Sophia Lucia

Last updated
Sophia Lucia
NationalityAmerican
OccupationDancer
Years active2012–present

Sophia Lucia is an American dancer. Described as a "phenom" by multiple media publications, [1] [2] [3] she holds the Guinness World Record for most consecutive pirouettes. She is also known for her appearance on the reality television show Dance Moms .

Contents

Early life

Sophia Lucia was born to mother Jackie Lucia. She is from Poway, California, United States. She began dancing at the age of two at San Diego Dance Centre, which is owned by her cousin Kristen Hibbs. [4] Lucia moved to Arizona to train in ballet. She joined Phoenix's Master Ballet Academy in 2015 or 2016. [1] She has also danced at Phoenix Ballet as a volunteer. [2]

Career

In January 2012, a video of Lucia performing 40 turns was uploaded to YouTube. [4] It went viral, garnering over 800,000 views by February 2013. [5] The video was also sent to The Ellen DeGeneres Show . Her mother recalled that a representative "called back in a week and said, 'We have to have her on the show'". Lucia performed a tap dance in the "hidden talent" portion of a February 2012 episode. [4] She also briefly made an appearance in the reality television series Dance Moms as one of Abby Lee Miller's "replacement" dancers. [5] [6] In 2013, Lucia broke the Guinness World Record for most consecutive pirouettes at age 10 after completing 55 turns, [7] [8] [9] surpassing Alicia Clifton's record of 36. [10] The following year, she was named the Junior Female Best Dancer at the Dance Awards in New York City. [1] At age 13, she portrayed the Harlequin Doll in Phoenix Ballet's production of The Nutcracker at Orpheum Theatre. In a review, Kerry Lengel of AZCentral said she played the role "with humor and aplomb". [11]

Public image

Multiple media publications have described Lucia as a "phenom". [1] [2] [3] According to the magazine Dance Spirit , Lucia's rapid rise to fame was due to her "top-notch technique and unreal flexibility", as well as her appearance on Dance Moms. [12] Her ballet teacher Rachel Sebastian stated that she exhibits the "perfect storm" of natural talent and tenacity that helps her turn well. [4] Lengel partially credited the popularity of Phoenix Ballet's The Nutcracker to Lucia and her fame from reality television. [13]

Credits

YearTitleRoleNotesRef.
2012 Shake It Up DancerEpisode: "Copy Kat It Up"
2012, 2016 The Ellen DeGeneres Show Herself2 episodes
[1]
2012–2013 Dance Moms Herself5 episodes
[6]
2013 Dancing with the Stars Herself1 episode
2013 America's Got Talent Herself1 episode
[1]
2015 Nicky, Ricky, Dicky & Dawn Russian kidEpisode: "I Want Candace"
2015 The Nutcracker Harlequin DollAt Orpheum Theatre
2016 So You Think You Can Dance HerselfContestant (season 13); 3 episodes
2016A Nutcracker ChristmasSadieTelevision film
2022GummiesCathyIndustry reading at Open Jar Studios

Awards

AwardYearCategoryResultRef.
The Dance Awards 2014Junior Female Best DancerWon
Guinness World Records 2013Most consecutive contemporary dance pirouettesWon
Youth America Grand Prix 2016Classical Dance – Women (Junior)Top 12
Contemporary Dance (Junior)Won
Pas de deux (Classical) (with William Jackson Beckham)2nd place

Related Research Articles

<i>The Nutcracker</i> 1892 ballet by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky

The Nutcracker, Op. 71, is an 1892 two-act classical ballet by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, set on Christmas Eve at the foot of a Christmas tree in a child's imagination. The plot is an adaptation of E. T. A. Hoffmann's 1816 short story The Nutcracker and the Mouse King. The ballet's first choreographer was Marius Petipa, with whom Tchaikovsky had worked three years earlier on The Sleeping Beauty, assisted by Lev Ivanov. Although the complete and staged The Nutcracker ballet was not initially as successful as the 20-minute Nutcracker Suite that Tchaikovsky had premiered nine months earlier, it soon became popular.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Julie Kent (dancer)</span> American ballet dancer

Julie Kent is an American ballet dancer; she was a principal dancer with the American Ballet Theatre from 1993 to June 2015. In 2016, she was named the artistic director of The Washington Ballet. She became co-artistic director at the Houston Ballet in July 2023.

Gillian Murphy is an American ballet dancer who is a principal dancer with the American Ballet Theatre.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maria Kochetkova</span> Russian ballet dancer

Maria Olegovna Kochetkova is a Russian ballet dancer. She was a principal dancer with the San Francisco Ballet between 2007 and 2018, and with the American Ballet Theatre between 2015 and 2017. After that, she became a freelance dancer for several years, before joining the Finnish National Ballet in the 2020/21 season.

Kyra Nichols is an American retired ballet dancer and teacher. She joined the New York City Ballet in 1974 and was promoted to principal dancer in 1979. She is one of the last dancers to have worked with George Balanchine, although he did not create any new work on her. However, she originated roles in several ballets by Jerome Robbins. Nichols retired from performing in 2007, after a 33-year career.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kiril Kulish</span> American actor, dancer, and singer (born 1994)

Kiril Jacob Kulish is an American actor, singer and dancer who is best known for portraying the title role in the original American production of Billy Elliot the Musical, which earned him a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical, making him one of the youngest winners of the award.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Isabella Boylston</span> American ballet dancer

Hildur Isabella Boylston is an American ballet dancer who is currently a principal dancer with the American Ballet Theatre (ABT).

Dance Moms is an American reality television series that premiered on Lifetime on July 13, 2011. Created by Collins Avenue Productions, the show followed the training and careers of children in dance and show business under the tutelage of Abby Lee Miller, as well as the relationships between Miller, the dancers, and their mothers. Set originally in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and later in Los Angeles, California, the show was primarily filmed at the Abby Lee Dance Company (ALDC) studios. The show followed the girls on the ALDC Junior Elite Competition Team as they learn their dances and then compete at dance competitions all across the country.

Amber Scott is an Australian ballet dancer. She was a principal artist at The Australian Ballet before retiring in 2023 after 22 years with the company.

Jeffrey Cirio is an American ballet dancer. He joined the Boston Ballet in 2009, and was promoted to principal dancer in 2012. In 2015, he moved to the American Ballet Theatre as a soloist, and was promoted to principal dancer the following year. In 2018, he joined the English National Ballet as a principal dancer. He will return to Boston Ballet in the 2022/23 season.

Youth America Grand Prix (YAGP) is a non-profit international youth ballet and contemporary dance competition and scholarship program established in 1999.

<i>An American Girl: Isabelle Dances Into the Spotlight</i> 2014 American film

An American Girl: Isabelle Dances Into the Spotlight is a 2014 musical family direct-to-video film, starring Erin Pitt as Isabelle Palmer; along with Melora Hardin, Grace Davidson, Devyn Nekoda, Genneya Walton, Alyssa Trask, Avery Trask, Daniel Fathers, Kolton Stewart, Mathew Edmondson, and Saara Chaudry. The eighth film in the American Girl series, it was directed by Vince Marcello with a screenplay by Jessica O'Toole and Amy Rardin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dores André</span> Spanish ballet dancer

Dores André Rodríguez is a Spanish ballet dancer. She is currently a principal dancer at the San Francisco Ballet.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stella Abrera</span> Filipina-American ballet dancer

Stella Abrera is a Filipina-American ballet dancer. She danced as a principal dancer with American Ballet Theatre until her retirement in 2020, and is the company's first Filipina principal ballerina. She then became the artistic director of the dance cultural park Kaatsbaan, and in September 2022 took up the role of artistic director of the ABT JKO School. following Cynthia Harvey's departure in May.

Elliana Kathryn Walmsley is an American dancer and model. She became known for appearing in Lifetime's reality show Dance Moms.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Skylar Brandt</span> American ballet dancer

Skylar Paley Brandt is an American ballet dancer who is currently a principal dancer with the American Ballet Theatre.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lucia Nifontova</span> Finnish ballet dancer

Lucia Nifontova-Saurama, better known as Lucia Nifontova, was a Finnish ballet dancer and Finland’s first prima ballerina assoluta. In the 1930s and 40s she and her partner Arvo Martikainen were the leading dancers in Finland and among the foremost artists in Finnish ballet of all time periods. Her performances of Odette and Odile in Swan Lake were especially noted for their artistic accomplishment and emotional interpretation.

Charlotte Nebres is an American pre-professional ballet dancer. In 2019, at eleven years old, she become the first Black ballerina to dance the role of Marie in New York City Ballet's production of George Balanchine's The Nutcracker. Later that year, she wrote Charlotte and The Nutcracker, a children's book about her experience.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marcelino Quiñonez</span> American politician

Marcelino Quiñonez is an American politician, playwright, activist and former member of the Arizona House of Representatives from the 11th district. He assumed office on December 16, 2021 after being appointed to replace Diego Rodriguez.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Fouhy, Craig (February 25, 2016). "Small Stars: Dancing phenom Sophia Lucia". KNXV-TV . Retrieved December 14, 2022.
  2. 1 2 3 Lengel, Kerry (May 12, 2015). "Phoenix Ballet mixes classical discipline, reality-TV flair". AZCentral . Retrieved December 17, 2022.
  3. 1 2 Barrett, Annie (May 15, 2013). "Dancing with the Stars recap: Ingo Rademacher and Kym Johnson eliminated". Entertainment Weekly . Retrieved December 17, 2022.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Warth, Gary (February 12, 2012). "POWAY: 9-year-old dancer eyes world record for pirouettes". The San Diego Union-Tribune . Retrieved December 14, 2022.
  5. 1 2 Lucia, Sophia (February 20, 2013). "Meet Sophia Lucia!". Dance Spirit (Interview).
  6. 1 2 Marek, Emily (July 31, 2022). "Dance Moms: 5 Times I Agreed With Abby... And 5 Times I Agreed With The Moms". CinemaBlend . Retrieved December 14, 2022.
  7. ↑ Bell, Diane (May 15, 2013). "Pirouette champ turns heads on 'DWTS'". The San Diego Union-Tribune . Retrieved December 14, 2022.
  8. ↑ Feidelson, Lizzie (December 21, 2017). "Inside the High-Drama World of Youth Competition Dance". The New York Times . Retrieved December 14, 2022.
  9. ↑ Polus, Sarah (October 6, 2014). "Kids break fitness Guinness world records with Mia Hamm at 'Fit Made Fun Day'". The Washington Post . Retrieved December 12, 2022.
  10. ↑ "Sophia Lucia Sets New Guinness World Record for Pirouettes!". Dance Spirit . March 31, 2013. Retrieved December 12, 2022.
  11. 1 2 Lengel, Kerry (December 22, 2015). "Dance review: 3 'Nutcrackers' in Phoenix range from so-so to spectacular". AZCentral . Retrieved December 17, 2022.
  12. ↑ Lucia, Sophia (November 6, 2017). "10 Quick Questions with Sophia Lucia". Dance Spirit (Interview). Interviewed by Alison Feller. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
  13. ↑ Lengel, Kerry (November 22, 2015). "Holiday dance guide: Not just 'Nutcrackers'". AZCentral . Retrieved December 17, 2022.
  14. ↑ "Sophia Lucia". Rotten Tomatoes . Retrieved December 14, 2022.
  15. ↑ Oldenburg, Ann (May 14, 2013). "'Dancing With the Stars' narrows to Final Four". USA Today . Retrieved December 14, 2022.
  16. ↑ "Sophia Lucia Credits". TV Guide . Retrieved December 14, 2022.
  17. ↑ Russo, Gianluca (June 6, 2018). "5 People You Didn't Know Auditioned for "SYTYCD"". Dance Spirit . Retrieved December 14, 2022.
  18. ↑ Radetsky, Sascha (December 8, 2016). "Sascha Radetsky Spills About His New Holiday Movie". Dance Magazine (Interview). Interviewed by Courtney Escoyne. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
  19. ↑ Brunner, Raven (May 19, 2022). "Lawryn LaCroix and Andi Villa Stover's New Play Gummies Announces Industry Reading". Playbill . Retrieved December 14, 2022.
  20. ↑ "Hall of Fame: Junior Female Best Dancers". The Dance Awards . Retrieved December 17, 2022.
  21. ↑ "Most consecutive contemporary dance pirouettes". Guinness World Records . Retrieved December 17, 2022.
  22. ↑ "YAGP 2016 – San Diego, CA Winners". Youth America Grand Prix . Retrieved December 17, 2022.
  23. ↑ "YAGP 2016 – New York, NY Winners". Youth America Grand Prix . Retrieved December 17, 2022.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.