Oakland Raiderette Auditions Underway

Preliminary Raiderette Audition

By Salvador Flores
Raiders.com
April 20, 2009

The dream for many people to be part of Football’s Fabulous Females began on Sunday as approximately 300 participated in the 2009 Preliminary Raiderette Audition at Club One in downtown Oakland.

People from all walks of life woke up bright and early on a beautiful Sunday morning and arrived at 7:30 a.m. to check in, get their registration number and wait their turn to present the best of themselves to the judges.

While there was no dancing involved this time out, the candidates still had to give their best with their appearance, poise and character once they were in front of the judges’ panel. The candidates were all dressed up and ready to go as if they were at a Hollywood movie premiere, even this early in the day.

For two of the participants it was double the excitement and double the hope of making the squad as they prepared to go in front of the judges. Mother and daughter duo Beverly and Jazmin drove down from Roseville near Sacramento on Saturday to stay with friends in Walnut Creek so that they could be here early on Sunday.

Beverly was no stranger to the process as she had auditioned once before, “It was the year after they went to the Super Bowl, everyone was very excited,” said Beverly. This time around she brought her daughter who just barely missed last year’s audition. “It would be a great thing if we could both be on the sidelines dancing and cheering for the Raiders,” added Jazmin.

You may ask who persuaded who between the two to come out and give it a try and as it turns out it was the mom convincing the daughter. Perhaps there might be a third member next year as the Jazmin’s younger sister will be 18, the minimum age required to audition. She also would like to have the opportunity to perhaps one day be able to share the sidelines with her big sister and mother should they all become Raiderettes.

The judges as well as the candidates represent the diversity of the Bay Area such as city, community and business leaders, sponsors and former Raiderettes, as well as numerous ethnic groups.

This year, Madalyn Muñoz has the honor of being a judge at auditions. She would be the person to best know who would be an ideal candidate to be part of the Raiderettes as she was one herself. She was a member of the Raiderettes from 1973 to 1977 and got the opportunity to cheer the Raiders during their Super Bowl XI victory against the Minnesota Vikings in January of 1977.

With such an experience she knows what it takes to be part of such and elite group. “You can tell right away if they are potential candidate on how they portray themselves, how they walk and pivot and express themselves in public,” said Muñoz. Now a high school English teacher, she has had the opportunity to teach the sons of a Raider great who she cheered for – George Atkinson’s twin sons have been in her class.

From former Raiderettes to family duos hoping to join them, there is always the “girl-next-door” trying to become part of the Raider history, now 50 years in the making. Such is the case of Melanie who drove from Discovery Bay and also attended the prep classes in order to get ready for the auditions. “I wanted to learn the techniques that they use and gain more confidence,” said Melanie.

Many may ask the candidates why they want to join the Raiderettes and Melanie has imposed such a question on herself as well, “I question myself ‘why’ and among the many things that come to mind the adrenaline rush of performing in front of 60,000 plus people who are all looking at you perform is the main reason why for me,” Melanie explained.

As the final group goes in to present themselves, all that is left to do for all of them is to anxiously wait for the judges to deliberate and make their decisions on who will be asked to attend the final round of auditions next Sunday.

After having been there all morning and waiting for a few extra hours, all of the candidates waited for their number to be called. While it was well known that not all of them would make it to the next round, it did not prevent any of them from showing their emotions as they found out the outcome of the judges decisions. Either way it was both an exciting and learning experience for all those who attended.

The candidates who made it to the next round did not take long to realize that they needed to work even harder as the dance aspect of the audition is next along with an in-depth look at their personalities which will be all major factors into whether or not they have what it takes to be chosen as a Raiderette for the upcoming season.

To find out who makes the squad for the 2009 Raiderettes be sure to check Raiders.com next Monday.