you hadn’t decided to start freelancing?
“Freelancing is all about connecting and learning. Because I was freelancing, I was going down so many different avenues with so many people, which gave me a lot of experience working with all kinds of dancers. Taking my career into my own hands made me cultivate a training program that was individualized to myself.”
How did that individualized training help you?
“I think getting individualized training makes you more authentic to yourself as a dancer. Being able to be a melting pot of all the people I’ve learned from, as well as bringing myself into it, creates such a unique individual style for myself. Going into the commercial world, it gives me a range—I’m not pinned to one technique or one style.”
What other skills do you have that you think is important for the industry?
“I love to hit the studio and work hard, and I think that has contributed to me being so versatile. That skill of versatility has booked me so many jobs—I think that’s probably one of the most important skills. As a human, I’m able to say ‘Yes, and…?’, and take what you give me and add to it, which I think is so important in a collaboration.”
What is something you had to overcome in the industry?
“Moving away from my family in Calgary to pursue my dreams was really hard. I was always an anxious kid—I used to make my little brother come with me to birthday parties, and my mom used to have to take me into competitions! I suffered from anxiety, so taking the plunge with my support system being so far away from me was difficult. That, and the coronavirus!”
How has COVID-19 affected your teaching jobs?
“Things changed so quickly. At first, masks were optional, then they said you have to stay in a box outlined on the floor with tape, six feet away from the other dancers. Currently, masks are mandatory, you still have to stay in the box, and you have to stay at low intensity.
“So now, I like to focus on creative choices and finding new avenues on the choreography I’m delivering for them. I think there’s so much value coming from this new dance class we have to create, because we can train different components of our dancers. New restrictions are good, because they create new possibilities!
“Zoom has been a challenge too! It’s hard to teach, demonstrate, and give personalized feedback at the same time. There’s also the lag, or someone’s wifi isn’t working, or they’re on the wrong leg, and it’s a huge adjustment. It helped to let go of the ego of it and realize that I’m here to take the kiddos out of the pandemic headspace.”
And your work as a dancer in class?
“I love to contact improv, travel, and take up space, so I’ll be honest—it was difficult to adapt and I still don’t think I’ve fully adapted. There’s been some negative aspects and some things that I really, really miss, but that just means they’ll taste extra sweet when we get them back. But, I get to take class with people around the world, which is really amazing and so valuable!”
Which part of your career would you relive if you could?
“I would relive a show I did called SONDER. I was able to do a lot of solos as a studio dancer, which doesn’t happen a lot in the commercial industry because you’re often enhancing what is already going on instead of being the focus. But, in SONDER, I got to be one of the main characters, and it allowed for me to reflect inwards and shine a light on a piece of myself that I was almost scared to show. It was such a gift to be able to be on stage as an individual and be a pivotal part of a storyline.”
Do you have a dream job, role, or collaboration?
“My dream has always been to dance for BANKS in a music video or on tour with her. Or, Sia, Lorde, FKA Twigs, Justin Bieber, and anyone like that. I want to work around the world, and I intend to work nationally as soon as I am able to—safely, of course.”
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