Surrey teenager Rhys Gutierrez danced on stage with Justine Bieber during his concert in Vancouver last week at the Rogers Arena. She’s one of four local kids to win a contest dubbed #PurposeTourChildrenVancouver. In each city on Bieber’s current tour, four young people, ages nine to fifteen, are selected to dance with the Ontario-born star during the performance of his “Children” song.
A Grade 7 student at Goldstone Park Elementary in Surrey, Rhys dances with Studio 604 in Burnaby. She said she had to learn the choreography off the video, film it and send it to the contest. She found out she had won the contest on Tuesday morning, and she couldn’t stop crying. Her friends didn’t believe her and wondered why she didn’t say anything about joining the contest. Her teachers and friends are very happy for her, though, and they wished her well on her performance.
She’s a long time fan of Bieber and his music. Six years ago, she dragged her mom to her first concert, and converted her to a fan. She started dancing ballet at the age of four, and has been dancing since then. After this experience, she will continue to dance with her group, Apprentice. She hopes to be a professional dancer some day.
With her enthusiasm and energy, Rhys can definitely reach for the stars and catch them.
