Although Utah dancers have had a strong presence on “So You Think You Can Dance” over the years, until Wednesday night, only one had won: Sabra Johnson on Season 3.
Fifteen years later, a dancer from Utah has once again been declared “America’s favorite dancer” on “So You Think You Can Dance.” During Wednesday’s season finale, ballroom dancer Alexis Warr Burton walked away with the $100,000 prize. Burton is the first Latin/ballroom dancer to ever win “So You Think You Can Dance,” according to Distractify.
“Honestly, every week has been such a blessing,” Burton said about her time on the show, per Distractify. “There are so many things I learned about myself.”
Who is ‘So You Think You Can Dance’ dancer Alexis Warr?
Burton started training at Center Stage Performing Arts Studio in Orem, Utah — the same studio where Derek Hough and “Dancing with the Stars” pro Jenna Johnson studied — when she was 6, the Deseret News previously reported.
The Orem studio has seen massive success with its dancers. In 2014, Burton competed on “America’s Got Talent” as a dance captain with the Center Stage Dance Troupe, a group featuring dancers ages 12 through 17.
In 2018, 11 teens from the studio — including Burton — competed on the second season of NBC’s “World of Dance,” a competition Hough helped judge, per the Deseret News. Charity Anderson and Andres Penate, a duo from the studio, ended up earning the first perfect score in the show’s history and walked away the third-place winners that season.
In 2019, Burton, who grew up in Highland, joined Hough for his first solo tour.
“Alexis Warr is a powerful dancer,” Hough said when he announced his tour. “She is known for her athletic ability and artistic flare. She’s a versatile dancer who has trained in ballet, contemporary, hip hop, jazz, tap, gymnastics, and ballroom since she was 6 (Love Versatility!!) at Center Stage Performing Arts Studio in Utah. (Which also happens to be the same studio I grew up in.)”
“When I was asked to join the tour, I didn’t believe it at first,” Burton previously told the Deseret News. “It took a moment to sink in. I couldn’t wait. Afterwards I started crying and was on cloud nine.”
Now, Burton is again in the national spotlight with her “So You Think You Can Dance” victory. The dancer recently called being on the show “a literal dream come true.”