Rise to Fame
Gianna had a passion for dance even as a toddler. In 2016, Gianna joined the 'Caru Entertainment Dance Complex' in Pennington, New Jersey, and took up ballet, jazz, lyrical, contemporary, hip-hop, jazz, and funk lessons. However, her all-time favorite dance form is contemporary dance. Soon, she began participating in competitions, which gave her the confidence to perform on stage.
Gianna holds the national title in the junior section at the 'Beyond the Stars Competition.' She has also succeeded in regional competitions such as 'Starpower,' 'Show Stoppers,' 'Nextstar,' 'On Stage America,' 'Dancers Inc,' 'Groove,' 'The Edge,' 'Starbound,' 'On Point,' 'Legacy,' 'Dance Xplosion,' and 'NDS.' Gianna was 12 when she decided to appear on reality shows. She had watched the first season of 'Abby's Ultimate Dance Competition' (AUDC) and had almost immediately made up her mind to join the show in its subsequent season. She filled the online application. Soon after, she received an email from 'Lifetime,' stating an audition schedule. She then had a 'Skype' interview and went to New York for a live interview. She delivered a solo performance, too. A few weeks later, her participation was confirmed.
Gianna made her TV debut on September 3, 2013, with the episode 'Make It Count!' in the second season of ‘AUDC.’ She was eliminated in the episode titled 'Meet Abby's Newest Ultimate Dancer,' aired on November 16, 2013. Gianna ended up at the second spot before the show’s end. Overall, the show turned out to be a learning experience for Gianna. She had the privilege of working with 'Emmy Award'-winning choreographers and also made numerous new friends.
To participate in ‘AUDC,’ Gianna took a break from her studies. She resumed studies after the show and has expressed her wish to pursue a career either as a choreographer or a teacher, after graduating high school. Gianna has modeled for the clothing line of 'Beyond the Stars' and the catalog 'A Wish Come True’
Gianna has a prominent presence on social media. She creates videos for her self-titled 'YouTube channel, which she launched back in 2013. However, since Gianna was too occupied at the time to focus on anything else but dance, she did not post videos on the channel till 2017. She did a Q&A video on March 21, 2018, to acknowledge her first million viewers on her channel. Currently, the channel has around 37 thousand subscribers. Gianna has an 'Instagram' page, too, where her posts have earned her close to 62 thousand followers.
She once posted a ‘YouTube’ video that narrated her experience with ‘AUDC.’ Through the video, she shared her thoughts about the founder and one of the judges of the show, Abby Lee Miller. Gianna stated how rude Abby was in conveying her evaluation to the contestants after their performances. Though she acknowledged Abby’s tips in her improvement, Gianna never accepted the disrespect Abby had shown to her and her mother on the show. Gianna justified all the criticisms of Abby’s controversial teaching techniques and harsh judgments. She also highlighted Abby's nature of being biased. Gianna accused Abby of causing her depression by shattering her confidence. She once commented on an ‘Instagram’ post about Abby’s prison sentence for fraudulence, which brought her several negative comments. Gianna wished that Abby should remain behind bars forever. Following this, she was labeled as mean by Abby’s fans, who stated that she should have been grateful to Abby for contributing to her successful career as a dancer.
While Ginna has bitter memories with Abby, she has had great experiences with the girls from 'Dance Moms.' She has worked with Maddie Ziegler, Mackenzie Ziegler, and Asia Monet. Gianna and Kalani Hilliker performed together as part of ‘AUDC’s 'Madonna Trio' and later appeared in a dance duet titled 'Twisted.' Following ‘AUDC,’ Gianna was invited to audition for 'Dance Moms.' She refused the offer, as she wanted a break from TV appearances.
Family & Personal Life
Gianna was born on November 20, 1999, in Yardley, Pennsylvania. Her mother, Cindy Passanante, regularly appeared on ‘AUDC.’ Gianna has one younger and two older brothers. Her parents are divorced. Ginna completed her freshman and sophomore years and half of her junior year from a public school and her senior year from a private Catholic girls’ school. She attended 'Neshaminy High School.'
One of Gianna’s favorite dance routines is the lyrical solo 'She Used to Be Mine.’ She loves listening to Ed Sheeran, Drake, and John Mayer. Gianna has seven tattoos on her body. Her first tattoo was a rose inked on her left wrist. She has dedicated it to her father. Had she not been a dancer, Gianna would have become a nurse. She claims to make the best milkshakes in the world.
