Meet Raynie | 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.
MEET RAYNIE
SUNSHINE
Raynie 7th grade
My dance journey started when I was three years old. I was in a ballet class and loved it! I remember always being excited to go. Skip ahead a few years to fourth grade. That's when I got introduced to Minds In Motion. I looked forward to those Thursdays before specials where we got to learn new moves and dance. That year I was lucky enough to be able to try out for team XL with the Richmond Ballet. That year was so much fun and I loved performing with my school and the team. The next year, I got to try out for Minds In Motion Ambassadors. Once again I got in! I got to dance with older kids who I looked up to when they danced. I wanted to dance just like them. That year was the first year since I was 3 that I did ballet again.
That year our teacher said we could audition for the Richmond Ballet’s Nutcracker. I was so excited but still really nervous. I had only done one year of actual ballet! The audition was really fun but I felt like a fish out of water. All of the people around me were so much more experienced than me so I thought for sure I wouldn’t get in. A few weeks later, I got a call back! I was so excited! I was feeling really good about myself by that time, and when they sent out the cast list, I was so excited that I was good enough!
That same year after The Nutcracker, I was loving my work on the dances for the next Minds In Motion show but sadly it got cut off because of Covid. We did the rest of the year virtually. After that long year we were able to meet in person and continue working. There were no performances that year due to Covid but at least we got to dance. At the end of that long year, we auditioned to see if we could continue with ballet in the “actual classes.” I made it into Middle One and was excited to start!
Beginning in person for school was scary, but ballet was going well and Nutcracker auditions were soon. I auditioned with a small group and I felt pretty good about getting in. I was so happy when I got in because I got into the best scene for kid dancers! The Nutcracker was so much fun but Binford Dance Company auditions were starting soon. I was so excited to audition, especially because all of my friends were too. As you can tell I got in and I love the dance company! It's so fun performing with everyone and I love going down after class. I am so happy dance is in my life!
