She grew up dancing in the Tri-Cities. Now she’s dancing in ‘Pitch Perfect 3’

Carsen Rowe was in college when the first Pitch Perfect movie came out.

She loved the story of a group of “awesome nerds” who won hearts — and singing competitions — with their a capella skills.

When the sequel arrived in 2015, she made sure to see it.

Now, a third Pitch Perfect film is about to be released, and Rowe once again will be in the audience.

This time, though, she won’t just be watching as a fan. She’s in it.

Rowe, 25, a Richland native, is a professional dancer and choreographer who won the role of a Barden Bella in Pitch Perfect 3, coming out Dec. 22.

She can be seen dancing in the early part of the blockbuster franchise’s latest installment. She’s also in at least one of the trailers.

“I went from watching (the movies) all the time to getting to meet the cast and be in it,” Rowe said. “I feel really lucky.”

Along with Pitch Perfect 3, Rowe dances in the upcoming film Love, Simon, which boasts a slew of big names, including Jennifer Garner, Josh Duhamel and 13 Reasons Why’s Katherine Langford.

She also appears in the forthcoming YouTube Red series Step Up: High Water, about a performing arts high school. Channing and Jenna Dewan Tatum are executive producers.

Rowe honed her dancing skills in the Tri-Cities.

She trained at Tri-Cities Academy of Ballet, starting when she was a toddler and continuing into her early teens.

She also was part of Eastern Washington Elite Dance & Cheer in Kennewick, which was started by her mother, Teri Rowe.

With Elite, she won 10 national championships and a world championship by the time she was in high school.

After graduating from Richland High in 2010, Carsen Rowe danced for Washington State University.

At 19, she moved to Los Angeles to pursue dance professionally before eventually making her way to the University of Cincinnati and its acclaimed dance team.

She earned bachelor’s degrees in psychology and criminal justice and a master’s in criminal justice while also racking up dance honors.

In September 2016, she moved to Atlanta. Soon, she was auditioning for Pitch Perfect 3.

Out of a pool of hundreds of dancers, she was one of only a handful picked for the film.

The experience was thrilling — the choreographers were stellar and the cast was great fun, Rowe said.

It felt a bit unreal.

“I watched the (previous) movies at least a couple times a year, knew every single song. And then, (one day) Rebel Wilson is next to me at lunch,” she said.

Dancing in Love, Simon and Step Up: High Water also were great experiences. On the latter project, she worked with luminaries such as Debbie Allen and Adam Shankman.

Teri Rowe said she’s proud of her daughter and all she’s accomplished.

“For her to take that leap and go back to the professional world (and find success) — it’s a dream come true for her,” she said.

“I think it’s important for dancers to understand that if you want to achieve your goals, you have to put in the training, the hard work. You have to put in the hours. It’s years of training, hours per day,” Teri Rowe said. “If you put in the hard work, you can certainly make your dreams come true. You really can. She’s a perfect example of that.”

Carsen Rowe said she owes a lot to her mom. When it comes to dance, “everything I know, I learned from her,” she said.

She also said she’s grateful to her dad, Mark, and brothers Hayden and Jamison, for their support.

While Rowe auditions and books dancing gigs, she also has a thriving choreography company, Tribe 99.

She started the company with longtime friend Anna Miller, a fellow Tri-City native and Eastern Washington Elite alumna.

They work with some of the best high school and college dance programs in the country. They also started a dance combine — like a football combine — that’s been a hit with dancers and college coaches.

Rowe said it’s an exciting time. “I feel really grateful, really lucky,” she said.

She’s made sacrifices along the way— spending hours upon hours training, competing, sweating, striving.

But now, “it feels like the hard work is paying off,” she said.

This story was originally published December 17, 2017 at 1:03 PM with the headline "She grew up dancing in the Tri-Cities. Now she’s dancing in ‘Pitch Perfect 3’."