The Phe-Mom of The Phenom...A Mother’s Story: Nora Alexander Back

Aug 5, 2013

By Tracey Bivens

The Alexander family out of Detroit has always been associated with the dance world. Father Anthony has been a Detroit Ballroom and Latin Hustle instructor with Upscale Productions for close to 12 years. Son, Drew, is a WLSC repeat winner, instructor and CEO of Smooth-Tivity Dance Productions. Nora, the mother, finds herself at the epicenter of Drew’s burgeoning empire at Smooth-Tivity Productions. In this conversation with Nora, find out what it’s like being the mother of a nationally renowned stepper, if she gets lost in the shadows of his reputation and how she keeps everyone grounded.

Tracey: Nora Alexander…the Phe-mom of the Phenom! (Laughing) I think you may be the first mom to get a nickname out of the deal along with your son. What was the dance journey like for Drew up until this point?

Nora: Drew was exposed to the dance world since he was in kindergarten. There was the Waltz, Tango, Tap, Jazz, Lyrical, Ballet and Hip Hop. This was all at Tina Marie’s School of Dance. I didn’t make him do it. I was of the mindset to help my son find his gifts and talents.

Tracey: You’ve been around the Detroit dance community for years. Once Drew seemed to affix himself to steppin competitions, instructions and traveling…college had to take a back seat after he graduated from high school. Are you okay with Drew focusing on steppin and taking classes at Henry Ford Community College?

Nora: With the college thing, we were always of the mindset that we would pay as we go. We didn’t want Drew to have to deal with all of those loans. After he received the scholarship from the Boyce Foundation at Mumford High School, he was able to take a class here and there and he still takes classes when money and time permit and is still attending Henry Ford Community College

Tracey: I think people may assume that you live vicariously through Drew’s experiences in this dance world. How do you find Nora’s voice and not be in the shadow of Drew?

Nora: People are always going to identify me as Drew’s mom. I don’t mind that because I love him and I’m proud of him. For the fact that he has survived this arena…I’m glad that I don’t see any damage to him that has come from it. Everywhere I go, people compliment how he handles himself and that makes me proud when people come up to me from Chicago, Atlanta and Miami. But believe it or not…I have my own relationships with people in the dance world. I’m not just Drew’s mom. I actually am more extroverted now because I am the COO of Smooth-Tivity.

Tracey: We know that Drew is 22, which in adult years is still pretty young as far as life experiences. There are women in their 30s and 40s who because of Drew’s identity would like to …explore relationships off of the dance floor with him. How do you feel about seeing that kind of stuff?

Nora: What I’m okay with is the fact that I think my son can make some really good decisions based on his maturity and wisdom. I’m not one of those mama’s who is all into his business and such. I let him live his life and the decisions that he has to live will be a result of the choices he makes.

Tracey:  Mommies know how to fix everything…right? What has bothered you the most about the steppin community and what do you think will fix the problem?

Nora: The lack of camaraderie. If steppers don’t stand together they tend to spit venom on each other. When people aren’t involved there’s very little support demonstrated. Everybody knows that there are sets but sometimes you just don’t see the support like you think should be there.

Tracey: Knowing Drew for as long as I have…since he was 10…I can say he is a good, respectable and intelligent young man but…Drew has a mouth on him! (Laughing) Drew will speak his mind and will challenge any statement he questions. How do you handle the "mouth almighty”?

Nora: I look at Drew as not being a "yes” man. He’s not just going to go along with anything. He has his own voice. As an instructor…he can just see stuff. His creativity and repo ire with his class is amazing. He taught during a power outage the other week and had 22 men and women dancing in the dark…telling them if you were at the club it would look like this…so just dance!

Tracey: What has been your proudest moment as a mom who has all of this dance talent in one family?

Nora: (Long pause) Seeing Anthony (Drew’s father) and Drew dance in the One Enchanted Evening dance productions throughout the years. I admired their skills. It made me proud!

Tracey: Do you mind going to the same sets with Drew knowing that there may be people there who ignore you just to get to Drew?

Nora: I don’t go to a lot of functions with Drew. When I do…I’m on one side and he’s on the other. I don’t try to be in his conversations. He shows me great respect and protects me from a lot of the negativity on the set. I am very well respected…I do know that. He gets that from his dad. As hardcore as his father Tony is…I love their relationship. They have been close since Drew was a baby. There’s a lot of respect there and out of that respect comes that strong love.

Tracey: Do you think you will ever be able to date on the set Nora?

Nora: (Laughing loudly) I don’t see that happening because of my own personal preferences. Even though I’m Anthony’s ex…I’m still his "wife” on the scene and I’m alright with that!

Tracey: Any final thoughts?

Nora: If this steppin project ended tomorrow something else would start up something that would be more profound than this. Whatever the next phase is…we’re gonna go with it and make the best of it. We have that kind of determination as individuals and as a family. We will do whatever it is we need to do.

It’s always good to focus on young African-American males that are doing something positive with their lives. For Anthony and Nora, exposing Drew to the arts has given him the chance of a lifetime. While we still recover from hearing nationally televised stories about our young African-American men being taken out by one another and overt racists, let us celebrate the fact that this mother tells the story of her son with tears of joy and beams of pride.