Delaney Bruening is a 14-year-old dancer from Georgia. She dances at Studio 4 the Arts.
“[dance] has given me such incredible role models. Between choreographers, teachers, and older dancers at my studio, I am truly blessed to have amazing people to look up to.”
Tell us about your dance experience!
My dance experience started back when I was 2 years old, only taking tap and ballet classes. Ever since those two classes, I have fallen in love with dancing. Now, I take tap, jazz, contemporary, hip-hop, ballet, pointe, and stretching and strengthening classes. I started competing when I was 7 and got my first solo when I was 8 years old. I have won six titles in the past two years, and this past summer I won a national title and the highest-scoring routine of the entire competition. Coming up next season, I will be assisting Titans of Dance in their convention thanks to a scholarship I received. I am beyond grateful for my studio because, without them, none of this would have been able to happen. My dance experience is just beginning and I cannot wait to see what is in store.
How does dance have a positive impact on your life?
Dancing has such a positive impact on my life and it has given me so many opportunities. It gives me the chance to express how I feel through movement and feel the music in many different ways. Dancing gives me the chance to tell a story, and that is one of the reasons I fell in love with it. Expressing myself through fun, positive, and calming ways are my favorite! It has also had such an impact on me because, without dancing, I would have never met some of my best friends. A lot of my closest friends I met through conventions, competitions, and classes at the studio, and without them life would be much less fun. It has also given me such incredible role models. Between choreographers, teachers, and older dancers at my studio, I am truly blessed to have amazing people to look up to.
How do you want to use dance to have a positive impact on your community?
Dancing not only has a positive impact on me, but it also makes my community happy. One of the ways I use dancing to benefit my community is by assisting recreational classes at my studio. I help with choreography, cleaning, deciding on costumes, and putting smiles on little kids’ faces. I love doing this because I am able to share my love of dance with little kids who may discover that they have the same passion that I do. As well, our studio puts on an annual Nutcracker parade, and we walk through downtown throwing candy out to families on the sidewalks. I choose to not keep my passion for dance to myself and share it with others to benefit my community.
