These dancers dedicate much time and effort to honing their craft, but they have more to share than just mambo or waltz. On their upcoming international dance tour, BYU Ballroom Dance Company wants to share their love of Christ with the world.
BYU Ballroom's touring company practices three times a week, bright and early at 7 a.m. They dance for hours, focusing on creating long lines, sharp technique and joyful performances.
Artistic director Curt Holman said he admires the work ethic of his pupils.
"For me, it's a huge blessing to work with young kids that aspire for excellence,” Holman said. “That's what we're hoping to do. We wanna be excellent in what we do."
They call their new show "Rhythm." It features Latin dances such as the samba, a few dreamy waltzes and bright, upbeat swing.
The students will perform these dances in Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia April 2025. But this is not their first international tour. Just last year, the troupe had the opportunity to dance for the Zulu queen in South Africa.
"It was amazing. Truly like a once-in-a-lifetime experience,” Mina Brunson, one of the dancers who went on the trip, said. “We were able to spread the gospel in such cool ways. It was really cool to see their culture of dance, we got to share our culture of dance with them."
In between dance performances in Southeast Asia, the dancers will do service projects for people in need.
“Whenever we travel, we try to find opportunities to help the community where we're traveling,” Holman said, “which is something we hope to instill in our students, is a way to give back. It's gonna be a pretty amazing experience.
For more information about future performances or to buy tickets, go to BYU OnStage's website.