The PULSE Gets Our Hearts Racing
Whoa, guys. We’re kind of still recovering from the incredible intensity of The PULSE on Tour’s Final Night Gala, held yesterday in NYC.
The thing is, we came in thinking we were prepared for the awesomeness. We know how great The PULSE faculty is. When you have the likes of Cris Judd, Dave Scott, Ian Eastwood, Dee Caspary, Gil Duldulao and Tricia Miranda (to name just a few!) putting together pieces for some of the country’s most talented dancers, you know you’re in for a good time.
But we weren’t prepared for just how good it would be. The PULSE dancers had less than a week to learn their routines, but they performed with the polish of experienced pros. We particularly loved the old-school romance of Judd’s piece, set to Billy Joel’s “Scenes from an Italian Restaurant,” and the ferociousness of Duldulao’s hard-hitting (literally—baseball bats were involved) number set to some classic ’90s hip hop. (As you’ve probably figured out by now, we’re all about a good #throwback.)
Rocking out to Billy Joel in Cris Judd’s piece (photo via The PULSE)
There were also several knockout guest performances. Zendaya, one of our favorites of the moment, showed off some impressive dance skills while performing her hit song “Replay,” backed by a crew of PULSE dancers. Flight Crew, a jump-roping (!) team currently competing on “America’s Got Talent,” did some unbelievable things with jump ropes. And a remarkable group of Elite Protégé alums celebrated The PULSE’s 10th anniversary by reuniting for a piece by the fabulous Rhapsody James. (One of the sweetest moments of the night was the faculty’s outsized reaction to that performance. Those dancers were once their students, and now they’re earning A-list jobs all over the world.)
Flight Crew mid-flight (photo via The PULSE)
Emotions ran high as it came time to announce the 2014-2015 crop of Elite Protégés. 13 talented dancers—including Charlize Glass, Kierstyn Tupa, Elyssa Cueto and Trevor Takemoto—earned yearlong scholarships to The PULSE, plus opportunities to assist the convention’s faculty. Congrats, everyone! We’re so excited to see what amazing things you’ll get up to this year.
