Today we’d like to introduce you to Daisy Aguilar, Daniel Hernandez.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
It started with the words “catch me”. One afternoon in the dance studio, Daisy launched herself in the air towards Daniel and yelled “Catch Me!” Through play, latin music, and a curiosity to creative something innovative, we created #TeamDoubleDs. A dynamic duo with a unanimous passion for dance and a drive to eventually form a professional dance partnership and have opportunities to teach and perform at local, national, and international events.
Back in 2013, we first encountered each other on a salsa student team at Amaya Dance, a Southwest Based Salsa and Bachata Dance Company that provides dance training and performance opportunities for the Houston Community. We both had a passion for dance which brought us to work together on side projects and then we finally decided to see what we could create together. Both of us had our individual unique styles and decided to merge together to creative something innovative in the Houston Latin Dance community. Daisy, having previous non-latin dance training and received her Bachelors of Arts in Dance Studies from Texas Woman’s University was intrigued by the authenticity of street salsa and bachata and quickly becoming obsessed with learning more. Daniel, having danced for several years when he met Daisy, starting off as a beginner student and shortly after intensely dedicating his efforts to growing in this craft with a unique ear for musicality was enticed by the creative process of choreography.
We started teaching together at Amaya Dance and with the encouragement of our director and friends, we debut our first duet choreography in 2015 and launched us in the beginning of being known as #TeamDoubleDs. We introduced a fresh concept of merging two styles: contemporary dance with bachata dance. We decided to represent dance as an art form in an entertainment industry.
As any other artists, our style developed throughout the years with training from other instructors, growing as instructors, and staying relevant in a evolving industry.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
In any profession, there are always struggles and bumps along the road. That’s just life. The value and growth comes with how you handle those obstacles. In the dance industry, the constant pressure to be relevant, the body’s aging process, and balancing work/ life/ and professional dance career is taxing in general. With a common purpose of reaching different platforms to continue spread our passion of dance through unique performances and effective teaching style, it pushes us to continue to thrive in what we do.
Please tell us about Daniel & Daisy – #TeamDoubleDs .
We design dance classes, workshops, and performances depending on what the event or client needs. Mainly focus on bachata and salsa styles, but also offer cumbia, merengue, and hip-hop. In an industry mainly focused on exposure and networking, we’re very proud of having different opportunities to teach in salsa and bachata congress such as Houston Salsa Congress, Denver Salsa Congress and D.C. Bachata Congress. In 2017, we were the first couple to represent USA in a dance competition called Bachatart in France!
If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
If we had to start over, we would have done more research as far as people that are successful in our industry and reached out for mentorship. We’ve figured it out as we go and I think it could have helped us establish a clear vision/mission earlier on in our career.
Pricing:
- Pricing is individual basis once we know what the client/customer needs and we create a quote based on that.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/danielanddaisy.teamdds/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TeamDds.dance/
