“The stage is my favorite place,” she said. “I love touching the souls of audience members and impacting them, and I love just portraying our artistry and stories on stage.”
Daniels, a tenth grader at Dawson High School, has been practicing ballet since she was three years old. Those years of practice have brought her to the precipice of international success, as she will travel to Switzerland in February to compete in the Prix de Lausanne, a ballet competition for those ages 15-18.
Amid her busy life, which includes finding 20 hours per week to practice dance, helping advocate for educational policy at the state level and playing piano at Carnegie Hall during her winter break, Daniels said it's all about keeping her priorities straight.
The big picture
To be considered for the competition, dancers must submit a video to a jury panel, which consists of nine dancing professionals, the competition’s website notes.
For 2025, 445 applicants—including 354 girls and 91 boys—from 42 countries sent videos. A total of 75 dancers, including 38 girls and 37 boys, were selected through this process, according to the competition’s website. Another 11 candidates had already been preselected, for a total of 86 dancers.
In addition to being just one of 10 U.S. girls selected for the competition, Daniels is also the first ballerina in the Greater Houston area to be selected for this competition in nine years, Daniels' mother Kate Jiang said.
“We're definitely very proud of her,” Jiang said. “Also, especially [in the] Houston area, we don't see these kind of opportunities often, and we should. Texas is a powerhouse for dancers, but ... being a ballet dancer, it takes years of dedication, and you don't see dancers climb up that high.”
Diving in deeper
Ever since being accepted to compete at the Prix de Lausanne, Daniels said she has had to prioritize her time management in order to practice 20 hours a week. This comes while also having to maintain her school work.
While Daniels said balancing dance and school can be difficult, she said it’s important for her to learn what to prioritize.
“A lot of times, my friends will have parties and sleepovers, and I don't always get to go to every single party and every single sleepover, so sometimes I feel like I'm missing out a lot because I have dance practice and things like that, but I know what my priorities are, and I feel like just learning how to put your priorities first is very important,” Daniels said.
Also of note
Along with dancing, Daniels participates in rodeo art and plays piano. Over the winter break, Daniels said she performed piano at Carnegie Hall in New York City.
While doing all of these extracurricular activities, Daniels said Pearland ISD has been helpful and accommodating to her busy schedule.
“I've done competitions—not any competition like this—but I've done ballet competitions before, and I find that my teachers are very accommodating because I miss so much school for dance, and they just make me feel like it's gonna be okay when I come back,” Daniels said.
Daniels is also a part of PISD’s Superintendent Student Ambassadors group where she works alongside PISD Superintendent Larry Berger and other students to advocate for change in educational policies at the state level, according to a Dec. 3 news release from the district.
Stay tuned
The Prix de Lausanne competition will be from Feb. 2-9 in Lausanne, Switzerland, according to the competition’s website.
