UCLA student takes dance moves to national level in commercial
Alejandra Rodríguez has found her rhythm.
The third-year dance and political science student performed in a commercial for Fox Deportes, a division of Fox Sports broadcast in Spanish, that aired Oct. 26. The commercial celebrates the 25th anniversary of the network with newscasters and dancers moving to the song “Fuego” by Bomba Estéreo. This was her first appearance on a large national network and one of her first dance jobs since the COVID-19 pandemic, she said.
“There was a time where we couldn’t do what we love the most,” Rodríguez said. “To get work off of something that you love and is your passion – it’s a complete blessing.”
Rodríguez said she began dancing at 3 years old and was quickly hooked because of the way dance can influence people’s emotions and perspectives. She made it her mission to train in as many styles as possible, such as ballet, hip-hop, flamenco and jazz, Rodríguez said. By training in a variety of styles, she said she can avoid being categorized as one type of dancer and increase her likelihood of being cast in more jobs.
At 12 years old, Rodríguez was first introduced to ballet and tap. Rodríguez said she began taking her dance training seriously and expanded to more styles when she was 15. At this age, she said she traveled to Mexico City and trained for a month in a variety of styles for 10 hours a day at BlackStudio. Although grueling, she said it aided in her decision to pursue dance professionally.
“I want to immerse myself into the industry work of dance, as well as the art form of dance, because for so many people, dance can mean so many things,” Rodríguez said. “I just like every aspect and every scope of it.” — Rachael Odebunmi, Nov. 10, 2021
This post is an excerpt. Read the full article on the Daily Bruin website.
HEADER IMAGE: Third-year dance and political science student Alejandra Rodríguez performed as part of a commercial for Fox Deportes, a division of Fox Sports broadcasted in Spanish, to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the network. (Photo by Sakshi Joglekar/Assistant Photo editor, Photo Illustration by Eunice Hong)
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