Maddie Hanson
Maddie at The PULSE on Tour in 2012 (photo courtesy The PULSE)
Sixteen-year-old Maddie Hanson transitions seamlessly from the quiet, quirky grace of a Mia Michaels contemporary piece to the hard-hitting, in-your-face power of a Lando Wilkins hip-hop routine—and those chameleon-like abilities earned her the title of Intermediate Elite Protégé with The PULSE on Tour in 2012. Maddie is one of the hardest-working teens in the business. She splits her time between Canada and the U.S., attending school full-time in Toronto and training at Karpov Ballet Academy and Soul Motion Integrated Arts in L.A. She also assists William Wingfield’s The meta’fizikal, performs as a Monsters of Hip Hop Show cast member and keeps a popular blog, moveitwithmaddie.blogspot.com. Now a high school junior, Maddie hopes to attend The Juilliard School and to one day start her own contemporary company.
Fast Facts
Birthday
: July 4, 1998
Nickname
: “Lando Wilkins gave me the nickname ‘Mad Dog’ at the Movement Lifestyle Tour.”
Hidden talent
: “I’m a Lego master builder in training!”
Dream job
: “Dancing with Kidd Pivot…or for Justin Timberlake.”
Nondance hobbies
: “I love to read, especially fantasy series like Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings.”
Favorite dancer
: Mishay Petronelli
Advice for
DS readers: “Don’t compare yourself to others. Focus on your own path.”
“If I had to choose between a career as an onstage or on-screen performer, I’d choose the stage every time. Nothing beats the rush you get when performing for a live audience”