SPRINGFIELD, Ga. — When 11-year-old Ryan Lee steps onto the stage as Cindy Lou Who, she isn’t just playing a role — she’s fulfilling a dream that began nearly a decade ago, when she was two and barely big enough to lace up her tap shoes.

Ryan, a fifth grader at Springfield Elementary School, will bring the beloved holiday character to life in “How the Dancing Grinch Stole Christmas,” performing at three venues in Savannah and Rincon. Her story is one of persistence, passion, and the transformative power of dance — from a tiny, stage-shy toddler to the confident lead in a holiday classic.

She will appear as Cindy Lou at 6 p.m. Friday, Dec. 12, at the Johnny Mercer Theater, 301 West Oglethorpe Avenue, Savannah; at 3 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 13, at Plant Riverside, 400 W. River St., Savannah; and at 1 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 20, at Freedom Park in Rincon.

A talent noticed early

Ryan has spent almost her entire life at Coastal Performing Arts Academy, joining before she could even pronounce “choreography.”

At the time, she was simply “precious,” her mother, Apryl Lee, recalls.

“I thought she would be adorable in dance,” Apryl said.

But instructors quickly spotted something more than just a cute toddler. Studio director Dawn Kuster noticed it when Ryan was 3.

“Dawn looked at me and said, ‘Apryl, she has beautiful feet.’ And I was like, ‘I don’t know what that means,’” Apryl laughed.

Only later, after becoming an official dance mom, did she understand the significance. Soon, Dawn placed Ryan on a special team of young competition dancers — and the rest unfolded from there.

Chasing Cindy Lou Who

For Ryan, becoming Cindy Lou Who wasn’t an overnight moment. She watched, admired, and quietly worked toward it for years.

“When I was little, I always looked up to the big kids,” Ryan said. “And one of the big kids I looked up to played Cindy. I thought it was so cool, and I wanted to be Cindy Lou Who.”

It took years of growing, training, and “trying to gain,” as she calls it — a mix of confidence, skill, and readiness. This year, she auditioned for the Whoville role for the first time.

“The judge said that I’ve been working so hard and that I was it,” Ryan said. “I feel so good getting to be a character that all the little kids admire and look up to.”

Becoming Cindy

To Ryan, Cindy Lou Who is more than a costume or a moment in the spotlight.

“Cindy Lou Who is a bright, joyful little girl who is very sweet and nice and loves everybody,” Ryan said. “She tries to befriend the Grinch. And then the Grinch, finally, his heart grows and he and Cindy become friends, and she invites him to eat dinner.”

When asked how much of herself she sees in Cindy Lou Who, Ryan answered instantly: “A lot.”

The work behind the wonder

Every twirl, tap, and scene is built on hours most people never witness.

Apryl estimates they spend eight to 12 hours a week at the studio. With a 45-minute drive each way, Monday and Tuesday classes, and Saturday rehearsals, their family calendar rotates around dance seasons — Grinch season, then competition season.

“It takes a lot of time,” Ryan said. “But even if it’s super long, I still love it because all those teachers are caring, and they help you through stuff.”

Her biggest challenge? Remembering all the spots and dances in the correct order. She has her own ritual to help:

“Before we run the dance to the show, I’ll say the order of the dances in my head and quickly run through it,” she said.

Her favorite moment comes after the work is done: “Putting in all those hours of work to show people how much I really love it.”

The tap-dancing heartbeat

Ask her about her favorite kind of dance, and Ryan doesn’t hesitate.

“Tap.”

Every solo she’s ever performed — except her very first — has been tap.

“Coastal is like … we focus on tap, so we do tap almost every day,” she said.

“I just love tap because … you get to put your emotions in it, and your tap shoes,” she added.

A family grown by dance

Apryl didn’t grow up dancing, and becoming a dance mom wasn’t on her checklist.

“I was a tomboy,” she said. “This was the furthest life I knew.”

But nine years after walking into the studio for the first time, she calls it “an accidental blessing” that changed her daughter in ways far beyond the studio.

When Ryan was 5, she faced stage fright so intense that she refused to step into the lights. But she also refused to quit.

“I would say, ‘let’s just stop,’” Apryl said. “But she said, ‘No, I want to go to dance.’ And she would go to dance, and dance, and she was fine. But you put her on that stage — she wasn’t having it.”

With patience from Dawn and time to grow, she eventually walked back onto the stage on her own terms.

“It’s taught her teamwork. It’s taught her perseverance. It’s taught her confidence,” Apryl said. “She has thrived and grown so much … It’s really just so much more than dancing.”

Dance has also given Ryan the internal drive to keep striving to improve.

“She wants to keep pushing herself to be better and do better — to keep up with her teammates and for her teammates.”

Today, the girl who once couldn’t face a spotlight now leads a Christmas classic as the small, bright heart of Whoville.

And her dreams? They’re just beginning.

Although she’s only 11, she sees dance as her future. For Ryan Lee, the stage isn’t just a place she performs.

It’s her home.