Tisú Cuarenta, a 4th grade student with Springs’ Otay Ranch Academy for the Arts (ORAA) who lives in Chula Vista, received a gold medal in ballet and a silver medal in contemporary dance in “Livorno in Danza”, a recent three-day competition in Livorno, Italy.
Tisú’s mother, Crixia Aceves, said that Tisú “loves to dance.” Tisú has practiced ballet, jazz, and contemporary dance daily since age 3. She began competing in dance tournaments in 2021, earning multiple awards.
In July 2023, Tisú was selected to participate in the Joffrey Ballet School’s Summer Camp in New York City, where she spent two weeks engaged in intensive dance classes. Also in 2023, she participated in “Ciad Tijuana,” an international competition in Mexico. She earned gold medals in ballet, jazz, and lyrical, and a silver in contemporary. Crixia noted that at this competition “she was recognized as a ‘dance promise’ and received a 100% scholarship invitation to compete in Italy.”
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The family chose ORAA, Crixia noted, “because we appreciate their approach to educating our children, the programs they offer, and the opportunities and support they provide for our children to develop skills and engage in extracurricular activities. From the start, we were drawn to the focus and expertise they have in the arts.” The program has also given Tisú the flexibility to pursue dance. Tisú’s brother, Xavi, is also part of ORAA.
