Howard Washington

Greyt Big Talk

Howard Washington speaks on "the duality of me" the juxtaposing sides of a creative entrepreneur and the internal battling forces that define who we are.

Howard Washington founded the ELEVĀTED Dance Company, for dancers who wanted to pursue hip hop as a career in Cleveland, Ohio. Since he formed the company in 2017, ELEVĀTED has performed at Playhouse Square, Akron Peacemakers, Best of the Best Fashion Show, House of Blues, Collaborated with Alex Angelo at The Grog Shop, and many more official and unofficial dance showcases arose the region. Under his leadership, ELEVĀTED placed 2nd at the World of Dance Competition (2017). That enormous accolade earned ELEVATED automatic entry into the World of Dance Championship, which took take place in Pasadena, California (2018) where they were crowned USA Team Champions.

In May 2018, ELEVĀTED opened its dance headquarters on Brecksville Road in Independence. This facility not only serves as the home of ELEVĀTED, but it also has become a full-fledged dance studio offering a variety of classes including hip hop, jazz, tap, contemporary, technique, choreographer’s muse, and adult hip hop cardio classes.

Howard believes that hip-hop dance should serve as a creative and expressive platform that unites all people that shares their love and passion for it. For more information on ELEVĀTED and the studio,

Howard is a graduate from Lake Erie College with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree specializing in choreography and minoring in Entrepreneurial Studies. He has been a special guest teacher/choreographer at Cleveland State University, Hathaway Brown, Padua High School, Brush High School, and Lake Erie College, and the Willoughby Fine Arts Association.

Original Recording Date: August 20th, 2021

Recording Location: Cleveland Public Square - Cleveland, OH