The Market Monitor Minding the Nation's Business
By Maridol Ranoa-Bismark
Samantha `Sammy’ Javier had many things going for her the moment she was born 29 years ago. She has melody and rhythm in her DNA. Her late uncle, Danny Javier, a member of the popular performing trio Apo Hiking Society wrote many well-loved songs. Her father, George ‘Dyords’ Javier, traveled the world as part of the performing quartet The Angfourgettables.
Growing up with music gave Samantha a passion for rhythm which she channeled into hip hop — pulsating, attention-grabbing.
“It’s rare to come across parents who support a child’s dream in the arts,” Sammy reveals. But her parents did. She joined national and international dance competitions and carried the Philippine flag in the US Open, where she performed tinikling. She was bronze medalist at the 2017 Hip Hop International competition in California.
The World of Dance Competition in California chose the dance moves she choreographed and directed as finalist in 2019 and 2023. Her group qualified after placing first runner-up in the World of Dance Ph competition.
The winning piece, Sammy the choreographer’s version of Hannah Montana’s The Best of Both Worlds, gave the wide-eyed, hardworking teens of Woodrose Dance Crew , with more confidence and discipline for the craft.
Bigger dreams
That urge to dream bigger pushed Sammy to take up Master of Arts in Performing Arts Administration in New York University (NYU).
The road to further growth was lined with challenges. Sammy wrote an essay about why she wanted to enroll, send letters of recommendation and take a series of tests.
When she made it, NYU and the Big Apple opened many doors for Sammy. The culture hub that is New York burst with possibilities. Sammy felt like an excited fish swimming in a sea of opportunities.
She worked part-time in school. Sammy spent her winter break in Uganda, where she learned how to develop a program to study culture. Sammy was aghast to learn for the first time that Pandanggo sa Ilaw dancers mimic the rising mountains and the start of sunset. And this came from her American professor!
World-renowned American Ballet Theater took her as an intern. So did Tank, a nonprofit performing arts organization which handles musicals and emerging playwrights.
Sammy is proud to have respected arts advocate Donna Walker-Kuhne, a veteran of Broadway productions and University of Berlin lecturer, as mentor.
She is also the only non dance education major to be invited to perform in Radio City Music Hall, the world’s largest indoor theater.
Sammy was named council chairman (government-elected) and local government youth representative. She led community-centered cultural programs and civic engagement initiatives serving over 37,000 residents, including concerts, workshops, and outreach events.
She managed a $650,000 annual program budget, tracking expenses and reporting on impact across multiple projects and partners. She built and maintained partnerships with local organizations, schools, and community groups; attended partner events and represented the council at public forums.
As studio and project manager of Groove Central Dance Studio, she oversaw scheduling, artist onboarding, and program logistics for 32 teaching artists and over 40 weekly classes. She produced annual dance showcases featuring 500 performers and over 2,000 audience members, coordinated contracts, staffing, technical rehearsals, and venue operations.
Many hats
Armed with education and experience, she now wears many hats. She teaches dance in New York’s Upper East Side.
As cultural strategist, she studies arts organizations and sees how they can improve various New York communities.
“This way, all the different cultures can feel represented and seen. They feel more included, part of the conversation,” she explains.