What to know
- Brennan Clost is a Juilliard-trained dancer and actor known for ‘The Next Step’ and ‘Tiny Pretty Things.’
- Michael Usling is a CAFA award-winning designer and interdisciplinary artist based in Toronto.
- The couple’s supportive dynamic stands out in the arts world—no competition, just encouragement.
- Their relationship highlights the power of community and collaboration for LGBTQ+ creatives in Canadian arts and fashion.
At Fashion Art Toronto, Brennan Clost and Michael Usling stood out not just for what they wore, but for how they lifted each other up. One’s a dancer/actor, the other a designer. Usling’s a CAFA recipient, Clost starred on TV, and together as a gay couple in the arts, they’re all about supporting each other. No competition, just pride.
About Brennan Clost
At the age of 16, Burlington-born actor and dancer Brennan Clost competed at a dance competition, where a talent agent scouted him and sent him for a trial audition for The Next Step.
The TV drama, known for bringing nostalgia to a Gen Z audience who grew up watching it, cast Clost for five seasons in one of the lead contemporary dancer roles, Daniel, which launched his career.
While the show aired, Clost studied at The Juilliard School in New York City, graduating with a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree.
He’s also appeared on Canada’s Got Talent, Degrassi: The Next Generation, in a prominent role as Shane in Netflix ballet drama Tiny Pretty Things, Gerald in Netflix’s Fear Street: Prom Queen, and has acted in Canadian series like Heartland, Pretty Hard Cases, and Loathe Thy Neighbor.
“Tiny Pretty Things and The Next Step were both opportunities that felt like lightning in a bottle. I was the right age at the right time,” Clost told Now Toronto.
From being a dancer to accomplishing his dream of being an actor, he’s grateful for the opportunities he’s received.
“They’ve really defined my young adult life, and the people that I worked with and the connections that I’ve made have just been life-changing and so special,” Clost said.
The 31-year-old actor decided to return to Toronto after working in Europe and the States.
“I love this city. I love being close to my family, and it means so much to have so much work,” he said. In the time that I’ve been in the film and TV industry, it’s only continued booming, and Fashion Art Toronto has gotten bigger and bigger every year. I feel like Toronto is a city that’s learning how to support the arts even more, and so it’s really exciting to be a part of something that’s growing that way.”
After returning home to Toronto, Clost met his partner, Michael Usling.
About Michael Usling
The interdisciplinary artist and designer, specializing in sculpture, installation, multimedia, and performance, earned a Canadian Arts and Fashion Awards (CAFA) award for his work as a creative/artistic director.
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The designer previously studied at Western University and earned a Master of Fine Arts from the Bauhaus-Universität Weimar in Germany. In 2020, he founded the art and design studio edte, where he produces functional and sustainable handbags and other items.
At Fashion Art Toronto’s Fashion Week Spring Summer 2026 (FW SS/26), Usling held a booth with sustainable handbags once again, and one of the bags is Clost’s favourite.
“I actually designed the black one for Brennan,” Usling told Now Toronto. “He loves a simple, everyday monochromatic vibe. Just something that’ll go with everything.”
“Michael has listed it for sale, and cross my fingers, I secretly hope that no one buys it because this is my bag,” Clost said.
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How did the two come together?
Clost joked they met “like every great modern dating story,” online.
The pair encourage each other in their pursuit of the arts, focusing on support rather than jealousy.
“I’ve never had a partner who’s as supportive as Michael, and I feel like I manifested this relationship,” Clost said.
“It’s just so rare when you’re first of all, in a gay relationship, you’re both in an art industry, to not have that competitive nature,” he shared. “I think it’s just so special and so important to uplift each other. Me as an actor, him as a designer and artist.”
Usling added that understanding each other’s struggles in the arts, particularly around auditions or exhibition submissions, allows them to deepen their connection.
Fashion x acting: How does that mesh?
As a contemporary dancer on The Next Step, Clost shared his tips for ensuring his clothes let him move freely.
“As a dancer, I always do a split test on any clothing I’m wearing. If I can’t do a pas de liaison, I’m not wearing it… I need something that can look amazing, but is also functional,” he said. “Like Michael’s handbags, functional art.”
Usling touched on the importance of wearing something you’re comfortable in.
“It’s also nice to just not be so rigid and binary in your clothing,” he added.
Clost shared his appreciation for wardrobe designers after working with them throughout his acting career.
“I’ve had some incredible wardrobe designers, especially on Tiny Pretty Things. They spoiled me. My character’s wardrobe was incredible, and very kindly, they let me take home a couple of pieces,” he said. “As an actor, I’m kind of building my collection, my archive of fashion pieces that are sentimental or important, but I have such a new appreciation for the craft since dating Michael.”
Message for those hoping to achieve dreams as big as Usling and Clost
Usling recommends surrounding yourself with other creatives.
“Ever since dating Brennan, I feel like that’s sort of when I reached my next level of putting myself out there creatively and having these opportunities like CAFA or Fashion Art Toronto,” he said. “People who are also creative in your corner will just really encourage you and uplift you to do those things.”
Clost says that you have to believe in yourself.
“The belief in yourself has to come from yourself first,” he said. “But exactly like Michael said, it’s so much easier to believe in yourself and pursue your dreams when you surround yourself with other like-minded people and people that are in your corner and that are rooting for you and aren’t taking your wins like a loss for themselves, but it’s all just that, like positive energy.”
