You didn’t have to watch closely to see Sarasota’s Siara Delmar Hernández in Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl Halftime Show in February—she was front and center, “mean mugging,” as she put it, for the camera, while Bad Bunny (real name: Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio) sang and danced through an intricate set inspired by his native Puerto Rico. More than 128 million people watched the show in the U.S., and the performance racked up 4.15 billion global views in the 24 hours after it aired, according to Roc Nation, which produces the halftime shows.

 

 

 

 

 

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The attention is nothing new for Hernández, 24, who’s been dancing since she was a toddler, when her mother enrolled her in “mommy and me” dance classes in Lansdale, Penn., where Hernández was born. She previously performed with Bad Bunny at the Latin Billboard Music Awards in 2023 and has hit the stage with pop star Shakira at MTV’s Video Music Awards and at the Grammys. At press time, she was on call as a swing, or understudy, for Shakira’s world tour and had recently returned from Mexico, where she filled in for another dancer.

Locally, she teaches dance at Soul Studios in Sarasota. She spoke with us about her long career in dance, the current state of representation in the industry and how she books those big jobs. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Have you always wanted to be a dancer?

“My mom put me in dance classes when I was 2 or 3 years old, and I’ve always known it’s what I wanted to do.”

What was your training like?

“My family and I moved to Sarasota when I was 6 or 7, and after being here a couple of years, I started dancing at Soul Studios. I thank [owner Jamie Davis] for a lot of my success; I don’t think I’d be where I am without that technical training. I danced there for many years competitively—I’ve trained in ballet, modern, tap, jazz, everything under the sun.

“I went to Manatee School for the Arts for high school, and then I decided I wanted to dabble in college for a bit and went to a conservatory program in Miami for about a year and a half. But I didn’t love it, so I dropped out and started training everywhere I could, trying to make as many connections as possible. And then it just happened—I met this choreographer who booked me for a job, and that led to other connections, and they led to even bigger connections.”

How do you book work today?

“All of my agents are in Los Angeles, so nine times out of 10, I go there when I have to audition or when I book jobs.”

What has your experience in the industry been like?

“The dance world is large, but it feels small at the same time. There are a lot of people who share the same type of look or the same physical [attributes] as you, and unfortunately, it’s an industry where people are sometimes getting booked solely based on their look vs. their talent. So you have to constantly be thinking, ‘What can I do to stand out in the room?’ The mental toughness has to be there.

“It’s also constantly changing. There’s always a new face in the room; there’s always a new generation of dancers who are coming in and want it just as bad as you do.”

What was it like participating in the Super Bowl?

“I’m Puerto Rican, and for any Latino, it was huge. Being able to represent my people and my community is a responsibility that I don’t take lightly. I still feel like I haven’t grasped the [magnitude] of the whole experience. You can tell from watching that everyone on camera is of some form of ethnic descent. That was the main goal: to make sure everyone was represented well.”

What has the reaction been like?

“It’s still being talked about, and people are still being impacted. I get so many messages—including from moms saying their daughters saw my curly hair, so now they want to wear their hair curly. It’s amazing.”

Did you get to spend time with Bad Bunny?

“Not one-on-one, but he was a huge part of our rehearsals. The night before the show, he told us how grateful he was [to everyone] and how we were about to send a huge message to the world.

“It was so nice to hear that from an artist, especially when there were 500 people in one room, and everyone was stressed and there were so many moving parts. I loved that connection right before the show.”

How do you feel about the dance scene in Sarasota?

“For the arts to be so prominent here is inspiring. I would love to see more Latin influence with dance, specifically. If you look at Tampa and Orlando, there is so much Latin representation in those cities—but I do feel like it’s starting to trickle down here a little bit. I think we need people in positions of power to really encourage [kids from underrepresented communities] to start getting involved with the arts.”

What do you tell kids who look up to you and want a career like yours?

“As long as the love for dance is there, and you’re sure it’s what you want to do, don’t stray from it—and always remind yourself of it. That’s something that’s carried me. When it’s been a long time between jobs, and I’m struggling to find a reason to continue, I think back to what I felt like when I first started dancing, and how important it is for me to represent in that way. Stay true to yourself and remind yourself that the hard work is worth it.”