Stephen Ward has been dancing since the age of 13 with a diverse background in Freestyle, Country Western, West Coast Swing, Hustle, Salsa, Social Ballroom, Classical Ballet, and Theater Arts & Cabaret, as well as Martial Arts. He is a devoted Hustle dancer, which he learned from Raul “Big Daddy” Ante and Bobby Concepcion in the Bay Area, and also received training from Maria Torres, Angel Figueroa, Billy Fajardo, Arte Phillips, and many others. He has been competing and teaching Hustle since 1997 and is wholly dedicated toward the preservation, promotion, and growth of Hustle dancing in the Bay Area.

Stephen regularly competes with students at various national Hustle and Ballroom dance competitions. He has collaborated with several different dance professionals and has performed at numerous events such as the sjDANCEco Festival, Wicked Dance Showcase, and at the Stanford Women’s Basketball halftime show. He is co-founder and co-artistic director of the local performance dance group Geeks & Dolls, which has performed at events such as the sjDANCEco Festival, Wicked Dance Showcase, PhilDev Charity Fundraiser, San Francisco Open DanceSport Championships, and Pacific Grand Ball.

Stephen currently teaches private lessons and weekly group classes in San Jose at Studio M Ballroom Club and Dance Boulevard and teaches workshops and judges at numerous national and international dance events throughout the calendar year. He has taught at organizations such as Starlite Ballroom (both the original in Sunnyvale and the new in San Jose), Cheryl Burke Dance, Metronome Ballroom, Cisco Systems, Stanford University, De Anza College, and Santa Clara University.