The Latest on the Madame Ants: Voting and an Interview
Katie and Britanny greet fans prior to a Mad Ants game last spring
From the Madame Ants, the dance squad for the NBA-D league’s Fort Wayne Mad Ants, comes some news. You can vote for your favorite Madame Ant as part of the try-out process. Among them is the super-cool, super-friendly, super-talented Ana (oops, there went my unbiased reporting), who is a college student and bank teller.
Ana and Samantha greet fans and give out free stuff
Also, the Mad Ants intern, or as they refer to her in Fort Wayne, the “ANTern” (no, I don’t make this stuff up) interviews veteran Madame Ant Melanie, also a college student.
Madame Ant Melanie is second from right, from before a February 2009 game
Vote for Your Favorite Madame Ant!
Head to fortwaynehoops.com now to vote for your favorite 2010-11 Madame Ant! The girls have already gone through a grueling dance tryout, and now they must pass the ultimate test – facing the scrutiny of Mad Ants fans across the globe. The future of the Madame Ants dance team (partially) lies upon your shoulders, so vote today!
Interview with 2009-10 Madame Ant Melanie
For a closer look at the busy life of a Madame Ant, our ANTern Audrey spoke to 2009-10 Madame Ant, Melanie, about her experiences with the team. Here’s the inside scoop:
The Madame Ants try-outs were held Saturday, July 17th at the Concordia Seminary gymnasium. The first part of the day was spent learning two dances and the second half was spent performing the dances in front of the judges. WANE TV’s Terra Brantley, who has a very impressive dance background, along with three Mad Ants season ticket holders, made up the panel of judges. The interview portion of the try-outs will take place within the next two weeks, and then the 2010-2011 Madame Ants Dance Team will be announced!
This week, I (ANTern Audrey) wanted to talk about the Madame Ants, but I really don’t know much about them, so in order to get to know the team a little better I interviewed Madame Ant Melanie.
ANTern Audrey: How long have you been a Madame Ant?
Melanie: This will be my third year.
ANTern Audrey: How did you find out about the Madame Ants?
Melanie: My mom’s friend gave my mom a flyer and said that I should try out. I was kind of skeptical for a while but I went to try-outs anyway and have loved it ever since.
ANTern Audrey: How long have you cheered and danced?
Melanie: I’ve been dancing for 17 years, I love it so much. I also cheered from 5th grade to my freshman year in high school.
ANTern Audrey: What do you like about being a Madame Ant?
Melanie: There are so many things that I like. The girls eventually become your sisters and we all love each other. Also, I just love dancing and being in front of people, entertaining them. It’s what I was born to do.
ANTern Audrey: Try-outs were last week, how did they go?
Melanie: Try-outs went really well. Everyone has to try-out for the team every year and this year we had seven new girls try-out. They were all really good, everyone did their best. It was fun because it was a real bonding experience.
ANTern Audrey: What is your favorite theme night?
Melanie: 80’s night is by far my favorite. The Madame Ants love 80’s night because all of our costumes are so comfortable and we love the songs that we get to dance to.
ANTern Audrey: Do you think President Jeff Potter would be a good addition to the Madame Ants Team?
Melanie: Oh definitely. Without a doubt. We’ve got to get him out on the floor sometime.
