One is a well-known international company, a leader in the fitness industry whose winning formula of combining jazz dance with elements of resistance training, yoga, cardio boxing and Pilates has helped countless people stay fit and healthy since 1969.
The other is a small professional theater company that came on the scene about a decade ago and quickly became a critic's darling, gaining a reputation for staging thought-provoking and adventurous plays with a focus on strong ensemble work.
From the outside, one would be hard-pressed to find much to link Jazzercise to New Village Arts Theatre (NVA).
In truth, however, New Village Arts owes much to Jazzercise.
For five years, before landing its home in the Village of Carlsbad, NVA called a portion of Jazzercise's corporate headquarters in Carlsbad home. During that time, the studio space that Jazzercise staff use to record the routines they send to their instructors and promotional video shoots became a theater, capable of seating up to 80 people.
In that nontraditional setting, NVA staged several critically-acclaimed productions, including Sam Shepard's "A Lie of the Mind," and Anton Chekhov's "Three Sisters."
Kristianne Kurner, NVA's executive artistic director, said the time was invaluable to the then young theater company. Not having to worry about paying rent, utility bills and the other overhead costs associated with operating its own theater, New Village Arts was able to focus on its productions and on finding its theatrical identity, Kurner said. Jazzercise served, in a way, as an incubator for New Villarge Arts.
"In those five years, we were able to build support for what we were doing and build up our patron base," Kurner said. "When we moved, we were already established."
Kurner and her ex-husband, both graduates of New York's Actors Studio Drama School, founded New Village Arts in 2001. Their first full production was held in the Granary in Magee Park. The theater group also held regular workshops at the Granary. When they were about to lose their space because it was going to be renovated, one of the students in the workshop suggested they approach Jazzercise about the space.
That person was Jack Missett, husband of Jazzercise founder and CEO Judi Sheppard Missett. Jack Missett, a former television news reporter who has been active in the theater scene in San Diego and Orange County for many years, said he made no promises to the young theater group.
"I told them right away that just because my wife and I own the company, we can't say you have to allow this," said Missett, who is now an ensemble member at New Village Arts. "I told them we would have to treat this objectively and suggested they make a presentation."
Sally Baldridge, Jazzercise's chief operating officer, said Jazzercise knew there were risks involved, but determined that it wanted to help.
“We were excited about the opportunity to be able to help a young organization like New Village Arts get started," Baldridge said. "It felt right to let them into our space and give them that opportunity to grow."
When they met, both companies found they had much in common.
Judi Sheppard Missett was a professional jazz dancer and theater actress. While teaching classes, she wondered why many of her students would quickly drop out of her classes. She soon found out that the reason was that her students didn't want to become professional dancers, they just wanted to look like they were.
She re-focused her classes, keeping elements of dance but making routines that were simple, enjoyable and easy to follow. Jazzercise was born from that idea, Missett said.
"I didn't have a business plan or a blueprint for this to become a business," she said. "That was never in my head. This evolved after I started doing what I loved to do."
After relocating to North San Diego County from Chicago, her business boomed. Because many of the women she taught were either in the military or married to military men, she soon started videotaping her routines, which helped Jazzercise expand and foretold its entry into the home fitness field.
Today, the global fitness franchise has a network of 7,800 instructors and hosts more than 32,000 classes in 32 countries. In fiscal year 2009-2010, Jazzercise had its most successful year, with system wide sales topping $96 million.
Jazzercise has also shown a commitment to the arts in the community. Part of that is reflected on the arrangement with New Village Arts, and the company also showcases the work of local artists in its headquarters.
Judi Sheppard Missett said having New Village Arts at their headquarters also benefited her employees.
"They have very creative people, and it really invigorated our people to have them around," she said. "Our people got excited about it. We really enjoyed that and I was very honored and happy to be able to say that maybe I have made some kind of small contribution to their success."
Kurner said that in addition to providing the studio space, the relationship with Jazzercise helped the theater company grow as a business.
Also, some of some Jazzercise’s values, such as the focus on treating employees as if they were members of the family, finding a passion and then building a business around it and encouraging art in the community are ingrained in what New Village Arts is today.
Though they are no longer based out of the Jazzercise building, New Village Arts sometimes uses it as a rehearsal space, as they did recently for rehearsals for the upcoming production of William Shakespeare's "The Comedy of Errors."
"It's like coming home for us," said Kurner. "We just shared so much here, and I think it helped us grow as a company."
Plus, Kurner added, whenever she has a business issue, she knows she can always turn to Missett and the Jazzercise staff for advice.
These days, both companies continue to thrive.
New Village Arts is currently in its 11th season, which showcases its ensemble. The season has already resulted in another critically acclaimed show for NVA, "Of Mice & Men." Three shows are left in the season, including "The Comedy of Errors" from Feb. 11 to March 4 and a world premiere of an ensemble piece created specifically for the theater in June.
And for its 12th season, NVA will be the first local theater to stage the Pulitzer's Prize and Tony-winning musical "Next to Normal."
Jazzercise, meanwhile, is benefiting from a partnership with Cheryl Burke, a two-time winner of the popular television show "Dancing with the Stars."
Burke appears with Judi Sheppard Missett in "Latin Live by Jazzercise," a DVD that will be sold as part of a DVD three-Pack on QVC, the televised shopping network later this month. Company President Shanna Missett Nelson, Judi's and Jack's daughter, will represent the company during the broadcast, which will take place at 9 a.m. PST on Feb. 15.
The other is a small professional theater company that came on the scene about a decade ago and quickly became a critic's darling, gaining a reputation for staging thought-provoking and adventurous plays with a focus on strong ensemble work.
From the outside, one would be hard-pressed to find much to link Jazzercise to New Village Arts Theatre (NVA).
In truth, however, New Village Arts owes much to Jazzercise.
For five years, before landing its home in the Village of Carlsbad, NVA called a portion of Jazzercise's corporate headquarters in Carlsbad home. During that time, the studio space that Jazzercise staff use to record the routines they send to their instructors and promotional video shoots became a theater, capable of seating up to 80 people.
In that nontraditional setting, NVA staged several critically-acclaimed productions, including Sam Shepard's "A Lie of the Mind," and Anton Chekhov's "Three Sisters."
Kristianne Kurner, NVA's executive artistic director, said the time was invaluable to the then young theater company. Not having to worry about paying rent, utility bills and the other overhead costs associated with operating its own theater, New Village Arts was able to focus on its productions and on finding its theatrical identity, Kurner said. Jazzercise served, in a way, as an incubator for New Villarge Arts.
"In those five years, we were able to build support for what we were doing and build up our patron base," Kurner said. "When we moved, we were already established."
Kurner and her ex-husband, both graduates of New York's Actors Studio Drama School, founded New Village Arts in 2001. Their first full production was held in the Granary in Magee Park. The theater group also held regular workshops at the Granary. When they were about to lose their space because it was going to be renovated, one of the students in the workshop suggested they approach Jazzercise about the space.
That person was Jack Missett, husband of Jazzercise founder and CEO Judi Sheppard Missett. Jack Missett, a former television news reporter who has been active in the theater scene in San Diego and Orange County for many years, said he made no promises to the young theater group.
"I told them right away that just because my wife and I own the company, we can't say you have to allow this," said Missett, who is now an ensemble member at New Village Arts. "I told them we would have to treat this objectively and suggested they make a presentation."
Sally Baldridge, Jazzercise's chief operating officer, said Jazzercise knew there were risks involved, but determined that it wanted to help.
“We were excited about the opportunity to be able to help a young organization like New Village Arts get started," Baldridge said. "It felt right to let them into our space and give them that opportunity to grow."
When they met, both companies found they had much in common.
Judi Sheppard Missett was a professional jazz dancer and theater actress. While teaching classes, she wondered why many of her students would quickly drop out of her classes. She soon found out that the reason was that her students didn't want to become professional dancers, they just wanted to look like they were.
She re-focused her classes, keeping elements of dance but making routines that were simple, enjoyable and easy to follow. Jazzercise was born from that idea, Missett said.
"I didn't have a business plan or a blueprint for this to become a business," she said. "That was never in my head. This evolved after I started doing what I loved to do."
After relocating to North San Diego County from Chicago, her business boomed. Because many of the women she taught were either in the military or married to military men, she soon started videotaping her routines, which helped Jazzercise expand and foretold its entry into the home fitness field.
Today, the global fitness franchise has a network of 7,800 instructors and hosts more than 32,000 classes in 32 countries. In fiscal year 2009-2010, Jazzercise had its most successful year, with system wide sales topping $96 million.
Jazzercise has also shown a commitment to the arts in the community. Part of that is reflected on the arrangement with New Village Arts, and the company also showcases the work of local artists in its headquarters.
Judi Sheppard Missett said having New Village Arts at their headquarters also benefited her employees.
"They have very creative people, and it really invigorated our people to have them around," she said. "Our people got excited about it. We really enjoyed that and I was very honored and happy to be able to say that maybe I have made some kind of small contribution to their success."
Kurner said that in addition to providing the studio space, the relationship with Jazzercise helped the theater company grow as a business.
Also, some of some Jazzercise’s values, such as the focus on treating employees as if they were members of the family, finding a passion and then building a business around it and encouraging art in the community are ingrained in what New Village Arts is today.
Though they are no longer based out of the Jazzercise building, New Village Arts sometimes uses it as a rehearsal space, as they did recently for rehearsals for the upcoming production of William Shakespeare's "The Comedy of Errors."
"It's like coming home for us," said Kurner. "We just shared so much here, and I think it helped us grow as a company."
Plus, Kurner added, whenever she has a business issue, she knows she can always turn to Missett and the Jazzercise staff for advice.
These days, both companies continue to thrive.
New Village Arts is currently in its 11th season, which showcases its ensemble. The season has already resulted in another critically acclaimed show for NVA, "Of Mice & Men." Three shows are left in the season, including "The Comedy of Errors" from Feb. 11 to March 4 and a world premiere of an ensemble piece created specifically for the theater in June.
And for its 12th season, NVA will be the first local theater to stage the Pulitzer's Prize and Tony-winning musical "Next to Normal."
Jazzercise, meanwhile, is benefiting from a partnership with Cheryl Burke, a two-time winner of the popular television show "Dancing with the Stars."
Burke appears with Judi Sheppard Missett in "Latin Live by Jazzercise," a DVD that will be sold as part of a DVD three-Pack on QVC, the televised shopping network later this month. Company President Shanna Missett Nelson, Judi's and Jack's daughter, will represent the company during the broadcast, which will take place at 9 a.m. PST on Feb. 15.