McNary senior lands spot on OSU’s high-profile dance team

Izabell Manley, a McNary High School senior, was falling asleep as she scrolled on her phone one recent Saturday night, when an email brought her fully alert.

Earlier in the day, she had competed in finals to join the prestigious dance team at Oregon State University.

“Congratulations,” the email said.

She had made the cut.

Manley joined 20 other McNary seniors in the Signing Day ceremony at the school on Wednesday, April 29. She was the only athlete to sign with a Division I school.

OSU’s dance team performs at Beaver athletic events, such as football halftime, and makes community appearances such as parades.

Manley has been dancing since her mother “randomly” put her in a class at Salem’s City Dance Theatre.

“I tried to play some other sports but was never very good,” Manley said.

At age 3, she started with ballet lessons and remembers her first public performance.

“One of the older girls came to take me off the stage,” Manley said with a laugh. “I wasn’t dancing. I was just standing there, playing with my costume.”

Over the years, she has learned and performed ballet, jazz, contemporary and hip-hop – “my favorite.”

She attended Blanchet Catholic School and then transferred to McNary her freshman year. The school doesn’t have a dance team.

In 2016, she joined Relevé Performing Company, the competitive dance team affiliated with City Dance Theatre.

When performing before a crowd, “I pretty much forget they are there,” Manley said. “A million things are going through my brain while on stage.”

One is to control her facial expressions, reflecting the music. Her training includes practicing those expressions before a mirror.

She said competing for the OSU team was “nerve wracking” but she “felt pretty good” about her performance.

“My studio is very big on professionalism and how you present yourself,” she said.

That includes maintaining professional poise at an event even when not on stage.