I started dance later than people normally start. Normally, girls start dancing at the age of three, where I started at the age of 11.
That said, it did not hinder me from loving dance. I loved every dance, even though I had a bias towards hip-hop. This girl just loved dropping it like its hot and having it be socially accepted.
Throughout all my dances, obviously, there have been favorites of mine. Thank you to all my dance teachers, choreographers and teammates.
1. "As it Seems" Snow White 2013
Every year, my studio does a different theme that goes along to a movie. The year of 2013, we performed Snow White. My role was Doc, which is one of the seven dwarfs.
"As It Seems" was a modern piece that consisted of the seven dwarfs and Snow White. I loved this piece specifically because its fluidity was so inspiring and breathtaking from the audience's perspective.
2. "Slow Me Down" Company 2013-2017
Slow me down was another modern, lyrical or contemporary piece that we had all the years that I danced at The Dance Pointe.
I particularly enjoyed this dance because I had a solo at the end. This dance also means a lot to me because I wrote my college essay on it, which is one of the reasons I got accepted into my number one college.
3. "Unsteady" Young Choreographers Festival 2017
This dance was performed in my final semester at The Dance Pointe. What made it special was it was performed with my best friends, but also choreographed by myself with the advice of my fellow dancers and dance director.
I had worked from June to January choreographing, picking out costumes and setting up rehearsals just to perform a two minute and 30-second dance. But it was completely worth it!
4. "Rockabye" WNE Football 2017
Entering college, I knew I wanted to continue to dance, even if the dance team was not NCAA recognized. Making the performance team really boosted my dance self-esteem, since at the time my freshman roommate and I were the only freshmen picked for performance team.
This dance was the first dance that we performed and the first dance that I had learned, cleaned and performed in a matter of three days. This dance will always have a place in my heart.
5. "Scars To Your Beautiful" Powerhouse Competition 2017
To others disbelief, this dance was actually performed as a hip-hop and not what many would have thought as a lyrical piece. We all wore different all black crop tops and leggings with our Adidas Neo High Tops.
I loved this dance because when we came on stage everyone was expecting this powerhouse song to come on, yet this soft heartfelt came on and it made the judges take notice.
6. "Burlesque" Germany 2016
My dance studio had the opportunity to tour southern Germany putting on dance shows to help a special needs school in a small city town.
This particular year, our new jazz/jazz funk teacher set this piece on us. The moment I heard the music, I knew that I would love this piece. It was sassy, sexy and fun all in one.
7. "Instruction" WNE Basketball 2018
This dance was choreographed by our one of our choreographers and from the first step, my eyes lit up with excitement. Having it to a song by one of my favorite artists, Demi Lovato, helped so much more.
I've always loved hip-hop/jazz funk, so finally having a piece that played to my strong suit really made me appreciate this dance.
8. "Bottom Of The River" Germany 2014 & Princess And The Frog 2015
Although this dance was not my song suit, I really enjoyed it. We originally performed this piece in Germany 2014, but when it matched our next recital perfectly, it was then put into the recital as a company piece.
I loved this dance because the music was so sultry and deep in tone. The steps were low and heavy and very eye pleasing when watching it on video.
9. "Everybody Hurts" DanceFest 2016
Everyone has gone through the wringer in life. This dance had personal meaning to our modern teacher and every time we performed this dance, we preformed it for her with our whole heart.
Our costumes were very simple as they were just a nude tunic. It was very dear to our hearts knowing that we were helping her through her pain.
Although this dance was particularly frustrating to learn and complete, knowing that none of us wanted to let our teacher down made it the most rewarding to perform.
10. "I Try" WNE Dance Team Recital 2018
With the season done and our recital lurking, I wanted to choreograph a piece that meant a lot to myself and others. With the Parkland School shooting just occurring weeks before our recital, I decided to dedicate my dance to one of the victims, who themselves were an amazing dancer.
Just two weeks before this recital, I had my appendix taken out, so making sure I was healthy enough to perform in this meant a lot to myself.
11. "Ain't Your Mama" Cinderella 2017
Having this recital being my last one of my Dance Pointe career, This recital was definitely my favorite. But in particular, my favorite dance I performed was this hip-hop dance.
I was given one of the lead roles as the step-mom and was given one of the lead parts in this dance. Also, having hip-hop be my favorite, I was able to be the sassy and mean step-mom everyone expected and more.
12. "If The Shoe Fits" Cinderella 2017
As Cinderella was my last recital, this was my last dance with The Dance Pointe. As the song rang out, tears began to stroll down my face as my fellow dancers were telling me to pull it together.
This was very emotional because this dance was my goodbye to the family I had come to gain over a six and a half year time period. These were my sisters and second parents and the time to say goodbye was here.
