Sanya Sidhu ’24 loves to dance, and in her final year as an Upper School student, the WardlaLAartridge lifer will be sharing her passion and expertise by teaching Middle and Upper School students. Sanya brings quite an impressive resume to the Berry Performing Arts Center stage, where she will teach classes to Middle School students enrolled in a dance class elective and Upper School students who sign up for Dance Club.
The LA senior has enjoyed a huge year in dance, earning accolades, awards and recognition at various competitions. She won the title of Senior Miss Turn It Up at the regionals in Toms River and placed first as a soloist at the On Stage America regionals in Trenton. At Imagine National Dance Challenge, Sanya was one of two recipients of scholarships to the World Dance Pageant. In her dance school's final production of The Nutcracker, she was applauded for her performance as the Arabian Princess.
Performing the contemporary dance titled Let Go at the regional events, Sanya impressed the judges in much the same way she amazed the audience at LA when performing the same routine at the Cookin’ Cabaret last May.
“For me personally, this was my first solo where I broke out of my own shell,” Sanya said. “It really highlights my movement quality and it’s pure dance and movement. It’s not trick oriented. It’s just so fun to perform. The way I danced was very recognizable to the judges. It’s so spontaneous so I didn’t stress about it. I was just able to let go.”
Sanya has been trained in multiple styles including contemporary, ballet, jazz, tap, and hip hop and has been a part of award winning tap, jazz, and hip hop company dances at Center Stage Dance and Theatre School in East Brunswick. Judges have recognized her competitive dances for “beautiful emotions” and “lively performance” and she recently received the Flawless Female award after a competition.
She has thrived while working with professional dancer Ida Saki, who was named one of Dance Magazine’s Top 25 To Watch. Working with Ms. Saki has elevated Sanya’s dances and she hopes to have a similar effect on her new students.
Dance isn’t for everyone and it wasn’t Sanya’s favorite activity when she first started as a 3-year-old in ballet. She didn’t stick with dance at first and participated in other activities including tennis and swimming, but she found her way back to dance by age 7. Since then, she’s loved it and become very successful. She’s taught classes at her studio for the past few years and is looking forward to this new opportunity at her school.
“I just want to see them enjoy a new form of movement,” Sanya said. “There’s a lot of different types of dance. There’s so much variety, so it’s important to bring that out."
Sanya's LA students will work toward a culminating dance recital which will be presented to the Middle and Upper School students on April 14, 2024 in the Berry Performing Arts Center.
“We are so fortunate to have someone as talented and passionate as Sanya to teach dance to our students,” said Sharon Byrne, LA Performing Arts Department Chair. “It will be a great opportunity for her to share her expertise with our students and an enriching experience for our students to learn from one of their own!”