Little girl steals the show at dance recital with 'Respect' performance

ByRachel Schwartz WPVI logo
Tuesday, June 9, 2015
Local girl deserves 'respect' for dance routine
Six-year-old Johanna Colon brought the house down this weekend at her dance recital with a tap routine to the Aretha Franklin classic "Respect."

This little girl from the Raleigh area definitely deserves some "R-E-S-P-E-C-T."

Six-year-old Johanna Colon brought the house down this weekend at her dance recital with a tap routine to the Aretha Franklin classic "Respect."

Johanna's mom Elissa describes her daughter as "feisty" and "bubbly." The attitude and spunk she showed on stage seems to affirm that assessment. Johanna owned the routine, singing along and delivering diva-like command of the stage that far exceeded her small size.

Colon says Johanna's dance instructor purposefully chose "Respect" knowing that Johanna would be able to make it her own. The routine got the only standing ovation of the night.

"She completely stole the show," Colon told ABC.

Colon's video of Johanna's performance has been viewed more than 15 million times since she posted it to Facebook on Sunday. She says Johanna doesn't quite understand her newfound fame.

"She was more excited that today was the last day of school and she was going to have ice cream because she had gotten such a good report card," Colon said.

In addition to tap, Johanna also takes jazz, ballet and tumbling at a studio near their home in Raleigh, North Carolina. Colon says dance is an outlet for her daughter; Johanna's younger brother suffers from Hirschsprung's disease, and his care consumes much of the family's time.

"She's very sweet and very kind," Colon said. "She spends a lot of time taking care of [her brother] and visiting him in the hospital. Dance is where she gets to let loose and enjoy herself."

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