Shannon Marie Rugani - From Ballet to Broadway to Music

<p><strong>Shannon Marie Rugani a/k/a EMPRESS, has had several remarkable careers. A principal ballerina with the San Francisco Ballet for 11 years, followed by a featured role on Broadway in “An American In Paris”, and now as a professional musician. </strong></p><p><strong>Robert’s featured song in this episode is “Juliet Dances” from the album </strong><i><strong>East Side Sessions</strong></i><strong> by Robert’s band, Project Grand Slam. Robert wrote this song for his granddaughter and it obviously relates to his guest on this episode. </strong></p><p><strong>For a FREE Download of “Juliet Dances” while this episode is current just go to this link: </strong><a href="https://www.followyourdreampodcast.com/roadmap-song"><strong>https://www.followyourdreampodcast.com/roadmap-song</strong></a></p><p><strong>SPECIAL OFFER! Buy any digital album at the PGS Store (</strong><a href="http://www.thepgsstore.com"><strong>www.thePGSstore.com</strong></a><strong>) and get a second digital album for FREE! Just enter this Code at checkout: Podcast</strong><a href="https://thepgsstore.com/discount/Podcast?redirect=%2Fcollections%2Fmusic">https://thepgsstore.com/discount/Podcast?redirect=%2Fcollections%2Fmusic</a></p><p> </p><p><strong>PLEASE TAKE A SHORT SURVEY ON THE PODCAST!</strong> <a href="https://us11.list-manage.com/survey?u=3bb2de48cf9bcee17ee5ee588&id=05b3b38320&e=*%7CUNIQID%7C*">CLICK HERE</a></p><p> </p><p>Shannon Marie Rugani a/k/a EMPRESS grew up in the Lake Tahoe area and from an early age had a musical dream and a dream to be a dancer. At 14 she received a scholarship to the SF Ballet and then became a principal dancer for 11 years, dancing at venues in the U.S. and around the world. She was approached to be part of the Broadway revival of “An American In Paris” and ultimately understudied for the lead role. She is now a professional musician performing her music under the name EMPRESS.</p><p><br />In this episode, Robert and Shannon discuss:</p><ul><li>Her formative years as a dancer</li><li>Being invited to