Thursday, October 23, 2008

Spotlight On....Amber Williams!



Dancer: Amber Williams
Birthday: November 12
Team: Senior Company
Studio: Brigham


Many of you already know Amber since she has been at Infinity Dance for 12 years now. She is a teacher with several years experience, and LOVES teaching the little ones (and they love her). Amber's mom Robin says, "Our living room has been a dance floor for many years. There is always music going and she is constantly choreographing."

Amber will be 17 on November 12 which is only a few weeks away. Don't forget to wish her a happy birthday! Her nickname is Hammer, which was given to her by a little boy in daycare when she was 3. He couldn't say Amber, and the nickname stuck. "Still to this day we call her Hammer or Ham-a-hay by her dad. It is nice because if you are in a crowd, all you have to do is yell her name and she comes running. She likes it better than 'Stinky' which was given to her by her teammates, but we don’t have to explain that one!!" Robin said.

She has many favorite foods, but spaghetti or any pasta dish is her most favorite. She basically lives on peanut butter and jelly most of the time since she is always at dance! She hates tomatoes, but loves ketchup on everything (how does that work?). She has two black labs (Kate and Willy) and they love her when she is home!

Robin said: "Amber’s favorite dance experience is a hard one. I will probably get this one wrong. She has had so many opportunities to work with so many different people, but I think it was NUVO last January. When she is auditioning, we never know what she is going to do. Well…she did a toe touch off the stage right in front of Ray Leeper and Travis Wall. Go figure!! Well, she got noticed and received a scholarship, then afterward Travis told her how amazing she was. That’s a huge complement coming from Travis. Another was getting in the top 10 at Jump Nationals and getting to dance in front of Mia Michaels. She was so nervous, but she just did her thing and felt good about it. She said, 'I don’t even care how I place, it was the most fun I’ve ever had.' That’s what it is all about!"

Her favorite and most inspiring choreographers are Justin Giles and Mandy Moore. She had the opportunity to work one-on-one with Mandy this summer, and Robin is sure that is another favorite dance experience.

Dance has improved Amber's life by making her just be able to perform, and not care what anyone else thinks. Her mom has a lot of great advice for all dancers. "Just go out there and be yourself! We have always told Amber to leave it on the stage and make them have to beat you that day. If you didn’t do your best, that’s okay because you always have something to work for and improve for next time. It’s not always about winning, but doing your best on that day! She has had great training with the staff at Infinity Dance that will definitely prepare her for whatever she wants to do with her dancing career."

The most interesting thing that people don’t know about Amber is she loves school. Her favorite subjects are algebra, chemistry, psychology and drama class. She made the Productions Theater this year and has had a lot of fun. She was in her first play last year and she was the main character, so she had to memorize a lot of lines. Her mom didn't realize she could do that. And she also got the opportunity to choreograph a dance to compete at the Shakespearean Theater competition a few weeks ago, and it placed second. She has been an honor student for many years and plans on going to college after graduating.

Her hobbies are snowboarding with her dad, hanging out with her best friend Arieann and her boyfriend Logan. She loves swimming, and she also loves to make chocolate chip cookies.

Sunday, October 5, 2008

Spotlight on....Aspen Wayment!



Dancer: Aspen Wayment
Birthday: January 30
Team: Junior Company
Studio: Ogden


Did you know Aspen Wayment has a pet pot belly pig? Her pig's name is Olivia, and she's definitely a dancer's pig, because she wears tutus. Olivia also sleeps in Aspen's bed and gets manicures...er, pedicures... er, pigicures?

Aspen's favorite foods are cucumbers, Cheezits with sliced cheese, steak and WATER! She is, apparently, a water tasting expert, and she can tell you all the good bottled waters (and the not so good ones).

When's she's not dancing, Aspen likes to ride motorcycles, horses, go snow skiing, water skiing, play the piano, and her mom says she is fearless. Just this year she finally was able to touch her toes on her dad's sky ski.

Aspen would love to be a member of the Australian flying kangaroos (the women's aerial ski jumping team from Australia). She met them at Snowbasin one year, and has been determined ever since.

Her favorite dance experience was seeing the SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE live tour just a few weeks ago. Her hero is her dad, and dance has made her a better person by giving her the ethics of "try try try try try...till you die die die!"

Aspen's nickname is Boo Boo. It was given to her by her sister Montana. Her mom says, "They loved watching Yogi bear when they were little and the little bear's name was Boo Boo. Then along with that, Aspen was always getting hurt as a child because she was fearless and would do anything, and she constantly had Boo Boos so she goes by Boo Boo more than she does Aspen!(She thinks when people call her Boo Boo they must really like her because they know her "secret" name!!)"

Spotlight on....Aubree Tebbs!


Dancer: Aubree Tebbs
Birthday: October 14
Team: Senior Company
Studio: Ogden



Aubree Tebbs is a member of Infinity's Senior Company, and her birthday is coming up this month, so don't forget to wish her a happy birthday! I asked her mom to tell me a little bit about Aubree, and here's what I discovered.

Aubree favorite foods are potatoes and her mom's pasta salad. She would rather have that on her birthday then a cake! Her favorite place to eat is Olive Garden, where she always orders Zuppa Tuscana and salad. Her favorite thing to do, when she's not dancing, of course, is to spend time with her family and friends (especially her nephew Carson and niece Brighton. She also loves spending time with her friends and her boyfriend Aaron. In the summer she loves spending time at the family cabin four-wheeling, and enjoys family trips to Moab.

Aubree also loves to snowboard with her two older brothers Josh and Cameron, and photography is one of her new hobbies.

Aubree has been a featured extra in TWO movies, Go Figure and Stick It. Her mom says it was really fun to see her on film, and the pay was pretty good, too!

Her favorite dance experience was going on a cruise to Mexico with her dance team. Not only did she have a great time, but the girls really formed a strong bond after that trip.

Aubree's hero is Dave Tebbs. He never asked a thing out of anyone, but would do anything for anyone if they asked. He was the smartest guy she has ever known, and she always thought he should be a teacher. He taught her to live life as fully as she could, because it doesn't last forever. [r.i.p 10/21/07]

Aubree's mother says the way dance has helped her most is to help her express emotion. Dancing has really built self confidence in Aubree. She has been dancing since she was three years old.

Aubree's nickname is Twiggy, and she likes it. Her mom said, "I am pretty sure her dance team came up with that when they were doing a hip hop dance and needed nicknames on the back of the shirts."

Her favorite pet is the family dog who was "rescued" by her grandparents five years ago. Chipper is a dachshund/terrier mix.

We're so glad to have Aubree as one of our Infinity dancers, and one of our FIRST Infinity Spotlights!