Tivy senior to perform in Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade

Ava Reyes will wake up at 5 a.m. on Thanksgiving morning in New York City, but the Tivy High School senior won’t be thinking about turkey or stuffing.

She’ll be preparing to perform in front of millions of television viewers as part of the 99th Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, joining a tradition that has captivated America since 1924.

“I’m very scared,” Reyes admitted during an appearance Friday on The Lead Live. “But I’m also excited.”

Reyes, a varsity member of the Tivy Golden Girls, earned her spot in the parade a year ago after winning first place in her division at a competition for CC’s Dance Studio. The invitation was printed on the back of her first-place award.

She will perform as part of the Spirit of America dance contingent, a competitive all-star group of 500 to 600 performers from across the country who typically appear in the parade’s final hour. The group will dance along the parade’s 2.5-mile route, which ends at Macy’s flagship Herald Square store.

The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade began on Nov. 27, 1924, as the “Macy’s Christmas Parade,” organized by store employees to celebrate the expansion of Macy’s Herald Square into what was then the world’s largest department store.

Many of those first parade organizers were first-generation immigrants who drew inspiration from festive street parades in their European homelands.

That inaugural parade featured employees in colorful costumes, four marching bands, and live animals borrowed from the Central Park Zoo — including bears, elephants, camels and monkeys. About 250,000 spectators lined the streets for that first six-mile procession.

The parade’s signature element — giant helium balloons — debuted in 1927 with Felix the Cat. The balloons quickly became the parade’s most recognizable feature, replacing the zoo animals that had proven unwieldy in Manhattan’s crowded streets.

The parade was suspended from 1942 to 1944 during World War II, when Macy’s donated the rubber from the balloons to the war effort. It returned triumphantly in 1945 and has marched every year since, even continuing in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic without an in-person audience.

Today, the parade is watched by more than 50 million television viewers annually, with 3.5 million people attending in person in New York City.

This year’s parade will feature 34 balloons, 28 floats, 33 clown groups and 11 marching bands when it begins at 8:30 a.m. Thursday, Nov. 27. New balloons include Buzz Lightyear, Pac-Man, Super Mario and a 32-foot-tall onion carriage featuring characters from “Shrek.” Santa Claus will close the celebration, just as he has for 99 years.

Reyes’ trip to New York required significant financial sacrifice from her family. Her mother, Angela Espinosa, worked extra jobs to fund the journey — holding dance workshops, teaching private lessons, choreographing events and organizing garage sales.

“I’m very grateful,” Reyes said of her mother’s efforts.

Espinosa, who works as a certified medical assistant at a kidney center, also serves as lead teacher for the hip-hop program and competitive dance coach at Peggy and CC Jeans Dance Studio. She was herself a Tivy Golden Girl, making Reyes a second-generation member of the drill team.

“She acts out of love and wants me to have experiences she couldn’t have,” Reyes said.

The family — Reyes, Espinosa and Reyes’ stepfather — departed Saturday morning on a 5 a.m. flight for a week-long trip. Reyes’ 14-year-old brother, Mason, stayed home with grandparents.

The trip’s itinerary emphasizes intense preparation. Practice began immediately upon the family’s arrival in New York with four hours of rehearsal Saturday evening, followed by eight hours of practice Sunday.

The night before Thanksgiving, the group will conduct a full run-through of the parade route to prepare for the live performance.

“I expect to perform where the cameras and judges are located,” Reyes said.

In addition to the parade, the family’s package includes tickets to see the Rockettes, who are celebrating their 100th anniversary, and the Broadway musical “Moulin Rouge.” They also plan to visit the 9/11 Memorial and take a boat trip around the Statue of Liberty.

Reyes, who is in her final year with the Golden Girls, said her favorite dance styles are hip-hop and jazz because their energetic nature allows her personality to shine.

“I use dancing as an escape to put everything I have into my moves,” she said. “I get an adrenaline rush every time I perform. It really fills my life up a lot.”

Espinosa, who teaches dance at CC’s, noted that ballet forms the foundation of all dance styles, with hip-hop drawing from lyrical, contemporary and jazz. She said a typical one-minute hip-hop routine can incorporate about 11 different emotions.

After graduating from Tivy in the spring, Reyes plans to attend beauty school to pursue a career as an esthetician.

The parade will air live on NBC and Peacock beginning at 8:30 a.m. CST on Thanksgiving Day.

Check out our interview with Ava Reyes