Miami Lakes-based Miami Dancity Studios competition team enjoyed a variety of successes at the recent Starbound Nationals Dance Competition in Orlando.
The studio’s team, which includes three separate companies, all attended the event at the Walt Disney World Dolphin Resort. The dancers participated in several master classes, and several pre-qualifying dancers participated in the National Competition’s opening number for the Grand Showcase at the end of the week.
MDS dancers swept up award after award in each of the five different age divisions. Several junior petite and junior division dancers placed in the top ten overall spots in their age division.
Dancer Taylor Lopez was awarded first place overall national soloist in the junior petite division. Amanda Lorenzo won the title of junior first place overall national soloist. Junior dancers Claudia Travieso and Diana Cao were first and second runners-up for title awards, and both also placed a runners-up for the Miss Star of Hope award, which donates 100 percent of its proceeds to cancer research.
Teen dancers Lyzzette Medina and Sophia de la Rosa also placed in the top ten overall soloist spots. Senior dancer Sashalie Rios took home the coveted first place overall senior soloist position throughout the entire competition.
The MDS precompany achieved their first national overall award with their jazz dance “Labels.” Junior company dancers placed fifth overall with their contemporary group dance “Mine.”
Company dancers in the senior division placed seventh overall with their small group “Damages,” and company dancers in the junior division placed first overall with their small group “Birds of Prey.”
Several of the performances were called back to the Finals Showcase at the end of the week where the top studios competed for the grand championship awards in each age division.
MDS Showcase results included a sixth place for company senior dancers “Primitive Faith,” and a second place for “Damages,” a third place for production dancers “The Voice,” a fourth place for company junior dancers “Birds of Prey,” and Showcase Champions “In The Red.”