“You don’t have to be perfect, but you do have to be phenomenal.” This motto is embedded in the minds of almost every student of Karen McDonald. Teacher, choreographer, dancer, and academy director of the Debbie Allen Dance Academy (DADA), Karen McDonald shares her gifts in a myriad of ways. Emblematic of her anti-perfectionist, pro-mastery approach toward dance—and life—McDonald gives her entire mind, body, and soul while teaching the current and future generations of dancers, artists, visionaries, and critical thinkers.
In an interview with the Sentinel, she reflected upon her career thus far and the dreams she continues to actualize. “I remember when I was [training at] the Dance Theatre of Harlem with Karel Shook, and he said, ‘We could stay here for twenty-four hours and take class, but if you don’t read, go to the library, go to museums, live life, you have nothing to offer this art form. This art form is built on beauty and life,’” McDonald shared.
This solidified her perspective on dance; in order to be a phenomenal dancer, you have to be a phenomenal human being. And in order to be that, you need to seek constant exposure to culture, education, and growth. She implemented this insatiable thirst for growth in her own life; despite beginning her dancing career at 11 years old, later than many professional dancers, McDonald graduated high school early at 17 to immediately journey from Los Angeles to New York City and train at the Dance Theatre of Harlem.
“They kept extending my scholarship. Through the fall, through the spring, and then I was 18, and out of respect for my family, I asked if I could stay in New York. But I had already decided I wasn’t going to leave!” she exclaimed, with a smile. She continued on to Broadway, dancing in “Purlie”, “Two Gentlemen of Verona”, “The Wiz”, and Duke Ellington’s “Sophisticated Ladies.”
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“New York was incredible. I had so many mentors and people who helped me along the way. People would even walk up to me and just give me metaphysical books,” Ms. McDonald recalled. “I remember being on the train, and somebody pulled a book out of his bag and said, ‘I feel guided to give you this book.’ It was one of the volumes of the Sufi Messages, all it talked about was art and spirit.” This type of knowledge greatly influenced her perspective on life.
A McDonald class is a mixture of hard work and church, with her often relaying timely messages from who she lovingly refers to as ‘the Dance Gods’. There is no doubt that her time in New York and the multitude of mentors—both consistent and fleeting, like the man on the train—cultivated her relationship between herself, dance, and higher powers who guide her every step, glissade, and jeté.
When it was time to come back to Los Angeles in the 1980s, she founded her own dance company, the New Age Dance Workshop. “We always set goals for ourselves, for our lives, and we danced towards those things. Yes, we’re studying an art form, but we’re always adding life skills to everything that we’re creating. That became my style of teaching,” McDonald said.
Throughout her time in both cities, she knew that she had a natural inclination toward teaching. “I’ve always loved teaching,” she remarked. “I started assisting [my first dance teacher] at 13, and teaching my own classes at 15. Everywhere I’ve gone, people asked me to teach.” In Los Angeles, she cemented a more consistent teaching career when she realized she needed steady work while raising her two children, Nina and Tau Flagg. She became a dance instructor at various schools, including Dorsey High School and Hamilton Music Academy for over two decades, California Institute of the Arts, UCLA, Loyola Marymount, and continues to instruct and choreograph within Santa Monica College’s esteemed dance department, along with being the academy director and modern dance instructor of DADA.
All the while, she continued to build her professional career that thrives to this day. She appeared on stage and screen alongside Michael Jackson (Thriller), Janet Jackson, Diane Reeve, Debbie Allen, and Beyoncé. She has also been invited as a model in campaigns with Ivy Park, Toyota, Athleta, Nordstrom, and Sirius XM, the latter being a cinematic commercial that aired during the 2024 Oscars.
“God and the Universe have put me into some amazing places,” she reflected. With seven decades of life to revel in, she knows that she will always teach and she will always dance. “My big dream right now is to lecture and travel. I also started writing a book about things that happened for me as a result of keeping art in my life, stories about my students and family; it’s just about what art does for the soul,” she said.
Most recently, she named this profound way of teaching that she has refined over decades: The McDonald Method. Knowing the way this icon operates, she will be teaching this method in the way she walks, talks, and moves, for the rest of her life. As she deep-dives into her new dreams and aspirations, Ms. McDonald will remain the force of nature that so greatly influences a new age of phenomenalism.
Align yourself with Ms. McDonald @karenmcdonald_dance on Instagram
