First female student from Leslie’s Dance competes in national pageant

GREENFIELD – For the first time, a female student from Leslie’s Dance and Tumbling in Creston competed in a national pageant in Nashville, Tennessee.

Danica Clayton, 16, of Greenfield attended the National Dance Masters of America Convention and Scholarship Pageant from June 30 to July 9. She earned this opportunity after being crowned 2016 Miss Dance of Midwest Dance Masters of America, chapter No. 47, in January in Des Moines – another first for Leslie’s Dance and Tumbling.

“Her enthusiasm and striving for excellence in the art of dance shines through in all she does,” said Leslie Tyler, owner of the Creston dance studio. “This was an excellent dance experience for Danica for growth, learning, friendships and dance connections for the future.”

Danica, the daughter of Jeff and Kim Clayton, is a junior at Nodaway Valley High School in Greenfield and has been Tyler’s dance student since she was 3 years old. Currently, Danica’s instructors at the studio are Tyler, Kalian Smith and Aurilla Goldsmith.

Dance Masters of America is a teacher-run organization to promote quality education in dance. It is an organization of artists and educators committed to the elevation of dance and providing innovative, artistic experiences for the advancement of dancers worldwide.

Danica competed in the Miss and Master Dance category for ages 16 to 22. The pageant consists of an interview with a panel of judges; adjudicated audition classes in ballet, tap, jazz and acrobatics; learning a group routine in two hours to present at the opening of the pageant; solo dance routine competition and evening gown presentation.

Points are awarded throughout the competition that accumulate into a total score at the end. The solo dance is worth the most points, Kim said.

While Danica took first place in the Midwest, at the national level, she didn’t place.

“I thought she did a great job,” Kim said. “The level of competition is one of the highest calibers. Some of these girls have held titles multiple times or they go to strictly ballet schools, so I thought she performed really well with them.”

Danica represented chapter No. 47, which includes teachers from Iowa and Minnesota. The chapter officers are Tina McMurray Hason, Mary Behn Mentzer, Sabetha Mumm and Tyler.

“As her dance instructor, I have been impressed with the effort, time and dedication that Danica has committed in the studio classes and performances, with the dance competition team, through Nodaway Valley’s drill team, attending dance conventions and performing with Iowa Dance Theatre’s Nutcracker,” Tyler said.

Danica said she is thrilled to be the first female from Leslie’s Dance and Tumbling to win the Miss Dance of Midwest title and to have had the opportunity to compete in the national pageant.

“It was a lot different from what I was used to, so that was a good thing,” Danica said. “I got to meet a lot of new people, and I learned a lot of new things, and even though I didn’t win, I think it was overall a great learning experience. It was a hard competition – everything was hard – but I think it was definitely worth it.”