Back with a roar

Mike Sciacca

When Jose Silva put on his first pair of dancing shoes some 25 years

ago, he discovered a rhythm that came naturally to him.

A few years later, those first moves grew into a true love for the

art of dancing, and triggered dreams of a future on the stage and in

production.

“I really wanted to dance professionally and now, I not only am

doing that, but am working toward eventually choreographing and

directing my own shows,” said the 33-year-old. “I’m excited to be

where I am.”

Silva, who grew up in Huntington Beach, is the male dance captain

and “swing” performer in the Orange County Performing Arts Center

engagement of Disney’s “The Lion King,” now running through April 24

in Costa Mesa.

The 6 1/2 week run of the show is the second-longest running

production in the performing art center’s history, second only to the

seven-week run enjoyed by “The Phantom of the Opera” in 1994.

Silva’s duties with “The Lion King” are two-fold.

As one of the show’s two dance captains -- Theresa Nguyen is the

female dance captain -- Silva is responsible for supervising the

show’s choreography among the male dancers, and reports directly to

the show’s resident dance supervisor, Celise Hicks.

In his role as a “swing” player, Silva can be called upon to play

any male part in the show, even at a moment’s notice.

“The challenge there is that not only do I need to know my own

routines, but know how to perform the other male parts in the show as

well,” Silva said. “Having to jump into a role last-minute, and know

every stage direction is definitely challenging. I have to be ready

to change my mind-set in an instant.”

Silva, a 1989 graduate of Fountain Valley High School, opened the

L.A. Company tour of Disney’s “The Lion King” five years ago at the

Pantages Theatre, working as a cast member.

He was promoted to dance captain when the tour opened in Chicago.

The tour has gone “smoothly,” he said, the only “minor” costume

malfunction he’s experienced on stage, he recalled, was when a hyena

head he was wearing fell off during one of the dance numbers.

True to the character he was playing, he trotted off stage with a

small laugh.

“He’s just a great, great guy who’s very positive and very

reliable,” Hicks said. “I know when I’m not there, and Jose is in

charge, everything will get done.

“His performance is amazing, both on and off stage. He’s just a

great person to be around and I’m really glad to have him as a dance

captain.”

Silva said he took his first dance lessons while in elementary

school. It wasn’t until he reached high school, though, that his

training intensified, a time when he said he began to fully pursue

dance.

“He had a lot of natural ability and once he received training,

there was no stopping him,” said Gloria DeFore, owner of the DeFore

Dance Center in Costa Mesa, where Silva began his formal training as

a teen.

While in town with “The Lion King,” Silva is teaching class at the

center once a week.

“He was on scholarship here and he worked really hard,” said

DeFore, who will get a glimpse of Silva’s work when she sees a

performance of “The Lion King” next week. “We saw a future in dance

for him, definitely.”

After briefly attending Orange Coast College, Silva went to New

York City on scholarship to attend the Broadway Dance Center.

As an accomplished professional dancer, he began working on cruise

ships. His list of major credits, along with the L.A. production of

“The Lion King,” includes a role in the Disney film “Newsies,”

playing Rico and a spot in Barry Manilow’s production of,

“Copacabana.” He has also been cast as a lead adagio with various

ballet companies.

Silva has been on tour for the past two years, but still manages

to touch down at his home base in L.A., when time permits. The show’s

run in Costa Mesa will afford him several chances to get back to his

roots.

Once “The Lion King” leaves Costa Mesa, the tour will travel to

Sacramento, and then settle in Chicago for the summer.

Silva has danced all over the world, on stages in London and

Tokyo, but he says that, despite the cliche, there really is no place

like home.

“It can be a little weary, living out of a suitcase and being on

the road so much,” he said. “You just start to get your bearings in a

certain city, and then it’s time to pack up and hit the road again.

But the plus side is that while on tour, you get to see cities and

surrounding areas that you probably wouldn’t be able to see

otherwise.

“But it feels great to be home, back in Orange County where it all

started for me. It feels really comfortable here in familiar

surroundings.”