May has garnered a lot of excitement within the BYU Department of Dance, from the Ballroom Dance Company bringing home gold at the Blackpool Dance Festival in its inaugural year to the establishment of a new endowment fund in honor of Maida Rust Withers.
BYU Ballroom Triumphs at Blackpool
In 1971, BYU became the first American ballroom dance team to win the British Formation Championships. Every three years since 1980, BYU Ballroom Dance Company (BDC) has returned to compete at the Blackpool Dance Festival. This year is no different, with the company competing at the 100th anniversary of the festival.
With all new medleys, the Latin Team was named the Latin Formation Champions and the Ballroom Team was named the Ballroom Formation Champions.
When the students weren’t rehearsing or competing, the team visited the Preston England Temple. On Sunday, they attended a local sacrament meeting in Preston before touring the Preston England Temple grounds and the neighboring landscapes in Downham.
BDC’s next stop is India, where they will be performing in New Delhi and Bengaluru. Follow along with @byuperformingarts and @byuballroom on Instagram for weekly updates on the students’ experiential learning.
Check out articles detailing their upcoming performances in The Slovenia Times and the Taiwan News.
BDC Latin Formation Team named 2026 Latin Formation Champions at Blackpool. Courtesy of BYU Ballroom 
BDC Ballroom Formation Team named 2026 Ballroom Formation Champions at Blackpool. Courtesy of BYU Ballroom 
BDC at the Preston England Temple. Courtesy of BYU Ballroom 
BDC rehearsing at the Blackpool Festival Village. Courtesy of BYU Ballroom 
BDC Latin Team rehearsing at the Winter Gardens Blackpool. Courtesy of BYU Ballroom 
BDC Latin Team rehearsing at the Winter Gardens Blackpool. Courtesy of BYU Ballroom 
BDC Latin Team rehearsing at the Winter Gardens Blackpool. Courtesy of BYU Ballroom 
BDC dancing outside of Blackpool Tower. Courtesy of BYU Performing Arts Management
New on Campus: Maida Rust Withers Endowment Fund in Contemporary Dance
This year, a new endowment fund was established by BYU Dance alum Maida Withers to help contemporary dance students “travel, research, collaborate, and develop original projects beyond campus.”
“This is unique,” Withers said. “It is not necessarily a tuition scholarship because the vision is to support student creative work.”
Withers was one of the first seven students to graduate with a dance degree from BYU. She later went on to get a master’s degree from the University of Utah and lead a successful dancer career for more than 50 years. She established the Maida Withers Dance Construction and became a central figure in the Washington, D.C. dance community, with her choreography being performed around the globe. The endowment “extends [Withers’] legacy, turning decades of experience into opportunity for the next generation.”
DancEnsemble performed at a luncheon to honor Withers legacy and introduce the new endowment in her name.
Read more about Withers and the endowment in this article published by Ellie Lallatin, CFAC External Relations.
Maida Rust Withers. Photo by Hallie Farnsworth/CFAC External Relations 
Maida Rust Withers with BYU Dance faculty and dancEnsemble students. Photo by Hallie Farnsworth/CFAC External Relations 
Maida Rust Withers with Marin Roper. Photo by Hallie Farnsworth/CFAC External Relations 
BYU Dance faculty Marin Roper, Shayla Bott, and Kate Monson with Maida Rust Withers. Photo by Hallie Farnsworth/CFAC External Relations 
Marin Roper and Maida Rust Withers. Hallie Farnsworth/CFAC External Relations 
Marin Roper, Maida Rust Withers, and Kate Monson. Hallie Farnsworth/CFAC External Relations
Mark Your Calendars: Dates to Know
- International Folk Dance and Mountain Strings Pre-Tour Showcase | June 25 at 7:00 p.m. at Orem High School | Purchase tickets here.
Uplifting Thought of the Week by Wyatt Jennings, BYU student and Ballroom Dance Company member [As shared on Instagram @byuballroom]
[The BYU Ballroom Dance Company] had the opportunity to hear the testimonies of fellow saints and hear about their experience being members of the Church in another part of the world. Seeing their faith helps me feel stronger in my own. I think that is what is so wonderful about the Church, that we have the opportunity to experience comradery and brotherhood in this Church and support each other in the struggles that we’re experiencing. I love that I got to feel the support of the saints here in England as I spent time with them here.
Hear more about Wyatt’s experience in England on Instagram @byuballroom
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