Michael Robert Fletcher
Join us for a rich and detailed portrait of one of Dirty Dancing's principal dancers, Michael Robert Fletcher. In this episode Michael reflects on his multifaceted career in dance, his passion for the art form, and his commitment to passing on his knowledge and experience to the next generation of dancers. He'll also give us a teaser about a new project on the horizon.
In this episode, we sit down with Michael Robert Fletcher—the man known as "Red"—whose life changed forever when he stepped onto the set of the 1987 classic Dirty Dancing. From his early days as a restless "cowboy" in Florida to the gritty, neon-soaked streets of 1980s New York, Michael shares the remarkable story of a scholarship ballet student who became a principal dancer under the legendary Kenny Ortega.
Michael takes us behind the velvet curtain of the Broadway world, revealing what it was like to train alongside Mikhail Baryshnikov by morning and run elevators for the Rockettes by night. He recounts the hilarious and horrifying moment he was fired from Radio City Music Hall for trapping half the dancers in his elevator during a live show, and how he navigated the "rejection and body shaming" of the audition circuit for two years before landing his first big break.
The conversation moves into Michael's current chapter in Santa Fe, New Mexico. After a decade in the LA film industry choreographing for stars like Sandra Bullock and Jude Law (often under his Latino professional name, Juan Yano), he found a "creative exhale" in the high desert. Now, Michael is dedicated to passing the baton to the next generation, teaching youth on reservations and scouting for "the shine" in scholarship pageants. This is a masterclass in resilience, the magic of being seen, and why the most important performance is the one you give from your heart.
