FOOTWERX
Bringing Tapping Back One Sole at a Time!
D’Andria Williams – D’Andria was born in Chester, PA. At the age of 3, she learned to tap dance from her father, Darrell Williams; they have shared the stage ever since. She attended the High School of the Creative and Performing Arts and is a graduate of Temple University. She continues to be a guest tap instructor at Temple University and Swarthmore College. D’Andria has performed in New York State Originals Tap Kids, Break the Floor, and has taped on the Sally Jesse Raphael Show as well as It’s Showtime at the Apollo. Currently, D’Andria performs, choreographs and assistant directs Footwerx. She has performed at venues including the Grand Opera House in Delaware, the Merriam Theater, the Arts bank and the Wilma Theater, all in Philadelphia, PA.
Matthew Soojian, a West Chester PA native, started his dance training at the Rock School West. He attended the Creative and Performing Arts High School of Philadelphia under the direction of LaDeva Davis. While there, he had the opportunity to perform in 6ABC Thanksgiving Day Parades as well as the Cherry Blossom Parade in Washington, DC. He has attended summer programs at Boston Ballet, The Rock School, and BalletX. In 2014, Matthew graduated from the University of the Arts with a BFA in Ballet Performance. While studying at UArts he has performed works choreographed by Christine Cox, Meredith Rainey, Helen Simoneau, Robert Burden, Molly Misgalla, Scott Jovovich, and Brian Sanders. In 2008 he joined Footwerx Tap Company under the direction of Darrell Williams and currently serves as both a dancer and an assistant choreographer. In 2014, Matthew joined Ballet 180 - a premier professional contemporary ballet company. Matthew is also an aspiring choreographer creating ballet, tap, and contemporary works. His work has been presented at Koresh’s Come Together Festival, BalletFleming, and Ballet 180.
Brielle Johnson – Brielle began dancing at the age of three at Braodway Bound Dance Academy in Media, PA. There she studied tap, jazz, hip hop and lyrical until the age of ten. Throughout those years she competed on the competition team and travel to many different states to show her talent and love for dance. Around the age of eleven Brielle decided to change locations to train specifically in tap. She met Darrell Williams at Springton Dance Academy in early 2007. There Brielle trained in tap, jazz, ballet, and contemporary and modern. While at Springton, she also was part of the competition team, and just before retiring from competitions she received numerous awards for her final tap solo including judge’s favorite dance for the whole competition. Brielle was asked to join Footwerx in 2008 and since has been performing in every show and became apart of the staff and operations behind the scene of each performance. To also further her training, she followed Darrell Williams to numerous students such as On Edge Movement Studio, Joan’s Dance Studio, and Let’s Dance Studio. Brielle decided to stay local for college to stay with the company and is currently working on a degree in Human Development at Penn State Brandywine. Brielle is very enthusiastic about being a part of the company and sharing knowledge with the younger generation of Footwerx!
Emily Brong, a Telford, PA native, began dancing at the tender age of three. Emily has eleven years training at the Rock School West in West Chester. It was there that she specialized in jazz, contemporary, hip hop, and ballet technique and performance. Emily has performed in annual showcases along the East Coast as well as a 2014 performance at Disneyland in Los Angeles, California. Emily has also performed in elite competitions such as NYCDA, Onstage New York, CoDance, as well as other prestigious groups. Emily has received tap scholarships as well as regional scholarships from NYCDA, OnStage New York, CoDance, and Starpower each year that she has participated. In both 2007 and 2012 she has placed as the top dancer in the entire competition and has received awards for being the top dancer in the entire competition and has received awards for being the top ranked performer in the region. Emily is currently a student at California University of Pennsylvania where she is studying Personal Training and Exercise Science with aspirations of becoming a personal trainer and the continuation of teaching and training dancers. Emily currently serves as an assistant choreographer and lead jazz choreographer for Footwerx Tap Company with over ten theater productions with this company under her belt. Her personal style is all about dancing from the soul and challenging herself and others to grow even more. Dance is Emily's escape and she loves to spread that joy to students, colleagues, and anyone watching. Her ultimate goal is to mix her passion for fitness and dance into a lifestyle that allows her to expand upon them every day. After all, "it takes an athlete to dance, but an artist to be a dancer."
D’Andria Williams
Matthew Soojian
Brielle Johnson
Emily Brong