Young Salisbury dancer takes national title in Beyond the Stars Dance Competition

Young Salisbury dancer takes national title in Beyond the Stars Dance Competition

Addison Aylward-Vreeland couldn't contain her reaction as the judges named her the first place dancer.

Provided by Larissa Vreeland

SALISBURY — Earlier this month, a rising talent cemented her place in the firmament of competitive dance when Addison Aylward-Vreeland placed first at the national level of the Beyond The Stars Dance Competition.

Aylward-Vreeland, a rising fourth grader at Salisbury Central school, secured top marks among a field of twenty-four regional winners in the solo jazz dance category.

Her routine, “Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch,” was her first solo performance at the national competition level since she began dancing at age three. It took her and her coach, Maile Pikul of Cherilyn’s School of Dance in Pleasant Valley, New York, nearly seven months of diligent work to perfect.

“Solos have to be two minutes or less,” said Aylward-Vreeland, who is already working on her solo routine for the 2025 season, “but I have so many ideas I can’t fit them all in.”

Those ideas range from song choices to costumes and choreography — all selected to be perfectly complementary and to express the sounds, rhythms, and syncopations of jazz music. It’s a tall order made by an exacting discipline, but Aylward-Vreeland does it all while staying “cool as a cucumber.”

“She’s so excited to try new things,” said the dancer’s mother, Larissa Vreeland, “and every year she challenges herself a bit more.”

Aylward-Vreeland isn’t content only to take home the biggest prizes in her preferred jazz style, but also practices tap, hip-hop, ballet, and large group dance at her team’s studio in Pleasant Valley. Her teammates, “the Pearls,” are a tightly-knit group that Aylward-Vreeland has been performing with at the competition level since 2021.

Addison Aylward-Vreeland with her trophy from the national Beyond The Stars Dance Competition and her mom, Larissa Vreeland.Sava Marinkovic

Asked to name her dance heroes, Aylward-Vreeland answered, “my friends Lorelei and K.K. They do cool moves and they teach them to me.”

On Tuesday, July 9, at the Kalahari Convention Center in Pocono Manor, Pennsylvania, it came time for Aylward-Vreeland to show off those cool moves on Beyond the Stars’ national stage.

Three judges, a live audience of five hundred, and numerous far-flung livestream viewers had eyes on Aylward-Vreeland as she took the stage, tracked by spotlights so bright that she was “blinded” to the crowd of onlookers. None of it was enough to faze, however.
“I asked her to let me hold her butterflies,” said Vreeland, to which her daughter replied, “I don’t have any!”

It was meant to be the capstone performance of a meticulously-crafted routine that had already won Aylward-Vreeland a regional title and first place in four of five seasonal competitions — and the young dancer delivered.

“I wasn’t expecting it,” said Aylward-Vreeland, recalling how she waited on stage as the judges ranked the performances in ascending order. But as more placements were called without Aylward-Vreeland hearing her name, she began to get excited. “I started to see it coming,” she said, beaming from behind her array of trophies, “it felt really good to win.”

Following the solo competition, “the local support has been overwhelming,” said Larissa Vreeland, citing Addison’s incredible teammates, coaches, and supporters as reasons for her success.

For her upcoming endeavor, Aylward-Vreeland will have this support a bit closer at hand. Her team will be competing together in hip-hop, large group, and jazz dance at the World Dance Championship in Secaucus, New Jersey on July 24, 28 and 29. For the fans who wish to follow the Pearls’ next steps, twists and jumps, a livestream of the event will be available at www.worlddancechampionship.com/live-stream.

Latest News

Joseph Robert Meehan

SALISBURY — Joseph Robert Meehan the 2nd,photographer, college professor and nearly 50 year resident of Salisbury, passed away peacefully at Noble Horizon on June 17, 2025. He was 83.

He was the son of Joseph Meehan the 1st and his mother, Anna Burawa of Levittown, New York, and sister Joanne, of Montgomery, New York.

Keep ReadingShow less
Florence Olive Zutter Murphy

STANFORDVILLE, New York — It is with profound sadness that we announce the passing of Florence Olive Zutter Murphy, who went home to be with the Lord on June 16, 2025, at the age of 99.

She was born in Sharon, Connecticut on Nov. 20, 1925, and was a long time resident of the Dutchess County area.

Keep ReadingShow less
Chore Service hosts annual garden party fundraiser

Chore Service hosted 250 supporters at it’s annual Garden Party fundraiser.

Bob Ellwood

On Saturday, June 21, Mort Klaus, longtime Sharon resident, hosted 250 enthusiastic supporters of Northwest Corner’s beloved nonprofit, Chore Service at his stunning 175-acre property. Chore Service provides essential non-medical support to help older adults and those with disabilities maintain their independence and quality of life in their own homes.

Jane MacLaren, Executive Director, and Dolores Perotti, Board President, personally welcomed arriving attendees. The well-stocked bar and enticing hors d’oeuvres table were popular destinations as the crowd waited for the afternoon’s presentations.

Keep ReadingShow less
Bach and beyond
The Berkshire Bach Society (BBS) of Stockbridge will present a concert by cellist Dane Johansen on June 28 at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church.
Provided

The mission statement of the Berkshire Bach Society (BBS) reads: “Our mission is to preserve the cultural legacy of Baroque music for current and future audiences — local, national, and international — by presenting the music of J.S. Bach, his Baroque predecessors, contemporaries, and followers performed by world-class musicians.”

Its mission will once again be fulfilled by presenting a concert featuring Dane Johansen on June 2 at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church at 29 Main Street, in Stockbridge, Massachusetts.

Keep ReadingShow less