Detroit Pride Cheerleaders Head to India
By Gina Joseph
Macomb Daily
Detroit Pride cheerleaders have been invited to perform during Sony Max TV’s international broadcast of the 2013 Pepsi Indian Premiere League Cricket Championship, April 3-May 26.
Yes, cricket.
“When I first got the call I was kind of surprised, too,” said Andrea Wolmowski.
As director of operations for Woodward Entertainment Group, she has worked with promoters on a variety of projects — from high-level productions for casinos and theaters to corporate events, but never has she been asked to partake in a show for a cricket match.
It’s a bug, after all.
To some that might be true, but to the gentleman who called her, saying the Indian entertainment company that he represented was interested in having her cheerleaders appear on Sony Max TV’s “Extraa Innings T20,” cricket is life.
What does that mean for Detroit Pride cheerleaders?
How about a free trip to India?
Not to mention a hotel room overlooking the Taj Mahal.
“They’re paying for everything,” said Wolmowski, whose Detroit-based company represents more than 100 cheerleaders, dancers, models and actors including the Motor City Kitties and Cleveland Spirit Cheerleaders. The NFL sanctioned Miami Dolphins’ cheerleaders performed during the cricket tournament last year, but so far, India’s entertainment industry remains untapped.
“We see this as a tremendous opportunity for Michigan-based entertainers,” said Jonathan Kruger of Warren, Woodward Entertainment’s production designer and creative director. Kruger, who has created props and sets for TV and film productions and will be traveling with the cheerleaders to India, said there are a ton of very talented individuals in the Detroit area looking for work. This could open up a lot of doors, Kruger said.
“The Indian Premier League dwarfs every other sporting event on the sub-continent for the crowd it draws, the TV ratings, the cash it generates and the rewards for the players,” according to a report by the Associated Press.
“I feel excited and honored,” said Lauren Bower, Detroit Pride cheerleaders and marketing director for Be Well Lifestyle Center in Birmingham. She will admit that at first she didn’t take it too seriously — it seemed too good to be true: a two-month, all-expense-paid trip to India, plus a salary?
“The last trip I made was to Mexico in 2008,” said Bower, who was one of six cheerleaders chosen by Woodward Entertainment for the show in India. Also traveling with her will be Kruger and Katlyn MacDonald, a senior at Eastern Michigan University.
“I think this is going to be unlike anything I’ve ever experienced before,” she said. “As far as performing, the culture and — the food I’m a little scared. I follow a pretty strict diet here, so it’s going to be interesting. I do like spicy food though.”
Cricket anyone?
The 2013 Pepsi Indian Premier League (IPL) Cricket Championship runs April 3-May 26. Two-years ago, it became the first sporting event to be viewed live on YouTube.
