Alyra Lennox was born on February 1, 1977 in Elverson, Pennsylvania in the United States. When Alyra was five years old her family moved to Florida and she began to study "Danza Duncan" (a style of dance created by Isodora Duncan, recognized for the modern creation of dance). Then, at the age of 10 years old, Alyra once again moves with her family to North Carolina, where she began to take Jazz lessons and after just two years she takes the decision to make an audition to enter a school of art in Los Angeles, California. Quickly admitted on her first attempt, Alyra moves to the city of angels and in the successive three years she studies recitals and dance.
 

At age 19, Alyra discovered for the first time Latin American music and learned her first salsa steps from Laura Canellias, "La Dama de la Salsa". Alyra passionately continued to study and work in the field of dance. She won a second place in the world famous Club Mayan Salsa Competition in the amateur division, appeared in various films and television programs as a principal dancer ("Dance With Me," "The Wonderful Ice Cream Suit," "Hola Los Angeles," etc), and created a company of dance that later became part of the Bacardi Team.

For the next two years, Alyra was co-director of the dance company Salsabor Y Cache and participated in the World Salsa Congresses of Puerto Rico, Los Angeles, and Argentina. In October 2000 she began to tour India, Spain, Italy, and France where she learned about a new company already recognized by the force and energy with which they exhibit themselves on-stage: Tropical Gem of Rafael Gonzalez and Fernando Sosa.

Alyra moved to Milan in December of 2000, in order to become part of this company and she gained the opportunity to travel all over the world and to participate in numerous congresses. Alyra, to this day, is still traveling and performing with Tropical Gem Dance Company, which as a dance team is known as one of the best ones in the world!

For many who know about Tropical Gem and cherish their style, technique, energy, and precision on-stage, Alyra Lennox is an image that goes hand in hand with the worldwide success that Tropical Gem, as a dance performance group, has attained through the years. Her image, talent, skill, strength, and ability to deliver the fast-pace, energetic, and powerful routines that Tropical Gem is known for have gained her the recognition of being one of the best female salsa dancers in the world. Nonetheless, Alyra continues to be a down-to-earth person out on the dance floors of the world events that she attends, or in her own community. She truly enjoys the dance for what it is, as she did when she was only five years old, and has not lost the passion that drove her to where she is at right now.

We truly hope to see much more of Alyra Lennox in the years to come! Her contributions to the world of Salsa are invaluable and have help it become the a global phenomenon that it is today: . Even back when Alyra competed at her first Mayan competition, nobody could have known how far Salsa would go in the years to come. And being recognized as a leader of one of the most successful dance teams in the world, Tropical Gem, Alyra Lennox truly deserves much credit for doing her share to help make Salsa what it is today.