Layla Gocong will keep dancing after her year as Junior Spirit of Fiesta ends
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - Nearly finished with her year as Junior Spirit of Fiesta, Layla Gocong says she has had a memorable experience in the role and is excited about her future in dance.
Now ten years old, Gocong has been dancing for six years with the Zermeno Dance Academy.
"I've gotten a lot better at dancing. I think and I'm really proud of myself. I've gotten a lot more confident about my dancing," said Gocong.
She recently gathered with Old Spanish Days board members to promote the upcoming Junior and Senior Spirit of Fiesta competition on April 15.
Gocong will share with the winner the very full schedule ahead. During the last year she has performed at Old Spanish Days events, at senior living homes, on a live radio Cork and Fork 805 radio show and she has appeared in parades over the holidays in Santa Barbara and Carpinteria.
Recently she also had a dance routine during a First Thursday event on State Street. "It was really fun because I got to meet new people from different places and I got to go to other places I hadn't really visited much," she said.
The experience has also been enriching in many other ways.
Gocong said, "I really love history and learning how Fiesta started and how they caught on to other people. It's really fascinating."
As much as dancing is a priority, soccer is also a passion and the two have some similarities.
"Dance and soccer have really helped me because footwork is sort of similar because you really have to use your feet a lot," said Gocong. She didn't go as far as to say she puts dance moves into her soccer style but she has spun around her opponents at time.
There will still be a busy dance schedule ahead after she is no longer Junior Spirit of Fiesta not only alone but with others. Gocong said, "I like doing solos better than groups because I feel like I can do my own thing and do things I haven't done before but doing things with a group it gets me to another level."
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