Team

Oshadi is a proud, and native, Brooklynite who has grown up in a city where she was entranced by all things culture, creativity, and the arts. Attending both public school, and in high school Brooklyn Friends School, a private day school, she noticed the vast disparities in the arts education available to her based on where her school fell on the economic spectrum. She recalls that it was indeed the tale of two cities as she moved from an under-resourced public school to an affluent private school she was able to attend as a member of the Albert G. Oliver Program.

A lifelong dancer, who dabbled in everything from voice to theater to gymnastics, she eventually fell in love with modern dance- and it stuck. While at Wesleyan University, where she received her BA in African-American Studies and English, she lead two dance companies- Precision and Woman of Color Dance Troupe and later returned to Ifetayo Cultural Arts Academy in Brooklyn, where she received her dance training, a teaching artist for over 5 years. Passionate as she was about dancing and performing herself, she took the most pride in watching her students blossom and grow from a place of unsure beginnings to masterful performances full of confidence.

Oshadi comes to Opening Act from The OpEd Project where she served as the Director of Public Programs responsible for the expansion of their “Write to Change the World” program which helps elevate underrepresented voices in our op-ed pages and beyond. Prior, she worked at the New York Civil Liberties Union as the Development Officer responsible for their major fundraising events including their annual Broadway Stands Up for Freedom concert featured Broadway stars and up-and-coming artists performing songs that celebrate the work of the NYCLU and the ACLU, civil rights and civil liberties, and celebrating the power of resistance through creative expression. She’s also worked at other esteemed organizations like the William J. Clinton Foundation and the International Rescue Committee where she also oversaw major fundraising events.

With deep roots in dance, the arts and NYC, Opening Act was a natural fit for Oshadi. She quips that there is a one-woman show inside of her somewhere, as her heart has never left the idea of returning to the stage. We think the Hi Noon Improv sessions will definitely get her there quickly.