These Classical Vocalists Are Bringing Song To Ocean County

OCEAN COUNTY, NJ — Dakota Reider and Elle Jones met doing community theatre, and now, they're giving back to the community by taking their classical voices throughout the county through concerts.

Reider, a tenor, and Jones, a soprano, formed "Dakota & Elle" in 2019 after realizing their voices sounded great together. Watch their cover of "Fall On Me" below. (Article continues after)

The two first met in 2018 performing "Pippin" (Reider as the titular character and Jones as Fastrada) and both separately sang at community theatre fundraisers. Then, they decided to do a duet together.

Their first duet - "The Prayer" - received such a good response they decided to keep going.

"We had a lot of people come up to use afterward and they were like, 'Oh, where can we see you sing? Do you do this?'" Jones told Patch. "And we were like 'No, we don't, but maybe we should.'"

Thus, Dakota & Elle as a pair was born. Today, the pair of twentysomethings take their talents across the county, performing at libraries, weddings, events and of course, still at fundraisers.

"We're very much into giving back to our community because that's kind of where we started," Jones said.

The duo sings standards, Broadway hits and more, but they love to sing whatever they can tell a story with.

"I love big grand songs with a lot of range in them," Reider said.

They credit their shared vocal coach, Julliard graduate and renowned teacher Steven Schnurman, with transforming their voices and supporting them.

Reider and Jones both also work with Bellarine Theatre Company in Manahawkin and Harbor Stage Theatre Company in Lacey, where they perform and direct.

The two are passionate about creating inclusive, accessible and diverse spaces for theatre, Jones said.

But it's not just about the love of performing for them. Jones was recently diagnosed with porphyria, a rare genetic disease - the same one she lost her dad to when she was nine-years-old.

"When I got my diagnosis of it in 2019, I took a hard look at my life," Jones said. "If I only have a limited amount of time left, what will I regret that I haven't done? For me, that was music and arts and giving back to the community."

The disease has been "pretty debilitating," Jones said, but she's been hesitant to open up about it publicly. "I don't want to be known as that sick girl that sings," she said.

But she decided to share because she knows there are a lot of people struggling with chronic illness.

"You can have a chronic condition and still pursue your passions," Jones said. "You just have to do it differently."

She said that she has a strong support system, like Reider, who help at times where she's become sick and unable to perform.

"You're a great example of being able to follow your dreams even with that," Reider said to Jones.

So now, the two hope to carry Dakota & Elle wherever life takes them. Reider said that they hope to perform more in 2023 and find new places to spread music to.

One of the wonderful parts of live events, Jones said, is meeting "so many amazing people with amazing stories."

"They'll let us know, like, 'this song was my wedding song,' you know, 'this song was a favorite of my mother's who passed away,' or 'this song was such an emotional moment for me in my life, thank you for singing it,'" Jones said. "And they'll come back."

She hopes to continue to grow that connection with the audiences as the duo brings their music throughout the county and further.

"We love to get to know and to be able to walk with them as we've grown a little bit bigger over this past year," Jones said. "We just want to meet more people and continue singing."

For more information about Dakota & Elle, visit their website. You can find them on Facebook and Instagram. You can see them perform at Ocean County Library branches or get tickets to "The Best of Dakota & Elle" on March 24 at the Captain's Inn here.