Today we’d like to introduce you to Sophie Anderson, Lily Edgerton, Christabelle Tan, co-directors of NYC street styles team, The Neighbors.
Hi The Neighbors, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
We are The Neighbors, a genre-expansive dance team, rooted in hip hop, street, and club styles based in New York City. Founded in 2013 by Esosa Oviasu and Kristian Nacional, The Neighbors is dedicated to the advancement of its members’ growth in their interests spanning freestyle, choreography, competition, and dance education and continuously aims to create and promote exceptional dance. The Neighbors prides itself on its members’ diverse backgrounds and its leadership in building community, promoting equity, and moving with integrity, inside and outside of dance.
Over the past thirteen years, the team has been continually shaped by the vision and leadership of its directors. Former directors include Youran Lee, Jason Diaz, Breanna Myers, Léa Ono, Jaqui Angulo, and Marina Poudret, each of whom contributed to the team’s development and identity.
Since 2023, the team has been led by Sophie Anderson (Executive Director), Christabelle Tan (Artistic Director), and Lily Edgerton (Logistics Director). Under their leadership, The Neighbors seeks to expand the scope of its creative and programming initiatives while maintaining the strong sense of community and legacy cultivated over the years. Apart from representing New York City in performances and competitions nationwide, The Neighbors have produced two original shows over the last three years – Our House and Love Your Neighbors – organized community events such as Movement Market, and expanded their training to equip dancers with skills across new avenues of media.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
One of our core pillars is financial accessibility, which has also proven to be one of our more significant challenges. The Neighbors is committed to ensuring that cost is not a barrier to participation, and offers installment-based payment options for member dues. In 2025, the team was formally established as a nonprofit in an effort to reduce operational expenses. We continue to undertake active fundraising initiatives and rely on the support of the broader community, whilst remaining dedicated to keeping participation as affordable as possible for our members!
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
Our team is widely recognized as a genre-expansive team, integrating a diverse range of dance styles and forms while embracing creative risk in our work. Our members bring training across disciplines including hip-hop, popping, contemporary, voguing, breaking, and more.
The team’s repertoire reflects both its range and its commitment to innovation, with works such as “Bops Innit”, a UK music–inspired time-travel piece; “Ghostin”, which explores themes of attachment; and “1-800-NEIGHBORS,” an infomercial-inspired set. Through these productions, The Neighbors seeks to create singular and memorable experiences while grounding its work in themes that resonate with audiences. The team prides itself on its strength in visual storytelling, supported by a dynamic roster of choreographers.
How can people work with you, collaborate with you or support you?
The Neighbors was founded with a strong commitment to community and continues to prioritize collaborative engagement. We hope to continue creating spaces for the New York City dance community,, and potentially partner with other community teams to host events and workshops. We’d also love to find new ways to stay creative and expand our presence both on-stage and on-screen through collaborations with fellow creatives and brands.
To stay tuned with what we’re up to, we’re @theneighborsnyc on Instagram and TikTok!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://linktr.ee/theneighborsnyc
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/theneighborsnyc
- Other: https://tiktok.com/@theneighborsnyc
Image Credits
ELEMENTS: Sean Chee
Love, Your Neighbors: Sheay Baasch, Hannah Tran
Movement Market: Christabelle Tan
