Plum Native Makes it to the Top 20 on "So You Think You Can Dance"

Plum native Miranda Maleski will perform on live television next week.

Maleski, 19, has made it to the Top 20 contestants of the FOX TV show "So You Think You Can Dance." She was the second dancer to make it through on tonight's show. A live dance performance immediately followed.

Maleski's mother, Stephanie, said her daughter has wanted to audition for the show since it premiered in 2005. Contestants must be 18 years or older to participate.

Maleski finally auditioned in February. The show's Las Vegas audition rounds—which aired last night—were taped in April. Part of tonight's results show was taped a few days ago and part of it was live.

"She always waited to audition, and when she was turning 18 last year, they held auditions early, so she couldn't do it," Stephanie Maleski said. "When she finally did it this year, I couldn't be there, but she kept saying how surreal it was. We had seen it on TV so many times, and she was finally living it.

"She said it was amazing."

Maleski has been dancing since she was 3 years old and has been competitively dancing since the age of 7. She was a student at the Reign Dance Productions studio in Penn Hills and has won several national dance competitions.

A Pennsylvania Cyber Charter School graduate, Maleski has been living in Los Angeles auditioning for acting and dancing roles. She recently was featured as a solo ballerina for Kanye West at a Los Angeles festival.

Stephanie Maleski said her daughter's chance to compete on "So You Think You Can Dance" has been amazing.

"This has been, without a doubt, one of the best experiences in her life," Stephanie Maleski said. "She's only 19, but she's gone for her dreams. Her dad and I are so proud of her.

"She's never taken her talent for granted. She's always worked for what she does."