Green grad dances onto Cavs team

By Jim Mesko
TheSuburbanite.com
February 10, 2013

For Becky Ciocca, it’s a dream come true.

The Green graduate and nursing student at the University of Akron tried out for and made the Cavaliers Girls Dance Team, which performs at all Cavaliers home games during time outs and half time. They also take part in various Cavaliers events and mingle with the crowd before games. The team is made up of 17 girls.

“I love it,” Becky said. “It is just great that it is considered a profession. It is awesome to be dancing for my job. What is really the best thing about it is to be dancing in front of everyone at the arena. It is really cool with all that experience at the NBA level.”

Getting on the dance team is the culmination of a lot of dedication and hard work. She started dancing after her father, Jim, suggested doing that instead of gymnastics.

“It was really getting expensive with costumes, traveling to shows, and entry fees, so we decided that getting involved with the theater would not be as expensive and time consuming,” Jim said. “Boy, were we wrong on that one.”

Becky was one of the regulars at the old Theatre 8:15. She performed in more than three dozen shows.

“Becky was one of the hardest workers I ever had,” said Diane Mehok, who directed and choreographed her in many performances. “She never complained, and if she missed a practice, Becky made it up on her own time. She took great pride in what she did. It didn’t matter if she was in the front, middle or back, she always did her best and gave a topnotch performance.”

Becky also helped others during rehearsal, and it was not uncommon for her to be seen helping younger cast members with their lines and dance routines.

While in high school, Becky made the dance team and also performed in various Green theater productions.

“She made coaching fun and easy,” said her coach, Wendy Shocklee. “She was always willing to try new things and came prepared to practice. Becky was one of those girls that I knew would be able to dance after high school. She had the whole package — beautiful technique, unbelievable stage presence and a positive attitude.”

After graduation, she went to the University of Akron on a nursing scholarship, but dancing was never far away from her thoughts. She made the Akron U Dance Team, then tried out for and made the Cleveland Gladiators Dance Team.

“One day my boyfriend suggested that I try out for the Cavaliers dance team, and I decided to give it a try, not thinking I would really have a chance,” Becky said. “I made the first cuts and then went through two weeks of auditions, practices and public appearances to see how we reacted with people and vice versa.”

After the last series of tryouts, Becky made the final cut.

“I wanted so badly to make it at that moment,” she said. “When I found out I had made it, I cried tears of joy. Making it was more exciting than I ever imagined. I really didn’t think I would be so exhilarated!

What is it like to be a Cavaliers Girl?

“You have to either have a job or be in school. I would say about half the girls are in school,” Becky said. “We don’t have weigh-ins, we are just expected to look and be healthy. We normally get to the arena three to four hours before a game. We practice our routines, make last-minute changes and get dressed. We have two main outfits, plus two more we can use. About an hour before the game starts, we go down to the main level and greet people and sign autographs. About the only downside is the long drive from here up to Cleveland.”

Her family is very supportive of her position on the Cavaliers.

“My parents love it. My two brothers think it is really cool,” Becky said. “I can sometimes get them free tickets, but a lot of times they just come up to see me at a home game on their own. My grandparents haven’t had a chance to come up yet, though. I really appreciate all my family has done for me.”

Her parents go to many of the games to watch her.

“I am really proud of her,” said Becky’s mother, Ann, also a Green graduate. “She has gone so far from Green to Akron U, to the Gladiators and now the Cavaliers. I don’t know how she balances her studies with all this. But she manages. Sometimes she comes home, but I don’t get a chance to see her. I just see little piles of stuff she has left behind that I jokingly call ‘Becky sightings’.”

Jim shares his wife’s pride.

“I think her ability to perform in front of a large crowd of people has helped Becky develop into a young woman who interacts well with others,” he said. “To see the excitement on her face is so gratifying to me. Dancing is her love. And she interacts especially well with younger children. I think being a Cavaliers Girl is the culmination of her dreams.”

Perhaps, but Becky isn’t through performing yet.

“I would like to work on a cruise ship,” she said. “Or go to Los Angeles or New York and work in some bigger shows there.”