TAMPA, Fla. — Orlando Peña is the artistic director of Ovations Dance Academy of Tampa.
He’s been a dance instructor for almost 30 years. He started dancing when he was 14 years old.
Peña went on to perform around the world and then opened a dance studio on Long Island. He operated that for 24 years and moved to Tampa fours years ago.
What You Need To Know
- Orlando Peña is the artistic director of Ovations Dance Academy of Tampa
- Peña teaches ballet, hip hop and musical theatre
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“I had beautiful, wonderful instructors and I wanted to be them so their legacy lives on through me, which is special,” said Peña.
Peña teaches ballet, hip hop and musical theatre. He also helps his students learn and understand the history of the art they’re performing.
“That’s important because they’re adding another layer to their training and to how they’re emoting, how they’re expressing their dance, so if we do a musical, they need to know where it’s coming from,” said Peña.
He loves seeing his students finally get something they’ve been working on for a while.
“Seeing the journey, making the journey a good one, sometimes it’s hectic and crazy but at the end you get the final product. You get to see your hard work, their hard work. So that’s very rewarding,” said Peña. He went on to say, “It’s contagious and if we do it right, they’ll fulfil their dreams.”
Peña says next summer he plans to start a home school program for ballet and musical theatre.