ProDance Collegiate Announces Dates

ProDance, which has been holding camps for professional dance teams since 2000, has announced this year's dates for ProDance Collegiate. The camp will run July 26-28, 2007. Below is a letter from ProDance founder Rosalyn Jones about ProDance Collegiate.

Do you want to know where University of Memphis, BYU, Cal State Fullerton, UCSD, UTEP, UTSA, USC and other College Dance Teams get their training? It's ProDance!! And now for the first time more college dance teams have the opportunity to get the ProDance advantage!

Dear Dance Team Coach!

It's that time of year again. You are in the midst of making a decision concerning what camp your dance team will attend this summer. I want to encourage you to take a BOLD step and choose ProDance Collegiate!!!

It is my hope that ProDance Collegiate will fill a void. We are offering YOU an exclusive opportunity to inject new energy into your existing program by providing exclusive access to the choreographers, choreography, industry experts and key innovators who are influencing the incredible surge in collegiate sports dance! I've spoken with many directors who are seeking MORE out of their camp experience. Some want to increase their success at Nationals. Others want to go to a camp where the focus is on learning and acquiring enough choreography to get them through their season. Still others want to have a more polished look for their fans. You may fall somewhere in between.


We have formulated a strategic plan designed to benefit the 200 collegiate dancers who will attend the inaugural ProDance Collegiate! We are limiting the number of participants because we want to give you and your team the attention you deserve. You are making an effort to seek out the best possible camp experience for your dancers and we will make the effort to deliver it! I can tell you that you will not find another camp who puts more thought into each and every aspect of its program than ProDance! No detail is overlooked in order to enhance your experience with us. From the location (full-blown resort/spa), to the choreographers/choreography (the best out there), to our competitive pricing--this is an opportunity you don't want to miss! We present choreography that is visually appealing, technically challenging and totally unique. You can rest assured you won't see these routines being performed en masse across the country.

ProDance Collegiate will take place July 26 –28 at the prestigious LaQuinta Resort & Club near Palm Springs, CA.


I want to let you in on a little secret--ProDance Collegiate will dramatically and immediately impact your program!!! The teams who have attended ProDance have raved about its benefits. The atmosphere we create is a catalyst for action, inspiration, growth, and success. You can't help but want to BE YOUR BEST after having been immersed in an environment that nurtures it. Being surrounded by brilliant minds and passionate people is so stimulating. The energy at ProDance is palpable! Believe me--you'll want to be a part of this. Bring your whole team or just send a few members. You won't be disappointed. "Some experiences simply do not translate. You have to go to know."

GET HERE AND GET IT!!!!

Rosalyn Jones
CEO/Founder
ProDance
2638 Kerrybrook Ct., Ste. 101
San Antonio, Texas 78230
Ph: (210) 344-5990
ProDance.net

Register online now!

Northeastern Graduate Chose Pom-Poms Over Work-Study

By Megan Jicha
The Northeastern News

Whether it's waiting tables, swiping cards at residence halls or working in retail, many college students rely on part-time jobs as sources of income. Recent mechanical engineering graduate Alyssa Caddle is no different.

"My job just happens to be at Gillette Stadium," said Caddle, a New England Patriots' cheerleader.

She has danced since she was 3 years old and was a member of the Northeastern dance team before she began cheering for the Patriots last year.

Getting paid to dance sounded like the perfect gig, she said.

Last year, Caddle and two of her friends from the dance team tried out for the Patriots' squad. Going in with the expectation of a fun day of dancing and meeting people, Caddle said she didn't expect to make the team.

With two additional Northeastern girls beside Caddle and her friends at the tryouts, she was the only Husky out of the five to be chosen for the squad.

Being a Patriots' cheerleader required her to balance cheerleading, a full course load, squash team and a social life, she said.

Caddle said she takes on a new challenge this year: balancing her second year of cheerleading with a full-time job in supplier quality engineering.

As a Patriots' cheerleader, Caddle attends practices twice a week, including six hours of it on Saturdays. Once the season begins, practice continues twice a week with games on the weekend. The cheerleaders do not travel to away games.

"Alyssa works very hard at practice to stay in shape and learn the routines, which is evident when she performs at appearances and on game day," said Tracy Sormanti, Patriots' cheerleader director and choreographer.

However, there is a lot more to cheering than practicing and games.

"While first and foremost a performer, Alyssa's outgoing personality makes her a fan favorite," Sormanti said. "She is very personable and has a great sense of humor. She is very engaging ... and people enjoy meeting her at promotional appearances."

These promotional opportunities can vary from parades to bar appearances. One of the most recent events was the team's 2008 calendar photo shoot earlier this month in the Dominican Republic.

"It was paradise," Caddle said. "But this year's shoot was harder. Last year I got to do a cute, smiley picture. This year they threw a lot more at me."

Although the team was in the Dominican for a week, Caddle had to leave early for graduation.

Beyond promotional events, the cheerleaders take part in charity work, like working with their junior cheerleaders and visiting different military bases. It is this type of off-the-field work where the cheerleaders' experiences differ, Caddle said. For example, she and five other cheerleaders recently had the opportunity to pay a visit to a military aircraft carrier.

"All 24 of us get to go to games, perform, but this was something only six of us got to do," Caddle said. "I'll probably never get to go on an aircraft carrier again and that was like a playground for an engineer."

Caddle said she receives a lot of attention and support from fans, family and companions.

"Every time I see her on the field, I feel like a proud parent," said her friend Kara Gilhooly, also a recent mechanical engineering graduate. Gilhooly and Caddle were on the dance and squash teams together.

Next year, if Caddle is in Boston, she said she plans to tryout for the squad for the third time. However, it would be her last year on the team because each girl is allowed a three-year cheering contract for the Patriots.

"It keeps the team fresh," Caddle said. "Fans like seeing new faces."

But whether she is on the team or not, she will always be cheering for the team.

"I always have and always will be a Patriots' fan," she said.

In Memoriam: Caroline Wiren

College Dance Team Central was sad to learn of the passing of Caroline Wiren, director of the USF Sun Dolls, this week. Miss Wiren and the Sun Dolls have been much-appreciated contributors to the College Dance Team Central blog, and our thoughts and prayers are with the Wiren family. Below is a message from SunDolls.org.

Dear Fans, Friends and Family:

I am shocked and deeply saddened by the news of the passing away of our beloved SunDolls Coach, Caroline Wiren. She was the inspiration, leader and author of most of the content of this website. As the webmaster, I came to rely completely on her, in building and maintaining this website meant to celebrate our wonderful Sun Dolls Dance Team at the University of South Florida. Along with the entire USF community, I will miss her greatly and wish to convey my most heartfelt sorrow and condolences to her husband, family and friends.

Please visit the official USF Athletic's site at: GoUSFBulls.com for further information and news.

I am temporarily taking down the Sundolls.Org site, until further notice. I promise to get it going very soon. Thanks for your continued love and support.

Respectfully,

Bill (May 17, 2007)

Below are links to articles about Caroline Wiren and the Tampa Tribune Guestbook.

The Tampa Tribune

The St. Petersburg Times

The Tampa Tribune Guestbook for Caroline Wiren

SHSU Dance Team Member Anxious To Start With Texans

Katie Breaux
The Huntsville Item

Betsy Young will soon be living her dream.

The 22-year-old public relations major at Sam Houston State University was recently selected as a member of the 2007 Houston Texans cheerleaders squad.

Throughout her first year as a cheerleader, Young said that in addition to performing at Texans games, she will also make at least 30 appearances and practice three to four times a week.

As she is accustomed to leading crowded stadiums full of Bearkat fans, Young expresses no apprehensions or fears about starting her career as a Texans cheerleader.

“I can’t wait to walk out of that tunnel to see over 70,000 fans in the Houston stadium,” Young said.

Young’s 19 years of dance training and her experience with the SHSU Orange Pride dance team led her into the auditions and will be an asset, she said.

Although a demanding schedule and a trying year lie ahead of her, Young said she will be doing what she loves.

“There’s nothing better than performing in front of a crowded stadium of excited fans,” she said.

Although Young is currently the only Sam Houston State student on the squad, she is accompanied by Elizabeth Bond and Kristen Cook, who are both graduates of SHSU.

The auditions took place in Houston over a period of five days, beginning April 21.

On the first day of tryouts, more than 200 judges, including Andre Johnson and Dunta Robinson of the Texans football team, chose only 55 women out of more than 700 who attended, to continue to the final round. From those 55 finalists, a smaller panel of judges comprised of professionals directly involved with the cheer squad chose 34 women as members of the team.

The last cheerleader, who was selected by fans through an online poll, was announced on Friday.

Young is one of the countless students pursuing her dreams with the confidence and ability gained during her experience at Sam Houston State University.

“I just can’t wait to embark on this next phase of my life and my career, especially at such a high caliber level” Young said. “I’m honored to represent Texans football.”

UCSD Dance Team Finishes Second Nationally

By Nicky Buchanan
UCSD Guardian

April 26, 2007 — Though the UCSD dance team is mainly seen on campus performing at events like Sun God or Spirit Night and halftime performances at Triton athletics events, it is also a highly competitive squad that has remained ranked in the nation's top 10 Division II dance teams since it started competing in 1998.

This year the Tritons made UCSD history as second-place trophy winners at the National Dance Alliance Nationals April 4 to April 7 in Daytona Beach, Fla. They finished just 0.04 points behind winner Hawaii Pacific University, which also earned first place last year, and 0.02 points ahead of McLennon Community College.

"Getting second place was the best feeling ever," senior co-captain Alison Chaikittirattana said. "We went in as the underdogs not expecting much, so it was so nice to realize that all of our hard work finally paid off and we were being recognized for it too."

The Triton squad began preparing their NDA routine during the summer, when they decided on their SOS-Castaway theme. The theme involved a mixture of three songs, including a remix of "SOS" by the Police, "SOS" by Rhianna and "Message in a Bottle" by Bonnie Tyler.

"Competing against some of the best dance teams in the nation means that everyone is probably at the same level in technique and skills," Chaikittirattana said. "So in order to stand out from the other talented teams, choosing a creative theme that will catch the judges' attention is crucial."

The NDA requires routines to be two and a half minutes in length with at least 30 seconds in the three styles of jazz, hip hop and pom. Since this was the team's first year without a coach and (it is run solely by three co-captains) the choreography of the piece was entirely a group effort. There were some tensions in the beginning of the season in terms of adjusting to the authority of their peers, but the team's thirst for pulling together a great routine for nationals pushed many of these doubts aside.

"Our group of 16 girls demonstrates what self-sufficient means," sophomore Juhi Dudani said. "We take care of everything from finances to costumes, music, workouts, choreography and organizing our performances. We work well together and respect each other and it shows when we perform."

The first opportunity to showcase their routine, aside from school basketball games, was at the USA Nationals on Feb. 11 and 12 in Las Vegas. The team did not make it to the final round, but the girls used the critiques from the judges to take their piece to the next level for Florida.

"We didn't do too well at USA Nationals, but we did get good feedback," freshman Bonnie Chan said. "We added more difficulty, variety and level changes and it really pushed us to work harder."

The team practiced three days a week for two hours each, and held extra practices in the weeks before competition.

"We drilled certain parts over and over again until [we achieved] perfection," Chan said. "It was hard work."

The NDA judging system is rigorous: a fall is a 0.2 deduction and even a "small bobble" like stepping out of turn from the group is a 0.05 deduction. These deductions can make or break a team, considering that the final scores are just hundredths of a point apart.

"[We went] into NDA Nationals confident that we would do well because our routine showcased our abilities better this year than it has in the past," sophomore Karen Liu said.

The Tritons competed against 25 other Division II teams to earn their second-place spot at nationals. The competition was broken up into multiple parts. First, the dancers sent in a videotape that qualified them for 10th place in the competition which began on April 5 with the preliminary round. It was here that the rigorous points system directly affected the UCSD team through a deduction caused by a fall which dropped it from fifth place to ninth going into the final round.

The Tritons performed seventh out of the 15 teams that advanced to the final round, and from then on watched from the winner's circle, their score of 8.98 reigning supreme over the following eight teams until Hawaii Pacific University overcame them with a score of 9.06.

"In dance, you only have less than three minutes to prove yourself," senior co-captain Courtney Delaney said. "We have to be perfect and on right away, otherwise you're in trouble. You only get one try. After McLennon's score was announced and we were higher, it was shocking and we started jumping up and screaming. It was our first second ever, but it felt like first."

Cougarettes Claim Seventh National Title

by Brooke Eddington, BYU Communications

Brigham Young University's Cougarettes claimed their seventh National College Cheer and Dance Team Championship title in Daytona Beach, Fla., April 6-7, with a routine the judges praised for its creativity and difficulty. The BYU team tied with the University of Louisville and will share the title.

The competition is scored similarly to ice skating and gymnastics, and teams are given scores for competence in jazz, pom, and hip-hop, technique, staging, choreography and performance impression, as well as collegiate image and how well they represent their respective universities, according to adviser Jodi Maxfield.

BYU's cheerleading squad also made the finals of this year's competition and was awarded 10th place, its highest finish ever.

The competition will air Saturday, April 21, on the Fox Sports Network (FSN) at 1 p.m. MDT.

As defending champions, the Cougarettes represented the university well by providing their competitors with Easter packages and unrivaled enthusiasm during the announcement of the competition results.

"Last year there was a lot of tension," said Maxfield. "The team found opportunities to connect more with their competitors than in past years."

The Cougarettes captured the National College Dance Team title in 1997, 1998, 1999, 2001, 2005 and again in 2006. They are credited with raising the level of competitive collegiate dance teams to a new and respected level. Dance Spirit magazine has listed them as one of the top 25 dance teams in the nation, and the team has been featured on a CBS television broadcast.

The Hornet Girlz Dance Team Holds Open Tryouts

The Sacramento State Hornet Girlz Dance Team held open tryouts on Saturday, April 14 at the Hornet Gym. The Hornet Girlz have become one of the most exciting dance squads on the West Coast, bringing home a national Hip Hop title at the USA Championships in 2005.

Dance Director Jolie Roberts and the Hornet Girlz were highlighted in a College Dance Team Central exclusive feature last summer. To read the article Click Here

For an awesome photo gallery of Saturday's tryouts featuring pictures by Matthew Beltran vist The State Hornet

The Hornet Girlz tryouts were also previewed by Matthew Beltran in The State Hornet on Friday. See below for the full article.

Looking For Talent
The Hornet Girlz Dance Team holding open tryouts Saturday

By Matthew Beltran
4/13/07
The State Hornet

The Sacramento State Hornet Girlz Dance Team will be holding open tryouts Saturday, April 14.

Applicants will be learning short routines and compete to become a Hornet Girl for the upcoming fall semester.

Held once a year at the Hornet Gym in Yosemite Hall, the team is looking for well-rounded dancers, who can fit a team dynamic, Dance Director and coach Jolie Roberts said.

"We are looking for girls who have a positive attitude and willing to the go the extra mile," Roberts said.

After the first round of cuts, applicants will learn more routines and finalist will be asked to come back the next day for interviews.

Roberts said the team would be looking for new dancers who can "gel" together as a team. Applicants come in with different backgrounds in dancing, but Roberts said she looking to add new members who can work together.

The dance team is a spirit squad on campus and performers during the football games, men's basketball game and various other events on campus.

"We have a great privilege to go out (on the field) at halftime," Roberts said," It's quite an honor."

Dancers selected in the tryouts will join the team and practice through out the summer, and a final evaluation will be done at the start of the fall semester.

Former Hornet Girlz have gone on to perform for professional squads, such as the Sacramento Kings Dance Team and the San Francisco 49ers Gold Rush.

Roberts is entering her fifth year as the team's director and coach after spending the last 20 years as a studio dancer and teacher.

The Hornetz Girlz have competed nationally and won the USA College National Hip Hop Champions of 2005.

In February the team traveled to Las Vegas and compete in the USA College National Competition and placed eighth in the Open Dance Category.