Dance Bright, a dance studio in Plainview, recently had a number of member travel to Cedar Rapids, Iowa, June 18th-21st, to compete at the prestigious Starz National Dance Competition.
The studio took a “Nationals Team” of 28 dancers and had seven routines compete.
Dance Bright’s dancers came home with a National Championship title as well as a Grand National Championship and two Grand National Runner Up titles.
Along with these, judges' choice awards, high point placements and overalls were achieved. Dancers spent three intensive weeks in the studio rehearsing and polishing routines. The road to nationals takes commitment, dedication, and perseverance.
Director and studio owner, Brighton Meuret, said she was proud of the teamwork the “Nationals Team” demonstrated in preparation for the nationals stage. “We supported each other and pushed ourselves. Their success is a testament to their passion for dance and our bond as a team.”
Soloist, Karley Cole, started our nationals journey on Wednesday, June 18th, with her acrobatic routine “Bam Bam.” She earned a platinum rating, judges choice award called “Fantastic Facials,” was the category winner and placed 12th overall in the top 15 out of 54 total routines in her division.
Next was soloist, Olivia Rentschler, take the stage with her musical theater routine, “You Can’t Stop the Beat,” and soloist, Berkleigh Dvorak, perform her clogging routine, “Hustle.” Both routines earned a platinum rating and Rentschler came home with 3rd in her category. Dvorak earned a special invitation at Starz’s regional competition to perform in the “Standout Dancer” opening number routine for Grand Nationals on Saturday, June 21st.
“We were so proud to see one of our very own in this routine and receive this well deserved recognition at Nationals,” said Meuret.
Wednesday’s routines were concluded with the trio, “Hit the Road Jack,” which included dancers Addie Hodson, Emma Sauser and Olivia Rentschler. The trio earned a platinum rating, judge’s choice award called “Sole Power,” second overall in the top 5, and earned a spot to recompete in the Grand National Competition on Saturday, June 21st, and secured a Grand National Runner up overall placement.
Soloist, Zoey Heiss, competed Thursday, June 19th with her jazz routine, “Superbad,” and earned a platinum rating, third out of 17 in her jazz category and placed 5th overall out of 34 soloists. Her high placement earned her an alternate spot in the Grand National Competition.
Friday, June 20th, consisted of two group routines, “Throwback” and “Queen B” - both hip hop routines received national recognition.
Routine “Throwback,” consists of nine dancers; Camryn Cole, Ella Nincehelser, Evynn Kumm, Karley Cole, Kirbee Doerr, Lola Clausen, Raegan Lambrecht, Raelyn White, and Zoey Heiss. This small group routine danced their way to a National Champion title while also securing a platinum rating, judges choice award called “Fun and Fierce,” and the invitation to recompete in the Grand National Finals where they earned the Grand National Runner Up award.
Routine “Queen B,” is the studio’s line routine which included 21 dancers; Adalyn Dummer, Addie Hodson, Aleia Lilly, Aleigha Ogden, Aniston Schmidt, Belle Anson, Berkleigh Dvorak, Calla Mitchell, Clara Steinkraus, Daphne Mitchell, Ella White, Emma Sauser, Evynn Kumm, Jordyn Osborne, Karley Cole, Kinley Hodson, Macie Darnall, Olivia Rentschler, Paisley Mitchell, Tessa Weber, Fenne Van Winkel. This routine earned a platinum rating and third overall, which placed them in the Grand National Competition on Saturday where they secured the Grand National Champion Title.
“To say I’m proud is an understatement,” said studio owner, Brighton Meuret. “We had a dream, worked as a team, grew as dancers, and couldn’t be more grateful for the opportunity to travel and compete against amazing talent. We left feeling inspired and ready for the 25-26 season. We want to extend another thank you to those who supported and donated to the Nationals team."