Imagine being on a stage, but not just any stage – a theater located on Broadway in Manhattan.
It's the Al Hirschfeld Theatre to be exact, and it looks like Valentine’s Day has taken up residence on stage: giant red heart-shaped domes, adorned with twinkling lights, create an almost portal-like visual that is about to take the audience on a musical journey. The words “Moulin Rouge” are hovering high above, and nearly 1,500 visitors have packed into a sea of double-tiered seats (all sold out).
When she thinks about making her debut as a dancer on that stage on Feb. 7, it is enough to get Dabria Aguilar emotional, struggling to find the words to describe the feeling of having a lifelong goal come to fruition; after all, she has grown up dancing, and it was always her dream to be in a Broadway show – specifically this one.
“It was just one of the most surreal moments,” she said.
Before taking the stage, of course Aguilar felt nervous, but more importantly, it just felt right. She had rehearsed so hard and for so long, she had the support of her fellow dancers and trainers, and she finally felt like she was “exactly where I was meant to be.”
A year ago, this talented young dancer and former Hanahan High student decided to take a big leap of faith by moving to the Upper West Side of New York City, and she hit the ground running as a dancer. Now she is pirouetting her way through the city where they say if you can make it there, you can make it anywhere.
A dancing Hawk
Aguilar grew up in Hanahan. She attended Daniel Island School up until fourth grade before transitioning to Hanahan Elementary. She was homeschooled during her middle school years to allow some flexibility as a traveling competitive dancer.
Aguilar is skilled in multiple concentrations of dance – a smart move that has helped her be more versatile in her dancing career today.
“One thing that was always really important to me was never picking a concentration – I always wanted to pursue everything,” she said. “That has been kind of ingrained in me since I was very little.”
During her preteen years, Aguilar started securing some work by performing in local shows such as the Charleston Christmas Special, but Aguilar considers her “big break” to be when she was 12 years old and was selected to dance on an episode of The Ellen DeGeneres Show as part of an advertisement for “DancerPalooza”. The DancerPalooza company was owned by a convention circuit that selected dedicated “stand out” dancers of all ages from around the country to participate in the promotion; out of about 50 children selected, Aguilar was one of the youngest.
“To be on that stage that young, I definitely recognized: ‘This is crazy,’” she said. “Ever since I was young, it’s never been a question that dance was what I wanted to pursue – and I wanted to pursue it at a very high level.”
She attended Hanahan High full time and graduated a year early in 2021. She remained a competitive dancer during her high school years through Dance Conservatory of Charleston, exploring more solo performances as opposed to group dances.
At Hanahan High, Aguilar was very involved in was then known as Club Joy, created by former Hanahan High special services teacher and the school’s 2019 Teacher of the Year, Aly Formichella. The club was known at the time for integrating students with special needs and general education students, breaking down barriers and promoting kindness at school.
Aguilar was inspired to support the club after seeing her older brother, Omar, Jr., be super active with Formichella’s students.
“Getting to dive into that with him was extremely special,” she said.
Outside of Club Joy, Aguilar enjoyed cheering on the Hanahan Hawks baseball team; she also has a younger brother, Oakley, and both of her brothers played baseball for the school
She loved taking theatre with since-retired Amy Rogers, and chemistry with “comedian” Craig Bachman, who she remembered for making chemistry fun and giving her the nickname “Debra” – something Bachman remembers about her as well, crediting her for having a good, fun-loving attitude.
“She was a conscientious and reliable student who seemed to not only do things right, but to also do the right things,” Bachman said. “My favorite thing about her, however, was that she had a sense of humor and could take a joke.”
Aguilar also very much loved her freshman English II teacher Amanda Cromer, who now serves as the testing coordinator and academic coach at Hanahan High. Aguilar described Cromer as a teacher who always made students feel seen and heard, and that she learned so much from her.
Aguilar competed in a couple of Miss Hanahan pageants during her time as a student. She won “Miss Sophomore” in 10th grade and was crowned “Miss Hanahan” her senior year. Cromer served as the advisor for the pageant, so she spent a lot of time with Aguilar beyond her classroom.
Cromer remembers Aguilar for being a kind, genuine, hard-working student who still made time for her classmates and teachers, despite her rigorous schedule with dance and clubs.
“She never wanted to be mediocre and set tremendous goals for herself in all areas of her life and because of this, she was mature beyond that of her peers and has never stopped striving for excellence,” Cromer said.
Aguilar competed in her first state pageant in March 2021 after being discovered in a dress store. She placed first runner-up to Miss South Carolina Teen USA and then was contacted by the local executive director for the Miss South Carolina organization to fill a role in the Miss South Carolina Teen state pageant. Aguilar performed a contemporary ballet dance for the talent portion of the pageant, which she competed in shortly after graduating high school.
After winning the state crown, Aguilar went on to compete in the national event, Miss America’s Outstanding Teen, held in Orlando that year. She made top 10, and also won top overall in dance and top overall in fundraising.
Aguilar has not participated in pageants since that experience but said she very much enjoyed it. Her platform was a social impact initiative that she called “make everybody feel like somebody," addressing the crippling effects of low self-esteem and serving as a mental health advocate. She also continued to promote integration between general education students and students with special needs.
A city that doesn’t sleep
Aguilar’s lifelong dream was to move either to Los Angeles or New York since those cities are the hotspots of the entertainment industry in the country.
She naturally gravitated to New York, feeling a sense of community and family when she danced in the city, and had her eye on theatre, concert and commercial work. She is part of a contemporary ballet company called Ballet Collective.
“It was the dream to move here and it was the dream to be on Broadway,” she said. “It was the dream to be in a contemporary ballet company so I am very, very lucky that I was able to make these things happen so soon and that these opportunities presented themselves in such a way that I was able to (pursue them).”
Her biggest dream in particular was to be a dancer in the Broadway hit “Moulin Rouge!”, a musical set in the Montmartre Quarter of Paris during the Belle Epoque at the turn of the 20th century.
Last year, Aguilar successfully auditioned for the musical’s week-long intensive training, where she and fellow dancers learned the material for the show.
Around this time, Aguilar also auditioned for and landed a spot with the Radio City Music Hall Christmas Spectacular as part of the production’s dance ensemble.
Radio City Music Hall is home to the Rockettes, a famous dance group known for their kicklines. When the Rockettes are not on stage, other performers will come out, such as singers, ice skaters, and then of course the coed ensemble dancers, which included Aguilar. Rehearsals started in October, with Aguilar as part of the “blue cast” (or morning cast). The ensemble dancers get to do dances with the Rockettes as well.
Radio City Music Hall has the largest indoor theatre in the world, with its marquee a full city-block long, earning it the name “the Great Stage”. Performing on such a stage for more than 6,000 people, Aguilar said, “was crazy.”
“We would literally travel from one side – so from 50th Street to 51st Street – in two 8-counts (of music),” she said. “It was a really fun stage to dance on and spread some Christmas cheer.”
Aguilar was in the midst of rehearsing with Radio City when she found out that she was accepted to make her Broadway debut in “Moulin Rouge!”, just in time for her to complete her contract with Radio City.
Performances are still ongoing. Aguilar is a “swing” with production, meaning she could go on to perform any day. She has to learn all six female ensemble positions; she knows two of them, and is working on learning a third. In addition to dancing, ensemble members sing as well.
As she enjoys where she accomplishing this major feat, Aguilar is not sure what the next New York adventure will be – but she is not in any rush.
“I think I’m trying to settle into ‘Moulin Rouge!’ and really embrace each character and each track, but I definitely think I want to get into more television and film stuff afterward,” she said. “I think I’m trying to enjoy where I’m at right now, but definitely researching what I want to do next.”
Southern roots
While she loves New York, Aguilar misses the south. She still makes trips back home, and has been lucky to have had her parents, Dawn and Omar, come up to New York to see her performances.
She credits her family, her hometown, and her alma mater with providing a loving and nurturing environment to set her up for success.
“That support system has launched me, and has kept me motivated to keep pushing and keep driving,” she said.
Outside of dancing, Aguilar is also studying business online through Western Carolina University, with hopes to one day own and operate a business that is yet to be determined.
Her advice to anybody who wants to make it big out there: Dream really big. Be your own advocate. Do your research.
And have a good mindset.
“A lot of it starts with your mindset and you telling yourself that you can and that it is a possibility,” she said. “Yes, the support system is huge and it’s crucial to have that, but you have to support yourself in so many ways, so taking matters into your own hands and making those decisions that only better you is just really important.”
