Meet Carolyn | Binford Dance Company Feature | Year Five

The Binford Dance Company was established in 2016. It is an audition-based student dance company from Binford Middle School, an arts integrated school located in Richmond, VA. Company members study Ballet, Modern, Jazz, Improvisation, and Composition within the Binford dance program. The company has performed throughout the community including: The 2019 Superintendent’s State of the Schools Address, Generation Dream, Richmond Public Schools Fine Arts Festival, Strawberry Street Festival, Appomattox Regional Governor’s School for the Arts and Technology, Petersburg Home for Ladies, and Cedarfield Retirement Community. The company also had the opportunity to perform in the music videos “Have It All” and “Love Is Still The Answer” by Jason Mraz. The Binford Dance Company inspires students to find their own voice through performance and choreography while learning valuable skills in the rehearsal process including collaboration, respect, and confidence.

This year the company dancers chose a word and in studio executed their word through movement, costume and set color and design.

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MEET CAROLYN

SPARKLE

Carolyn 7th grade

Dance has always felt right for me. When I dance, I’m free to express myself any way I would like. I can use different moves to show what I feel. I have always been a dancer - just ask everyone who knew me when I was 5! I have been taking formal classes for a little under two years and love it! Now I get to do it while I learn new things and improve! I love being able to take dance as an elective and P.E. credit at Binford and I enjoy learning from Ms. Perkinson. I dance at the studio Grace Arts where I improve my modern, jazz, ballet, musical theatre, and contemporary dance technique. I also dance competitively with Grace Arts. This is my first year dancing competitively and it has been an absolutely great experience. I hope I get to do it again next year! 

Whether it’s dancing with the Binford Dance Company (BDC) or with my competition team, I feel like I belong. I love being a part of a team that has a bunch of people my age who have the same passion for dance as me. Being able to dance helps me get to make more friends and know more people. I recently had the opportunity to perform with the BDC at Appomattox Regional Governor's School for the Arts and Technology and that was a great experience because I probably wouldn’t have done that normally. 

The word that I used to describe myself was Sparkle. I chose that word because I thought that it was a good word to describe my personality. I have been told I’m very outgoing and unique just like glitter! Plus who doesn’t love glitter!