Sparkling costumes, aerial flips, and sharp choreography lit up the Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School’s Performing Arts Center stage at the 2026 Rise Dance Company Showcase on Sunday afternoon.
The event, which started around 3:30 pm, featured solo, duo, and group performances from dancers in the Nugget (ages 7–10), Mini (10–12), Junior (12–17), and Senior companies (13–18).
Owner and director of Rise Jill Matrisciano Loughman said on Sunday she was excited by the growth she witnessed on the stage from the dancers.
“At this performance on the Island, I was really happy to see people taking chances, taking risks,” said Matrisciano Loughman. “I think at this show, I saw a lot more attention to detail, and I saw kids who normally are a little blank, based on their performance quality, trying new things, and that makes me really excited.”
She emphasized that the hometown crowd invigorates dancers, who have been practicing the same routines behind closed doors for months now.
“When you are watching them practice, you’re doing the same thing over and over again, and sometimes I think they can get into just the routine, and it loses some of its spark,” said Matrisciano Loughman. “The live audience and being home and around their friends and their family, I think it really kind of gave them a nice boost of confidence for where we go next.”
She noted the studio has an emphasis on building a supportive and inclusive environment.
“I really do make it a point to promote sisterhood, and just a family atmosphere. I always tell them the world is hard enough on you; be good to each other and support one another,” she said.
After the show on Sunday, all dancers took to the stage to thank the crowd and introduce themselves. A bittersweet tone swept over two Senior dancers, who had just performed their last dance showcase as Rise students.
Tegan D’Arcy and Grace Bennett-Rock, who have been students in the program since they were young children, and now participate as teachers as well as Senior company dancers, teared up onstage as they said goodbye to their second family.
“I’m really proud of my Seniors,” said Matrisciano Loughman. “I do think they will continue to dance into college, and knowing I was able to foster that kind of love for our artform is really special.”
Matrisciano Loughman emphasized that dance is an all-encompassing sport, requiring athleticism and acting. More important, she said, it teaches qualities that benefit dancers throughout their lives.
“The company’s commitment is year-round for dancers. Unlike other sports, they keep themselves in a dance-ready condition, and it takes constant attention. Especially on the Island, there’s a heavy emphasis on team sports, and the arts I feel like have always struggled. But what they have to demand of themselves as athletes and as communicators and actors is such an all-encompassing path,” said Matrisciano Loughman. “I tell them all the time, it takes a special human to be a dancer, because there’s a lot to endure and a lot of patience and perseverance, and we have a word at this studio, and it’s ‘tenacity.’ You need a lot of it to be a competitive dancer.”
Matrisciano Loughman recalled a moment from Sunday night when one young dancer ran offstage at the start of her solo, only to overcome her nerves and deliver a beautiful performance.
“The little girl who ran offstage last night, I told her parents in the end, half of what you pay for is dance-related, and the other half is that part where she ran off the stage and came back and now showed the grit and tenacity to go back out there,” Matrisciano Loughman said. “That self-confidence is worth its weight in gold.”
The Rise Dance Company’s next showcase is scheduled for May 31, where dancers from 3 years old through the Senior company will take the MVRHS Performing Arts Center stage.
