When you cruise with Holland America Line<\/a>, you\u2019ll experience an incredible lineup of entertainment and live music that speaks to your heart and gets you moving to the beat. From the performances on the World Stage to our award-winning music clubs, there are plenty of sights and sounds to behold, and the one orchestrating the magic behind the scenes day and night is our amazing onboard entertainment director, like Sasha. We caught up with Sasha this year on an Alaska cruise to learn what it\u2019s like to navigate a career while sailing the seas, and this is what he had to say.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div> \u201cI do what I love and love what I do. My role includes everything related to entertainment, from productions on the World Stage, to the music you hear playing in the background, to our bands. It\u2019s about making guests happy, and that brings me a lot of joy.\u201d<\/p>\n Though you\u2019ll find Sasha working magic behind the scenes, he\u2019s an entertainer at heart. He started dancing at the age of four and soon joined a dance company that took him around the world on tour. Once he learned about career opportunities he could have while cruising around the globe, he didn\u2019t hesitate.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve been with Holland America Line for more than a year as entertainment director but have been in the business for 15 years \u2013 first as a dancer and later as a cruise director. That\u2019s one of the great things about a career at sea. You can grow into different roles, and Holland America Line is especially supportive of helping employees grow. How they treat everyone is one of the things that differentiates them. They give us the chance to bring our families on board, and it\u2019s such a big part of why people choose Holland America Line. The way the company makes me feel \u2013 how they welcomed me \u2013 it’s just fantastic.\u201d<\/p>\n Sasha is a world traveler. There\u2019s hardly anywhere you could go that he hasn\u2019t sailed to. Although he has found beauty in every destination, Alaska<\/a> will always have his heart.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div> \u201cI enjoy the cold, so for me, Alaska and Canada are places I enjoy a lot. I love it so much I actually proposed to my wife in Juneau next to a waterfall. That\u2019s how much I love Alaska. It\u2019s breathtaking. Every single port is unbelievable. Sometimes you feel like you go back into the early 1900s when you see all these buildings and streets. You see this history here. Plus, there are the shore excursions<\/a>, including helicopter tours where you land on the glaciers, fishing and whale watching. Every shore excursion here is so memorable. I have so many pictures on my phone to show people all the things they can see in Alaska because describing it alone doesn\u2019t do it justice.\u201d<\/p>\n When asked about his favorite shows and entertainment on board, he quickly became animated. \u201cOh my, how can I choose just one? It\u2019s all great!\u201d Talking with his hands, he started going through the comprehensive lineup of options. \u201cOur Step One Dance Company<\/a> shows are unlike anything guests could see elsewhere because of how unique they are, especially when you factor in the technology.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div> And B.B. King\u2019s Blues Club is packed every night. The band is incredible and gets people singing along and dancing. Then there\u2019s the piano bar and Billboard Onboard, plus we have Third Avenue West, which is great if you\u2019re looking for chilled music you can enjoy as you sit back, have a cocktail and chat with your friends. The list goes on. It really comes down to how you feel at any moment. I just can\u2019t choose a favorite!\u201d<\/p>\n While he can\u2019t choose just one, he is more than willing to step up if the dance company needs him, given his background.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m always ready to jump in if they need me!\u201d Though he laughed when he said it, we believe he would do just that.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div> Favorite restaurant onboard:<\/em> \u201cTamarind.\u201d![\"View](\"https:\/\/www.hollandamerica.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/alaska-cruise-hubbard-glacier.webp\" "\\"Hubbard")
<\/span><\/div>Sasha loves the views in Alaska, especially the icy-blue glaciers.<\/em><\/h6>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
![\"Six](\"https:\/\/www.hollandamerica.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/holland-america-line-dancers-center-stage.webp\" "\\"Holland")
<\/span><\/div>Step One Dance Company lights up the stage during a performance aboard the Eurodam.<\/em><\/h6>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
Now for a Quick Cruise Q&A with Sasha:<\/strong><\/h3>\n
\nBest part of my job: <\/em>\u201cBeing helpful and crafting a perfect day for our guests.\u201d
\nFavorite mascot:<\/em> \u201cLewie<\/a>!\u201d
\nNote: Lewie, our new mascot, is available for purchase in our shops onboard.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>