As one of the co creators/executive producers of the hit reality show Dance Moms, this podcast will be a safe space to talk about all things Dance. I will have meaningful conversations with guests from the show Dance Moms, as well as discussing the colorful, magical Dance competition world that I grew up competing in and am still a part of teaching and choreographing for. Dancing and being in the film and TV Industry for over 40 years I will be talking with those who who have inspired me and we will share our knowledge on what worked, what didn’t and why. Growing up a young feminine boy who loved to dance was extremely challenging in a lot of ways. Now as gay man I will have some heartfelt meetings with people in the LGBTQ community to share about this and the suffering that goes on currently with adults and kids and how we can help and most importantly heal it.
Put your dance shoes on every other Friday when this podcast comes out! Listen. Be Bold. Be Fierce.
Sincerely,
John Corella
EP 59: Before Dance Moms there was Julie's Jazz Pizzazz
Julie Renn spent years telling her students anything was possible. Then the industry hardened her, and the day she talked her own daughter out of an audition showed her what that had cost. Her story offers an honest look at how to inspire young dancers without letting fear do the teaching.
On Dance Dad, host John Corella, co-creator of Dance Moms, sits down with the choreographer and producer behind Julie's Jazz Pizzazz. As a competitive dance studio owner, Julie opened her first studio at 17 and went on to put about 35 groups on Star Search. John grew up watching those groups from the competition floor, and he still credits them with the magic that pulled him into dance.
Julie shares what producers told her after she arrived at the show with ten brand-new routines, and how that advice changed her approach to dance competition choreography. She opens up about dealing with dance moms and the parent rivalry that never really goes away. She also tells the story of a shy student, a pair of scissors, and a night in the studio bathroom that set him on an unexpected path.
For teachers and parents who care about inspiring kids, Julie's answer to how to inspire young dancers is simple to say and harder to live. Listen now to hear what she would teach differently today and why she calls dance the car that never runs out of gas.
Episode Breakdown:
00:00 Dance Dad with John Corella and Guest Julie Renn
03:01 Opening a Dance Studio at Just 17
09:04 Julie's 35 Star Search Groups and Champions
14:44 Why Producers Told Her to Reuse Choreography
19:55 Why Competition Dance Became Too Expensive
26:39 How to Inspire Young Dancers to Dream
35:04 Former Students Who Reached Broadway and Hollywood
41:57 What Julie Really Thought About Dance Moms
45:33 Why Julie Speaks Out for Equality
1:01:28 The Haircut That Changed a Young Dancer's Life
Connect with Julie Renn:
Follow Julie on Instagram
Follow Julie on Facebook
Connect with John Corella:
Follow Dance Dad with John Corella on Instagram
Follow John on Instagram
Join Dance Dad with John Corella on Patreon
Visit John Corella’s website
Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm
24 Sept 2026
EP 58: Dörte Thümmler: Olympian and World Champion — My Survival My Voice
Dörte Thümmler won a world title at 15. She learned what had been done to her body years later.
On Dance Dad with John Corella, host John Corella, co-creator and executive producer of Dance Moms, sits down with Dörte, a 1987 world champion on uneven bars and 1988 Olympic medalist from East Germany. John brings his own history as a competitive dancer to the questions. This Dörte Thümmler gymnast interview gives a firsthand account of the East German gymnastics doping scandal, told with a translator beside her.
Dörte started in a sports kindergarten at age three and later trained at SC Dynamo Berlin. She choreographed her own floor routines but never got to choose the music. Then a new coach arrived and everything about training changed.
Listen for why she believes positive motivation would have won her more, and what she learned in 1998 about her own family. She also shares what speaking up cost her when most girls around her stayed quiet.
Her Olympic gymnast abuse story includes Dynamo Berlin gymnastics doping and GDR state sponsored doping. Today she stands with East German doping program athletes who are asking the German government for a monthly pension.
Press play to hear what Dörte wants coaches and parents to understand about the east german gymnastics doping scandal and why speaking up still matters. Her answers on how to keep young athletes safe are plain and worth hearing. This conversation includes accounts of childhood abuse, so please listen with care.
Episode Breakdown:
00:00 Meet Olympian Dörte Thümmler and Her Translators
06:00 Starting Gymnastics at Three in East Germany
10:26 Alyssa Liu and Leaving Toxic Coaching
22:39 Ballet, Point Shoes, and Choreographing Her Own Floor
28:04 The Coach Change That Broke Her Love
36:36 Why Positive Motivation Would Have Won More
46:41 What Speaking Up Cost Her
51:37 Learning the Truth About State Doping
1:12:14 Advice to Keep Young Gymnasts Safe
1:25:29 The Boldest Thing She Has Done
Connect with Dörte Thümmler:
Follow Dörte on Instagram
https://www.gymnastics-history.com/2025/11/blue-pills-and-broken-spines-how-east-germany-destroyed-its-young-gymnasts/
Connect with John Corella:
Follow Dance Dad with John Corella on Instagram
Follow John on Instagram
Join Dance Dad with John Corella on Patreon
Visit John Corella’s website
Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm
27 Aug 2026
EP 57: Men's Gymnastics is So Gay with Andrew Chupp
Andrew Chupp’s Britney Spears mashup went viral, even catching the attention of longtime Britney Spears choreographer Brian Friedman. But the routine also drew hundreds of angry comments from strangers furious about a man competing in women’s gymnastics events. Host John Corella brings on Andrew, an adult gymnast, photographer, and coach with more than a decade of coaching experience who now specializes in optional-level gymnastics, for a conversation on Dance Dad recorded ahead of his trip to the 2026 Gay Games in Valencia.
Andrew explains how he answers the people who say beam is not his to use, and what changed the night he had a dream that sent him back into training after years away from the sport. He also shares the comments he hears whenever he posts himself on beam and the tools that help him keep online backlash in perspective, plus the injury that had him nervous about being ready for Spain and the Gay Games.
John and Andrew talk about what happens when male gymnasts challenge old ideas about masculinity and femininity, why more gyms are making room for adult gymnastics, and how organizations like AAU, NAIGC, and NGA are creating ways for adults to compete, and what it means for LGBTQ+ athletes in sports to compete without hiding who they are. Andrew has become one of the more visible faces of adult gymnastics and of men competing in women’s gymnastics events, and he does not soften the parts of the conversation that make people uncomfortable.
Press play for a conversation about beam, boldness, and what it actually costs to stay in a sport that was not built with you in mind.
Episode Breakdown:
00:00 Welcoming Andrew Chupp To The Meet
02:02 Previewing The 2026 Gay Games In Valencia
04:51 A Man Competing In Women's Gymnastics Events
05:35 Andrew's Childhood Gymnastics and Being Forced Into Boys’ Events
10:22 The Dream That Brought Him Back
14:18 The Viral Britney Spears Floor Routine
16:31 Backlash, Trans Athletes, and the Olympics Debate
25:19 Healing Gymnastics Trauma As An Adult
44:18 Closing The Access Gaps In Adult Gymnastics
49:47 Safe Spaces, Vulnerability, and Family Acceptance
Connect with John Corella:
Follow Dance Dad with John Corella on Instagram
Follow John on Instagram
Join Dance Dad with John Corella on Patreon
Visit John Corella’s website
Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm
Who has been a guest on Dance Dad With John Corella
Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.
Melissa Gisoni
Ally Marc Jacobs
Amy
Reach and audience
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YouTube views
65,165
Score snapshot 15 Sept 2025
Apple Podcasts (US)
5.0 / 5
20 ratings
Spotify
5.0 / 5
6 ratings
Podcast Authority Score: 49 / 100
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