Ryan Buggle, who plays Noah Benson on Law & Order SVU, is stepping out from his fictional mother’s shadow thanks to an inspiring new plotline that shatters gender stereotypes. Buggle’s character is trading in his baseball cleats for ballet slippers, quitting the baseball team to pursue dance lessons. 

The story stems from Buggle’s real-life passion for dance, as he spends several hours a week training and competing with his studio, Pro Dance. At one of the writer meetings for Season 21 of SVU, Buggle proposed the idea for his character to be a dancer as well. “The producers, writers, Mariska, and the entire cast and crew have been so supportive,” he explained. “I hope that I can inspire parents who watch the show to encourage their child regardless of gender or ability to try a dance class. Having the opportunity to encourage anyone to try a dance class is an amazing thing.”

In correlation with the storyline, Buggle also teamed up with clothing line Jake Nothing on a collection, “Limitless by Ryan,” which includes dance-themed t-shirts and more. "I designed this [line] in partnership with Jake Nothing and talented artist Elise Lefebvre to showcase my love for dance in NYC, a place where you‘re always welcomed in class,” Buggle explained. A portion of each shirt sold is given to Dancing Dreams, a non-profit organization in NYC that educates children on dance regardless of their physical abilities.

A nine-year-old counteracting conventions one leap at a time? Now that’s a cause we can all get behind. 

Shop Limitless by Ryan at https://www.jakenothing.com/collections/ryan.