Ava is in 7th grade at Bryan Middle School in Elmhurst, IL. She has been dancing since she was 18 months old! This is her 4th year with Extensions. Ava has earned many accomplishments and awards over the course of her dance career. In 2019, Ava was cast as a Little Snowflake in the Joffrey Ballets’ “The Nutcracker.” In 2022, New York City Dance Alliance awarded her ‘Top Outstanding Dancer’ in the Chicago regional in which she earned a scholarship to their national convention classes and placed Top 40 nationally for her contemporary solo. This past year has been equally as successful as the prior. Ava continued to perform a classical variation, contemporary solo and contemporary ensemble with Chicago City Classical Ballet at Youth American Grand Prix (YAGP), where she placed top 10 for both solo performances and 2nd place ensemble. Ava added Universal Ballet Competition (UBC) to her list of competitive venues in 2023 and is looking forward to returning to both YAGP and UBC this year. She enjoys each completion and convention she attends. She receives and does her best to apply the feedback from her peers and teachers who travel from all over the world to attend these events. Most of all, she loves her time on stage and doesn’t take it for granted. Over the years, Ava has won multiple awards and recognitions for her stage presence, and overall solo performances. There isn’t a dance genre that Ava doesn’t love, but Ballet holds her heart. The effort to create something to look so graceful provides her with an inviting challenge! Ava knows she has so much more to learn and receive from this beautiful art. She believes she is in the perfect place with Lizzie Mackenzie and the all amazing teachers at Extensions. When Ava is not dancing, you can find her enjoying Starbucks, watching any Star Wars movie in the series or reading! It can get difficult balancing dance and life, but when schedules get really tough, she reminds herself of her family motto, “Whatever it Takes.”