Anyone who knows me knows that while I’m not shy, my personality is definitely more on the introverted side, and because of that, I’ve always been drawn to dance as a means of self-expression. Since I was three, dance has been an integral part of my life in some way, shape, or form, and in more recent years, I’ve fallen madly in love with samba – the antithesis of my ballet background.
Brittany travels to Waterton Lakes National Park in Alberta, Canada to experience her first pow-wow at the Blackfoot Arts and Cultural Festival
So when I first heard about Brittany Pierce, Host and Executive Producer of the PBS show, “Rhythm Abroad”, I knew that I wanted to feature her in my Travel Trailblazers series here on the blog. You see, “Rhythm Abroad” isn’t your typical run of the mill travel show where the host eats new and strange cuisines or simply highlights a destination’s popular sites. Nope! When Brittany travels abroad, she connects with the locals on a completely different level through music and dance. From Swiss folk dance and Spanish Flamenco to the traditional dances of the Blackfoot First Nations tribe in Alberta, Canada, Brittany has seemingly seen and danced it all.
In this interview, Brittany shares a bit about her travel background, how she got into television production, and why she uses dance as a way to connect with locals abroad. But first, check out this clip of Brittany in action…
What sparked your interest in news reporting and production?
I was a child actor and had spent a good chunk of my childhood going to auditions and taking acting classes. For my freshman year of college my major was undecided as I didn’t want to major in theatre because I wanted to acquire other skills. After meeting with a college counselor I decided to enroll in a couple of journalism classes. A few classes in and I realized news reporting and production was a path I wanted to stick with – at least that was the thought when I was 19.
Where did you take your first trip abroad?
I traveled to both Nicaragua and Costa Rica [in 2006] as part of a short term study abroad program with a local community college. I had just finished my B.A. and had won a full ride scholarship in my senior year of college which provided me with the money to travel abroad as I had never had the opportunity to do so prior to then.
Had you traveled within the U.S. prior to that?
Yes, I had been to a couple of other states within the U.S., but not many and I had certainly never traveled outside the U.S. Growing up, any extra money my mom earned was invested in my private school education and extra-curricular activities, so family vacations consisted of visiting family in Arizona or going to Las Vegas. However, I always had the desire to travel and loved learning about different cultures.
Tell us a bit about your dance background? When did you start dancing?
I’m not a professional dancer; however, I was a competitive cheerleader in both junior high and high school. Outside of cheerleading, my dance experience is limited to going to house parties when I was in high school. LOL! I like to dance, enjoy a great beat and I think it’s a great way to connect with people of other cultures despite background differences.
How did you come up with the idea for “Rhythm Abroad”, and what drew you to seek connections with locals through music and dance?
During my travels to Nicaragua I went to a local club with my travel mates in the town of Granada. We were the only Americans in the club. A guy asked me to dance in his limited English and I responded in my limited Spanish. It was during the few minutes we danced together that I felt I had genuinely been invited to share in the Nicaraguan culture with the Nicaraguan people. There wasn’t any awkwardness about the exchange, it was just two people enjoying each other’s company and living in the moment together despite any differences that may have existed between us. It was after this experience I thought a travel show with a twist of dance and music would be fun and appealing. I just didn’t know at the time that years later after leaving the news industry that I would be the one to create such a show.
How did you and Julie Rosendo meet and what prompted you guys to team up? (Note: Julie Rosendo is the Executive Producer and Director of “Rhythm Abroad”, and a former PBS producer who produced the Emmy Award winning PBS travel series, “Travelscope”.)
Julie was originally my consultant, but through conversation we realized that working together for the first season of “Rhythm Abroad” may be a good idea.
How did you go about pitching your show idea and eventually getting it picked up by PBS?
Persistence, networking, using the resources I already had, and having a show concept with a unique twist.
Brittany takes to the local activities of Bora Bora with a paddle board lesson
How does the production team choose shooting locations?
There are some logistics considered, but it is mostly based on where I want to go and if the country visited has a vibrant national or traditional dance to share.
Describe a typical day of traveling and filming.
Early mornings, late nights and long travel days are to be expected for every shoot. We all work extremely hard while in the field and we only get one shot to get it right. We are usually on a tight schedule and go long periods of time working without stopping for a meal until the scene is fully covered. With all that said, we do get an amazing opportunity to meet some great people and take part in experiences that others may only dream of.
While visiting the Tiki Village on the island Moorea, Brittany is invited to learn the infectious rhythms of Tahitian dance
What’s been your favorite travel/dance experience to date?
Off the air, Balinese dance and Irish Set-Dancing. Balinese dance was a bit difficult for me, but it was still a lot of fun. On the air, Tahitian dance was pretty darn cool too. The drum beats the dance is danced to is really infectious.
What advice can you offer to those who’d like to break into travel television production or even for those who want to improve their YouTube travel videos?
Travel television is very niche and there aren’t many opportunities, so create opportunity for yourself by doing your own videos. Try finding a new angle to cover travel. Simply creating travel videos is not new and there is much too much competition in the space to not approach the content you are trying to deliver from a new perspective.
How has learning about different rhythms abroad changed you? What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learned?
You don’t need a common language or even the same background to be able to connect with other people. Music and dance are the universal languages and have provided a way for me to be able to share laughs and exchange good energy with people I may not have otherwise been able to.
What do you envision for the future of your show?
I want continual growth for the show. The creative process never ends.
How often do you travel?
It depends on my shoot schedule. Some shoots can be booked weeks apart and others can be spread out, but traveling is only one part of the work I do. A good chunk of my time is spent writing and doing a bunch of post-production responsibilities as I like to have a hand in the creative process from start to finish.
Where are you headed next?
Ecuador and Peru.
When can we view your show?
Check your local PBS station for airtimes (each station has their own programming schedule). If for some reason your local station is one of the few stations not carrying “Rhythm Abroad” or is not showing any upcoming airtimes, send an email to your station requesting that “Rhythm Abroad” be worked into their programming schedule.
Why do you travel?
Why not? Simply put, it enriches my life in more ways than one.
*Subscribe to the “Rhythm Abroad” You Tube channel, check out the “Rhythm Abroad” website, and stay in loop with the show via Facebook
*All images provided courtesy of Brittany Pierce
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Do you use dance as a way of connecting with locals abroad during your travels, or do you have a favorite travel memory involving dance? Please share in the comments.
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