Steve Nasshan celebrated in April the one-year anniversary of Get on the Floor (GTF) Dance Company, which he owns and operates in Chicago's North Center neighborhood—and more than a decade in the ballroom dance industry.
"I got my start with the Arthur Murray franchise, then taught for the Fred Astaire franchise, and finally ended up at a privately-owned studio in Chicago," Nasshan said. "A few years ago, I went through the process of opening a branch of the Fred Astaire franchise, but unfortunately finances fell through at the last minute and it forced me back to square one.
"I grew up with parents who were teachers, studied education through college, but always had a little performance bug inside of me. The ballroom dance industry fulfills my need to teach and my need to perform. It was time to see the vision in my head about a studio that could be my own finally come into reality."
Get on the Floor Dance Company meshes Nasshan's knowledge of the industry, with what he's learned as a professional competitive ballroom dancer, and his own creative vision.
"The goal upon opening was to not close," Nasshan joked.
"Ballroom dance is a hidden community in Chicago, so part of the [company] philosophy is to just bring ballroom dance into the community. We do this by partnering with other businesses, hosting events, and donating our time to give back to the community," such as teaching free classes at the Center on Halsted, which he has done.
Nasshan, 29, lives in Edgewater and is openly gay. He was born and raised in Chicago, graduated from Niles West High School in suburban Skokie, then attended Augustana College in Rock Island before completing most of his studies at Northeastern Illinois University.
His dance company has been fantastic in year one, he said.
"Ballroom dance is a great way to meet new people, stay in shape, and try something out of the ordinary," Nasshan said. "Our [company] instructors are trained in how to make our private lessons as fun and easy as possible. We are confident that we can teach anybody how to 'get on the floor.' In addition to private lessons, we also provide many ways for our students to apply what they're learning to real-life settings," through events, social dance parties, competitions and, most recently, road trips.
"Our customers are anyone and everyone who has the desire to learn how to dance. Even the ones who don't, we'll give them the desire to learn. We are confident that we can add joy and excitement to anyone's life."
Nasshan said Get on the Floor offers a unique and personalized experience for all customers, with programs personalized around the customer's dance goals, dreams and desires. Some simply join for the fun, others are interested in losing weight, and others are truly hoping to learn a first-dance for their wedding, among other reasons.
And those who claim they have two left-feet, Nasshan smiles—and certainly welcomes them.
"I explain [to those customers] that Get on the Floor Dance Company instructors have the training and ability to teach anyone how to dance, even someone with eight left feet," he said. "There is not a large market of people who know they want to learn ballroom dancing, but there is a larger market of people that know they want to add joy to their lives. It is up to us to show them that Get on the Floor Dance Company is the place to do it.
"All you need to be successful at ballroom dancing is the desire and the commitment to learn."
But how do you run a successful business, especially one that is out of the norm?
"One of the most important things to me as a business owner is philanthropy," Nasshan said. "I believe that giving-back is the quickest way to receive and GTF Dance Company has many ideas for the future. I have been in the process of planning a charity event that would mimic Dancing With The Stars, except that the stars would be Chicago's very own drag stars. We are in the early stages [of planning,] but hope to bring this event to Chicago's LGBT community in the very near future, in hopes of raising money for one of the many LGBT charities."
In addition, a portion of all wedding programs sold goes to the Human Rights Campaign. "My platform as a business owner [includes giving] back to the causes that have shaped who I am today; that is extremely important to me," Nasshan said.
Nasshan never had a formal coming-out. Rather, "my coming-out was a result of bullying," he said. While at Augustana College in the fall of 2001, he was outed by males in his dorm.
"My instinct at the time was to run from confrontation, as I wasn't quite ready to conform to a sexual identity I had not yet explored," he said. "After a brief stint of vagabond-like moves, I eventually returned home to Chicago and evolved into the proud and comfortable gay man that I am today. It wasn't an easy experience, but it has shaped who I am today in a lot of ways. I have a soft spot in my heart for the victims of bullying and people who are struggling with their sexual identity. My business hopes to target those two issues and help bridge the gap from the ballroom community to the LGBT community."
However, GTF Dance Company has not taken off in the LGBT community as much as he would have liked or hoped, at least not yet. "There are some societal norms and standards that have been set by the ballroom dance community that have, over the years, kept the LGBT community away," Nasshan said. "We are hoping to open that door and bring the joy and excitement of ballroom dance into the LGBT community."
To that, GTF Dance Company has hosted such events as "Salsa at the Salon" at Restoration Salon in Lakeview, and also recently participated in an LGBT wedding expo in downtown Chicago.
Same-sex dancing is offered at GTF Dance Company. "It just takes one dance studio to bridge the gap from the ballroom world to the LGBT world. We're hoping to be that dance company," Nasshan said.
The GTF Dance Company features a main ballroom and several smaller, private rooms that can accommodate private lessons. However, the main feature of GTF Dance Company, "is that we host lessons, events, and programs throughout the city and suburbs," Nasshan said.
"Every day at GTF Dance Company is a highlight and a memory. I ballroom dance for a living, after all," Nasshan said.
