Alumni Spotlight: Ashley McQueen

Over the past 110 years, more than 200,000 individuals have graduated from Webster University around the world.

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Meet Ashley McQueen, who earned a BFA in Dance from Webster in 2011 and is an artistic director and founder of Smashworks Dance, a company dancer and artistic associate for Amanda Selwyn Dance Theatre and a studio manager for Amanda Selwyn Dance Studio in New York City.

Tell us about Smashworks Dance and Austringer

Smashworks Dance was born from my desire to create an inclusive, collaborative and out-of-the-box environment for artists who view artistic expression as power — smashing stereotypes and promoting dance as a unifying and confidence-building practice for all. Smashworks Dance is a 501(c)(3) New York-based dance company dedicated to accessible dance performance and confidence-building education. We have performed throughout the greater New York City metropolitan area and toured to San Antonio, Santa Barbara, Los Angeles, Milwaukee, Kalamazoo, St. Louis and internationally in Tarbes, France. We developed confidence-building dance workshops for the Girl Scouts of Greater New York and Troop 6000 (a Girl Scouts program that supports girls experiencing homelessness in the New York City area), and collaborated with Yap About It (a nonprofit dedicated to providing accessible arts and talk therapy for young people). Other highlights include being invited as a local community group to hear Michelle Obama speak on her Becoming tour at the Barclays Center (2018), partnering with Rebel Girls Productions to write movement activities for their chapter book Alicia Alonso Takes The Stage (published worldwide in August 2020) and exploring the fusion of dance and clown with Hope Salas and Justin Cimino (Theaterlab Hotel New Work residency).

International collaborations have included a partnership with Swedish visual artist Benny Cruz to create a multidisciplinary performance experience incorporating his subway map artwork and to stage a public installation at Grand Army Plaza in Brooklyn. Presently, we have partnered with French theatre group L'equipe de Realisation to develop "404 Inside," a new multidisciplinary piece awarded a two-week residency at Le Pari in Tarbes, France, and a 10-show tour throughout the Hautes-Pyrenees region in fall 2025.

In collaboration with artists-in-residence Louisa Pancoast and Dr. Nialah Wilson-Small, Smashworks Dance is developing "Austringer," an immersive contemporary dance piece to explore surveillance and intimacy by engaging dancers and a network of drones in human-drone physical contact, weight-sharing and proximity. Artists-in-residence Louisa Pancoast and Dr. Nialah Wilson-Small will continue the research they presented at the 2023 ACM/IEEE Human Robot Interaction Conference in Stockholm, Sweden, pushing progress in the worlds of tech and performance art along the way. We have a generous donor who has pledged to match up to $20,000 in donations to fund this ambitious project, and "Austringer" will be performed at the IEEE International Conference on Robotics & Automation (May 21, 2025) in Atlanta, Georgia, and at The Boiler (June 5-7, 2025) in Brooklyn, New York.

What’s your favorite part about your job?

Every day is different! Some days are mostly rehearsals, some days are more administrative and some days are choreography/teaching based. The variety keeps life interesting and has helped avoid burnout.

What’s something valuable you’ve learned during your career?

You define your own success, and success will look different to everyone. If you can’t find a place for yourself, make your own. In the end, choosing a path that brings you joy and ignites your passion will make the hard work and grit worth it. Remember, not taking the same road as everyone else doesn’t make you a failure, it makes you an innovator.

What enticed you to choose Webster for your degree?

Webster was recommended to me by my mentor Jennifer Medina. She and I met in my senior year of high school at a Regional Dance America festival and stayed in touch as I started a BA program in Alabama. Shortly before my sophomore year, that college unexpectedly folded the dance department. She introduced me to Webster University, a job opportunity upon graduation and all St. Louis had to offer. I reached out to a few current students with questions, and everyone had really great feedback about the variety of classes and community feel. I was excited to join a program that would fuel me creatively and inspire innovation.

What stood out about your studies at Webster?

Webster provided a full-compass education. The inclusive program made space for students to carve their own path and wasn’t a “one size fits all” degree. We were given a wide range of tools that could be applied to a multitude of career choices in the dance world. I learned how to build a curriculum, develop a lecture demonstration, produce a show in a theater, develop site-specific choreography, explore digital media and sound editing, host and participate in auditions and compose and create my own reel. All these Webster skills have carried over into my professional dance career, and I am truly thankful for those experiences, but most impactful for me was the international study in Thailand. This cultural exchange experience was inspiring and the opportunity to learn Classical Thai dance with Pichet Klunchun was life changing. I look back fondly at the creative passion this international study experience ignited in me, and I hope to relive that opportunity again one day.

How did your Webster degree help advance your career and professional goals?

The idea for Smashworks was actually born after finishing my BFA thesis performance at Webster and came to fruition because of the connections I made during my time on campus. As a transfer student coming from a BA program, I had to take on extra credits to graduate on time and accept a job offer with a local dance company. Beckah Reed worked with me and let me essentially do two BFA capstones, where I got to create two solos, two duets and two group pieces to be performed in the large studio. The process of casting and bringing together dancers from different classes was exhilarating. I worked with a conservatory lighting designer to create a full-scale production on my own. That experience taught me a lot about curating an evening-length show, managing dancer schedules, creating poster and program design and much more. My BFA performance was attended by Tom Brady, Artistic Director of ANONNYArts at Satori, who offered me the chance to choreograph a run of shows at his venue after graduation. I knew from this experience I wanted to start my own dance company.

Additional professional opportunities came from former Webster professors. Professor Michael Uthoff commissioned me for the inaugural Dance St. Louis Spring to Dance Festival’s "Young Choreographer Series." He also connected me to Laumeier Sculpture Park, where I was named a Kranzberg Exhibition Series Artist alongside video artist Zlatko Ćosić. Through a series of dance performances choreographed on rideable lawn mowers, culminating in a short film, Ćosić and I explored Laumeier’s unique partnership with St. Louis County Parks, highlighting the passion and hard work that goes into the care and maintenance of the park. I would not be where I am today without the support and generosity of the Webster faculty and dance community.

What advice would you give others who are considering Webster for their degree?

Webster offers the perfect combination of a high-quality education and an environment that supports you and your goals on a personal level. Webster provided me with an intimate educational experience curated to my talents and career interests, and, equally as important, a supportive community of people who welcomed “the new girl” with open arms and lifelong friendships.

How do you spend your free time?

I’ve started taking lessons to learn the bagpipes! I would love to be able to play well enough to integrate live music into a future Smashworks show. I also recently joined the New York Caledonian Club, a nonprofit promoting the musical, literary and social heritage of Scottish culture, and have been enjoying learning more about my Scottish background.

What was your favorite spot on campus?

The large dance studio. The enormous windows and tall ceilings took my breath away and offered an opportunity for reflection and inspiration. After years in New York, I’ve learned even more the value of space – what a privilege to have danced in such a gorgeous facility.