Mikey D’Astoli is a 15 year old member of BeatClubCrew. He started dancing at age 13 under the mentorship of Eric Samson, with a strong focus on pure styles such as bboying, popping, house, locking, vogue, and industry styles. Performances with Beat Club include “Run the night” and “Broadway underground”. Knowing that there are so many different tricks and moves to learn he struggles every day to achieve them. Since a year ago Mikey wanted to further his knowledge and understand every style of dance. He started to take classes such as contemporary, jazz, tap, and ballet. Fascinated by the different ways of movement, he wanted to fill his brain with everything it could possibly hold. Always being told he wasn’t going to make it out in the world or make anything of himself, especially in dance, just made him more determined in achieving his goal. This goal to inspire others that dance isn’t just steps or moves; it’s a way of living. Every move has emotion, a meaning behind it.

When He came across the style of “popping” he was able to open his imagination and let it run free. Being able to create what he saw in his head with the flexing and waving of his muscles. In his mind everything is a game and in popping he uses his “power” to get to the next level. Always building and building energy until it reaches the point where he “explodes with power”. The quote “power is born within the heart, when the time is right you just have to look inside yourself, and you’ll find it there.” Means that we all have a unique ability its just a matter of time when we realize that its always been there we just never take the time to realize it.

Viewing the world in a different way ever since he was a little boy, his imagination and mind could not be understood by normal people, making him stand out from the crowd. Even though he wasn’t accepted by most, he accepted himself for who he was. Being different his whole life contributes to the way he dances. From not caring about what other people think he is able to “black out” when the music hits. When the music goes on, he “closes his eyes” and “opens his mind”. Mikey is able to be controlled by the sounds of music and let the rhythm flow in the veins of his body. Dance allows Mikey to express himself through movement. Dance lets him speak a language in which people can understand him more clearly. He is not only a dancer, he is an artist. Finding dance changed his life completely because without this the road ahead was not pleasing. He promises to defeat any “negative” things or people that will stop him or his crew from progressing forward. “There is no growth, without struggle.