Ayodele Casel

Ayodele Casel (born June 5, 1975) is an American tap dancer and choreographer. Raised in Puerto Rico, she derived inspiration for her tap style from salsa music. She became the first and remains the only woman to be a member of Savion Glover's Not Your Ordinary Tappers.

Early life and education Ayodele Casel was born in the Bronx in New York City. Her parents were martial artist Tayari Casel and Aida Tirado. Ayodele moved to Rincon, Puerto Rico when she was in the 4th grade, returning to New York in 1990. In Puerto Rico, Casel listened to the music of Hector Lavoe, the El Gran Combo, and Celia Cruz. Their salsa music would influence her tap dance style. She also attended acting classes at the William Esper Studio.

As a young artist, Casel attended Mind-Builders Creative Arts Center and was a member of the Positive Youth Troupe (PYT). Casel attended the Tisch School of the Arts for acting. While at Tisch, in 1995, Casel began studying tap dance under Charles Goddertz. She also became friends with Baakari Wilder. During that time, Wilder was a principal dancer for Bring in 'da Noise, Bring in 'da Funk. Wilder taught Casel tap steps and she accompanied him to tap events at clubs in New York, where she would learn improvisation. She was named one of the Biggest Breakout Stars of 2019 by The New York Times. In 2019-2020, Casel was the Frances B. Cashin Fellow at the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study. In 2021, Casel created Chasing Magic directed by her long-time collaborator Torya Beard. The show first premiered as a film as part of The Joyce virtual program, then as a stage show at the American Repertory Theater. It returned to The Joyce as a live show at 2022. The 2022 short documentary film (produced by Five Sisters Productions), Tapping Into Our Past, Tapping Into Our Future: Ayodele Casel tells the story of her development as an artist and her discovery of the Black women and men tap dancers who came before her. Also in 2022, Casel was the tap choreographer for the revival of Funny Girl on Broadway, which earned her a Drama Desk Award nomination.