DANCE: Rio Gomez wins first place

When senior Rio Gomez finishes a performance, it doesn’t feel like an ending. It feels as if she’s just said something the audience wasn’t supposed to understand but somehow felt anyway. And it’s the ability to turn emotion into movement that has earned Gomez the first place award for dance in the Orange County Register’s annual OC Artist of the Year contest. She was judged No. 1 among the 107 talented dance nominees.

For Gomez, dance has always been more than movement. It’s identity and storytelling all at once. “I want my work to spark both joy and conversation,” Gomez said. “I want people to feel something when they watch me dance.”

Gomez has trained across multiple styles including tap, ballet, hip-hop, jazz and contemporary. Although many recognize her for her advanced tap abilities, she refuses to be defined by a single style.

“I don’t want to be known as only a tap dancer,” Gomez said. “I want people to recognize all the styles I do and how much emotion and storytelling can exist in every form of dance.”

Gomez began dancing at age 7 with ballet before discovering tap at age 9 after her mother encouraged her to try it. That early foundation eventually led her into Reverb Tap Company, where she said she learned what real artistic growth requires.

“I felt behind at first because so many dancers started younger than me,” she said. “But joining Reverb helped me grow and realize that improvement comes from consistency and passion.”

Her choreography now often blends multiple styles, pulling from African dance, jazz, hip-hop and tap to create work rooted in both personal expression and cultural influence.

Gomez was noted for pushing beyond technique into storytelling, building pieces that reflect emotion as much as skill.

But that creative process has not always been easy.

“Sometimes I’m too hard on myself creatively,” she said. “I’ll overthink ideas before fully developing them, but I’ve learned that art doesn’t have to be perfect to be meaningful.”

That mindset is part of what teachers say sets her apart, not just talent, but the willingness to keep evolving.

Gomez will attend UCLA where she plans to major in business economics while continuing her dance and choreography work. She hopes to eventually create her own dance company and choreograph for film, stage and commercial productions.

DANCE: Aleah Crew top 4 finalist

Senior Aleah Crew was also a finalist for dance in the OC Artist of the Year competition.

Dance has always been about more than movement for Crew. It is about storytelling, emotion, and creativity.

“Usually it starts with music because I love music so much,” Crew said. “I’ll hear a song and immediately start imagining movement and visuals.”

But turning a vision into reality is harder than people realize.

“What you imagine in your head doesn’t always look the same once it’s on stage,” said Crew, who specializes in hip-hop but loves all forms of dance. “You have to adjust constantly.”

See the full Tribe Tribune story and photos showing Aleah Crew’s journey to becoming a professional performer.

VOCAL MUSIC: Isabel Calvo finishes in top 4

Among the 121 students nominated for vocal music in the OC Artist of the Year competition, Isabel Calvo finished among the top four singers this year. The multi-talented senior was also a 2025 semifinalist in the theater category last year.

Calvo is a Triple Threat (actor, singer, dancer) but has also been nominated for awards this year for her technical theater skills in special effects and costuming. She has a passion for working with theatrical hair and make-up, too. It’s this attention to everything on stage and behind the scenes that makes her so aware as a performer.

Calvo’s vocal coach Melissa Lyons said that she has loved so many of Isa’s performances during the seven years they’ve worked together, but her favorite musical theater song is “With You” from Ghost the Musical.

“This song in less capable hands could be angsty, especially when sung by a teenager,” Lyons said. “But Isa brings such a maturity to it that you believe her heartbreak and you believe that she will also find a way to move on. She’s incredible. Not everybody can sing that song at a young age.”

Instead of focusing on musical theater, Calvo submitted samples of her singing classical pieces for her video audition including Adam Guettel’s “The Light in the Piazza” and Handel’s “Lascia Ch’io Pianga,” The judges praised her ability to balance precision with vulnerability.

Calvo plans to attend UCLA to study vocal performance and psychology. She will continue to find creative outlets and might even help out with costuming in the UCLA opera department. She hopes to become a music therapist working with neurodivergent children, using performance as a form of healing. 

“I’ve always believed music can comfort people in ways words sometimes can’t,” Calvo said. “If I can help someone feel understood through music, then I know I’m doing something meaningful.”

VOCAL MUSIC: Zoe McLaughlin top 16 semifinalist

Senior Zoe McLaughlin, vocal music semifinalist, impressed judges with a musical theater-centered audition featuring songs from Little Women, The Sound of Music, Mary Poppins and The Music Man.

Known throughout Fullerton’s theater program for her strong stage presence and emotional depth, McLaughlin said performing allows her to step into entirely different lives and perspectives.

“Theater teaches you empathy,” McLaughlin said. “Every character has fears, dreams and emotions that become real the moment you step onstage. That’s what I love most about performing.”

Vocal coach Melissa Lyons describes Zoe as someone who doesn’t just perform a role, but lives inside it long enough for the audience to feel it.

“Zoe has a big old heart when she sings,” Lyons said. “She is all heart and all communication. She’s also a very warm person, and that shows in her sensitivity as an actress.”

McLaughlin’s audition highlighted both vocal range and storytelling ability, balancing Broadway moments with softer, more vulnerable delivery.

She plans to attend New York University Tisch School of the Arts to study drama and continue pursuing musical theater professionally.

“I’ve dreamed about performing in New York for years,” McLaughlin said. “Being able to tell stories for a living would mean everything to me.”