The Dance Awards
The Dance Awards is a national dance competition held annually in Las Vegas and Orlando. Dancers between the ages of five and eighteen are awarded to recognize excellence in dance.
Overview
The Dance Awards is a national dance competition produced by Dance One. The Dance Awards was first held in 2011 in New York City, where it continued to be held annually until 2015. In 2014, the competition expanded to a second location, Las Vegas. In 2016 the New York competition was moved to Orlando.The competition is usually held in the first two weeks of July.
Famous competitors
There have been several competitors that have competed or appeared on several other talent or dancing shows such as America's Got Talent, World of Dance, Dance Moms, Dancing with the Stars, and So [You Think You Can Dance]. Those competitors include Jenna Johnson, Briar Nolet, Ezra Sosa, Rylee Arnold Tate McRae, Brynn Rumfallo, JoJo Siwa, Eva Igo, Maddie Ziegler, Elliana Walmsley, and Mackenzie Ziegler.New York City
New York City was the original location for the competition in 2011, but it was replaced by Orlando in 2016.Studio of the Year Winners
| Year | Studio | Director |
| 2011 | Joanne Chapman School of Dance | Joanne Chapman |
| 2012 | Center Stage Performing Arts Studio | Kim Delgrosso and Alex Murillo |
| 2013 | JCSOD | Frank Giorgio |
| 2014 | Elite Danceworx | Dawn Rappitt |
| 2015 | Joanne Chapman School of Dance | Joanne Chapman |
Male Best Dancer Winners
| Year | Senior | Teen | Junior | Mini |
| 2011 | Daniel Gaymon | Ricky Ubeda | Jonathan Wade | Travis Atwood |
| 2012 | Ricky Ubeda | Kyle Patrick Clark | D'Angelo Castro | Jamaii Melvin |
| 2013 | Zelig Williams | Zenon Zubyk | Julian Lombardi | Joey Britt |
| 2014 | Keanu Uchida | Julian Elia | Findlay McConnell | Brady Farrar |
| 2015 | Kyle Patrick Clarke | Logan Hernandez | Murphy Lee | Tristan Ianiero |
Female Best Dancer winners
| Year | Senior | Teen | Junior | Mini |
| 2011 | Bianca Melchior | Sarah Pippin | Jayci Kalb | Leara Stanley |
| 2012 | Jenna Johnson | Jazzmin James | Payton Johnson | Talia Seitel |
| 2013 | Miriam Gittens | Christina Ricucci | Kalani Hilliker | Tate McRae |
| 2014 | Brianne Sellars | Jayci Kalb | Sophia Lucia | Kayla Mak |
| 2015 | Jazzmin James | Payton Johnson | Tate McRae | Jezzaeyah Slack |
Las Vegas
Las Vegas was introduced as a location in 2014. It is widely considered to be the toughest place to compete as the most prestigious dance companies choose to attend the Las Vegas competition instead of the Orlando or New York City locations.Studio of the Year winners
| Year | Studio | Director |
| 2014 | Prodigy Dance and Performing Arts Centre | Camille Billelo Gross |
| 2015 | The Dance Studio of Fresno | Sue Sampson-Dalena |
| 2016 | Larkin Dance Studio | Molly Larkin and Michele Larkin |
| 2017 | Club Dance Studio | Kelli Wilkins |
| 2018 | Prodigy Dance and Performing Arts Centre | Camille Billelo Gross |
| 2019 | Center Stage Performing Arts Studio | Alex Murillo, Robin Murillo and Kim Delgrosso |
| 2021 | The Rock Center for Dance | Quinn Callahan |
| 2021 | Club Dance Studio | Kelli Wilkins |
| 2021 | Larkin Dance Studio | Molly Larkin-Symanietz and Michele Larkin-Wagner |
| 2021 | Danceology | Nicole Lucia |
| 2021 | Prodigy Dance and Performing Arts Centre | Camille Billelo Gross |
| 2022 | Danceology | Nicole Lucia |
| 2023 | Larkin Dance Studio | Molly Larkin-Symanietz and Michele Larkin-Wagner |
| 2024 | Expressenz Dance Center | Karla Geier |
| 2025 | The NINE Dance Academy | Vanessa Compton and Nikki Loiero |
Male Best Dancer winners (LAS VEGAS)
| Year | Senior | Teen | Junior | Mini |
| 2014 | Eric Scholoesser | Lex Ishimoto | Carter Williams | Joziah German |
| 2015 | Michael Hall | Graham Feeny | Ryan Maw | Gavin Morales |
| 2016 | Lex Ishimoto | Sage Rosen | Holden Maples | Artyon Celestine |
| 2017 | Timmy Blankenship | Ryan Maw | Tristan Ianiero | JT Church |
| 2018 | Christian Smith | Joziah German | Jonathan Paula | Hudson Pletcher |
| 2019 | Findlay McConnell | Holden Maples | Stefania Bonomo | Aedyn Bekker |
| 2021 | Alex Shulman | Caleb Abea | Cooper Macalalad | Jacob Barrow |
| 2022 | Moses Rankine | Luke Barrett | Keenan Mentzos | Matthew Conway |
| 2023 | Isaiah Villegas | Patricio Lopez | Kazuma Brailsford | Tristan Jones |
| 2024 | Hudson Pletcher | Zachary Roy | Matthew Conway | Chase Lang |
| 2025 | Nathaniel Chua | Tristan Redly | Blais Lingle | Brody Schaffer |
Female Best Dancer winners
| Year | Senior | Teen | Junior | Mini |
| 2014 | Alyssa Allen | Simrin Player | Emma Sutherland | Brynn Rumfallo |
| 2015 | Ashley Green | Lucy Vallely | Jaycee Wilkins | Avery Gay |
| 2016 | Taylor Sieve | Emma Sutherland | Emma York | Kiarra Waidelich |
| 2017 | Simrin Player | Megan Goldstein | Avery Gay | Brightyn Brems |
| 2018 | Lucy Vallely | Tate McRae | Kiarra Waidelich | Elliana Walmsley |
| 2019 | Ellie Wagner | Bostyn Brown | Addison Leitch | Crystal Huang |
| 2021 | Ella Horan | Savannah Kristich | Crystal Huang | Kelsie Jacobson |
| 2022 | Brianna Keingatti | Avery Hall | Taylor Morrison | Finley Ashfield |
| 2023 | Carly Thinfen | Crystal Huang | Fiona Wu | Malia Scott |
| 2024 | Izzy Howard | Kylie Kaminsky | Skylar Wong | Belle Marie Arauz |
| 2025 | Keira Redpath | Bree Batstone | Mali Photnetrakhom | Sienna DiPietro |
Orlando
In 2016 Orlando replaced New York City as the second competition location.Studio of the Year Winners
| Year | Studio | Director |
| 2016 | Dance Town | Manny Castro and Lory Castro |
| 2017 | Vlad's Dance Company | Vlad Novitski |
| 2018 | Performing Dance Arts | Ashley Daychak |
| 2019 | Vlad's Dance Company | Vlad Novitski |
Male Best Dancer Winners
| Year | Senior | Teen | Junior | Mini |
| 2016 | Jonathan Wade | D'Angelo Castro | Parker Garrison | Jonathan Paula |
| 2017 | Wyeth Walker | Findlay McConnell | Brady Farrar | Stefania Bonomo |
| 2018 | Michael Novitski | Joey Gertin | Jackson Foley | Anthony LaGrega |
| 2019 | D'Angelo Castro | Murphy Lee | Timothy Zvifel | Ian Stegeman |
| 2021 | Jaxon Willard | Brady Farrar | Ian Stegeman | Michael Cash Savio |
| 2022 | Seth Gibson | Nicholas Moreno | Zachary Roy | Dylan Custodio |
| 2023 | Sam Fine | Ian Stegeman | Santiago Sosa | Damian Shillis |
| 2024 | Jackson Roloff-Hafenbreadl | Kylan Wright | Neo Del Corral | Isaiah Santos |
| 2025 | Nicholas Bustos | Santiago Sosa | Tristan Jones | Jay Ramos-Rivera |
Female Best Dancer Winners
| Year | Senior | Teen | Junior | Mini |
| 2016 | Jayci Kalb | Morgan Higgins | Bostyn Brown | Diana Pombo |
| 2017 | Payton Johnson | Quinn Starner | Bella Klassen | Hailey Bills |
| 2018 | Morgan Higgins | Kelis Robinson | Ava Wagner | Cameron Voorhees |
| 2019 | Vivian Ruiz | Ruby Castro | Keagan Capps | Gracyn French |
| 2021 | Kayla Mak | Dyllan Blackburn | Cameron Voorhees | Kya Massimino |
| 2022 | Ruby Castro | Hailey Bills | Kylee Casares | Skylar Wong |
| 2023 | Julia Lowe | Cameron Voorhees | Zoe Flores | Ellary Day Szyndlar |
| 2024 | Sierra Drayton | Giselle Gandarilla | Regan Gerena | Sylvie Win Szyndlar |
| 2025 | Sophie Garcia | Kylee Casares | Avery Altobelli | Amaya Rodriguez |
LIVE
The Dance Awards LIVE was held online in 2020 as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic.Male Best Dancer Winners
| Year | Senior | Teen | Junior | Mini |
| 2020 | Joziah German | Easton Magliarditi | Nicholas Bustos | Keenan Mentzos |
Female Best Dancer Winners
| Year | Senior | Teen | Junior | Mini |
| 2020 | Kelis Robinson | Kiarra Waidelich | Ali Ogle | Savannah Manzel |
Repeat Winners
Two Time Winners
- Ricky Ubeda: Teen 2011, Senior 2012
- Jazzmin James: Teen 2012, Senior 2015
- Kyle Patrick Clarke: Teen 2012, Senior 2015
- Emma Sutherland: Junior 2014, Teen 2016
- Lex Ishimoto: Teen 2014, Senior 2016
- Jonathan Wade: Junior 2011, Senior 2016
- Avery Gay: Mini 2015, Junior 2017
- Tristan Ianiero: Mini 2015, Junior 2017
- Ryan Maw: Junior 2015, Teen 2017
- Simrin Player: Teen 2014, Senior 2017
- Jonathan Paula: Mini 2016, Junior 2018
- Morgan Higgins: Teen 2016, Senior 2018
- Lucy Vallely: Teen 2015, Senior 2018
- Stefano Bonomo: Mini 2017, Junior 2019
- Bostyn Brown: Junior 2016, Teen 2019
- Holden Maples: Junior 2016, Teen 2019
- Murphy Lee: Junior 2015, Teen 2019
- Kelis Robinson: Teen 2018, Senior 2020
- Kayla Mak: Mini 2014, Senior 2021
- Keenan Mentzos: Mini 2020, Junior 2022
- Hailey Bills: Mini 2017, Teen 2022
- Hudson Pletcher: Mini 2018, Senior 2024
- Ruby Castro: Teen 2019, Senior 2022
- Skylar Wong: Mini 2022, Junior 2024
- Matthew Conway: Mini 2022, Junior 2024
- Zachary Roy: Junior 2022, Teen 2024
Three Time Winners
- Jayci Kalb: Junior 2011, Teen 2014, Senior 2016
- Payton Johnson: Junior 2012, Teen 2015, Senior 2017
- Tate McRae: Mini 2013, Junior 2015, Teen 2018
- Findlay McConnell: Junior 2014, Teen 2017, Senior 2019
- D’Angelo Castro: Junior 2012, Teen 2016, Senior 2019
- Joziah German: Mini 2014, Teen 2018, Senior 2020
- Kiarra Waidelich: Mini 2016, Junior 2018, Teen 2020
- Brady Farrar: Mini 2014, Junior 2017, Teen 2021
- Crystal Huang: Mini 2019, Junior 2021, Teen 2023
- Cameron Voorhees: Mini 2018, Junior 2021, Teen 2023
- Ian Stegeman: Mini 2019, Junior 2021, Teen 2023