The Global Media Site for Entertainment.
Menu
TheatreArtLife was created by the live entertainment and theatre industry for the industry. Our contributors are industry professionals working about the globe on shows and productions. In our “A Moment With” series, we give the opportunity to our contributors to tell their story and share their personal journey working in the entertainment industry.
Ashley Werhun
How did you get started in your career?
I started my professional dance career as a guest artist with Ballet British Columbia. After four months of auditioning without success, they called me on Thursday and said, “Can you be here on Monday?”.
They had seen an audition tape that I had sent months prior. This taught me that all planted seeds are valuable, even if they don’t come to fruition right away.
What is the best role/job/gig have you done and why?
My current role as CEO of Mentorly. It allows me to use all of my knowledge of the dance and broader creative fields to help make changes that are desperately needed.
What was the worst task you were given when you were starting out?
The worst turned out to be the best. When I was starting out in my career as a professional dancer I understudied A LOT. I mean every single role. If there were six women positions in a ballet, I knew all of them. At the time it felt like my brain was always overloaded, and I felt frustrated, but eventually it led me to my big breaks. Stepping in for women who got injured was how I got my first casting and eventually became a trusted dancer in the Trey McIntyre Project.
A very different type of “worst” was rolling out marley every morning to help subsidize the costs for dance school in San Francisco. It was tough on the arms, but was one of the ways I was able to bring my tuition down.
What do you think is your best skill?
Empathy and acting quickly.
What do other people think is your best skill?
Ability to connect with people.
What advice would you give your 18-year old self?
What you think is “success” will keep changing in your career. If you use the same measuring stick, you’ll always fall short because that isn’t your reality anymore.
What is your job now?
CEO of Mentorly.co
Follow Ashley Werhun on Instagram
Connect with Ashley Werhun on Mentorly
Visit Mentorly
For the last 10 years Ashley Werhun has been dancing with professional companies and touring the world. She started by dancing with NorthWest Dance Project and Ballet British Columbia, and then went on to join Trey McIntyre Project in 2008 as a founding member, and spent 6 seasons with them. With TMP Ashley created, performed, taught outreach events, lead master classes, participated in collaborative creative sessions with local artists around the world, and participated in artist discussions to facilitate cultural exchange. In 2015 she joined Les Ballet Jazz de Montreal, and have been creating and touring with them ever since. She is passionate about teaching, giving master classes, and engaging with communities through outreach to schools and hospitals, and is interested in how dance can be used in everyday education. Ashley has been fortunate to work with MindLeaps and Sitka Fine Arts Camp. She is the co-founder and CEO of Mentorly, and has a mission to make the path to becoming a professional artists more clear through mentorship and a global artistic community. She looks forward to talking to any artist who needs some guidance or artists who want to make the leap into other fields of work.
Read Full Profile
© 2021 TheatreArtLife. All rights reserved.
Thank you so much for reading, but you have now reached your free article limit for this month.
Our contributors are currently writing more articles for you to enjoy.
To keep reading, all you have to do is become a subscriber and then you can read unlimited articles anytime.
Your investment will help us continue to ignite connections across the globe in live entertainment and build this community for industry professionals.
