Halle Henry performing on stage. Provided photo.

On July 19, an estimated nearly 2 billion people tuned in to watch the World Cup Final between Argentina and Spain. The final included the first ever World Cup Halftime Show, where musical giants such as Madonna, Shakira, BTS and Justin Bieber performed in front of the world at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. Similarly to Super Bowl LX—in which Sarasota Orchestra’s Giancarlo Guerrero was featured in Bad Bunny’s Halftime performance—another Sarasota face was in the World Cup.

Dancing alongside Shakira was none other than Sarasota’s own Halle Henry. The 25-year-old dancer is an alum of the Manatee School for the Arts, who about two years ago, was signed as a dancer for Shakira’s world tour. While Henry is accustomed to performing alongside Shakira, dancing at MetLife stadium was a different experience entirely.

“I knew that it was a huge deal—we had kids from Uganda who flew out to perform with us which made it 10 times as special—but you don’t really feel it until you’re in the stadium surrounded by 80,000 people,” says Henry. “The energy that I felt in that stadium was magnetizing. You’re supporting Shakira, but also the world and the two countries in the match. It felt like I was performing for a cause bigger than just my job.”

Henry’s journey to the world’s biggest stage has been an audacious one. At 17, she moved from Sarasota to Los Angeles to pursue her dream of becoming a professional dancer. Soon after she signed with Block Talent Agency, and began booking jobs—a Jason Derulo music video here, a Disney commercial there—before signing onto Shakira’s world tour in 2024. “When I was 15, something just clicked in my head that this was the number one thing that I loved to do in my life,” says Henry. “I knew that LA was the place I needed to go for my career to take off and to further my training.”

Halle Henry performing on stage. Provided photo.