Watch the TopCats Semi-Final Audition tonight on panthers.com beginning at 7:00 p.m!

An NBA and NFL dancer once told me, “I bet you would make a really good cheer director.” I probably gave the most quizzical look in the history of mankind, thinking, “You can’t be serious?” Why my reaction? Well, if I was given the chance to develop of cheer squad for, say, the Alabama Hammers, I would probably go in directions of either (a) the “Too Legit to Quit Dancers”, with big parachute pants and “U Can’t Touch This” quality choreography; or (b) dancers dressed like Bob the Builder called either the “Can We Fix It Dancers” or the “Can We Dance It Fixers”; or (c) dance squads built around themes inspired by Nine Inch Nails, Ezra Pound, or Pete Seeger (“The ‘If I Had a Hammer’ Dance Team”).

No, I am happy to leave dance squads to the professionals, and Huntsville’s PIFL indoor football team has a super set of talented young women. The Hammerettes have both a dance team and promo team. From the time fans enter the Von Braun Center to the time they leave, the Hammerettes greet, dance, help promotions, and say bye after the game, and all things in between.

It was definitely “Hammer time” last Saturday night, as the Hammers pounded the Columbus Lions 72-45, so the Hammerettes had a lot to cheer about. Here are some Hammerette photos below and a few more at this link.

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It was a Saturday afternoon NHL sellout in Nashville when the Predators hosted the Blackhawks on April 6th. The Preds fans were there, but also a lot a red-clad Blackhawks fans made the spring break trip south to see their hot hockey club.

But no matter if the fans were dressed in Predators or Blackhawks jerseys, they all wanted to have their photos taken with the Predators Dancers and Ice Girls, who showed their hospitality, no matter what team colors the fans were wearing. The Dancers and Ice Girls were part of game entertainment and promotions, in addition to promoting their swimsuit calendar.

And the Dancers and Ice Girls also enthusiastically helped bring awareness to the Predators annual Dog Adoption Day on the main plaza. About two dozen plus dogs from New Leash on Life, Metro Animal Care and Control, and Nashville Humane Association were available for adoption on the plaza.

Jessica of the NHL’s Redline Lady Panthers is passionate not only about dancing, but also about her obsession with all things Disney and her college major of Sign Language Interpretation. These latter two essential components of Jessica’s life came together at Disney World, and Jessica’s effervescent nature to help others was immediately apparent. “I saw a deaf woman signing to a cast member in Disney World asking when they will have an interpreter for a show,” Jessica recalls. “The cast member had no idea what to do, so I approached the woman and signed to her, offering my help, and I was able to interpret for her. It was such a great feeling.”

Similarly, Jessica not only brightens Sunrise, Florida’s BB&T Center by dancing during Florida Panthers home games, she also helps by interpretive signing often during the US and Canadian national anthems, and keeps her teammates smiling behind the scenes with her fun spirit. Jessica shared with UltimateCheerleaders how her love of performing came to fruition, including her first stage performance as an alien, why her dancing skills would be a perfect fit as goalie, and how she hopes someday, everyday will start out with her exclaiming, “I am going to Disney World!”

Jessica is a South Florida native, born and raised in Miami, although most of her extended family is from Rochester, New York. Jessica started dance young, but really hit her stride during middle school. “My interest in dance started when I was three years old taking ballet classes,” Jessica explains. “In sixth grade is when I took dance seriously. That’s when I realized I loved to dance hip-hop and jazz more than any other style of dance.”

And during these years, Jessica first public dance performance started out a bit scary for her, but then took off like a rocket from the Cape. “My first dance performance was in middle school where I dressed like an alien,” Jessica remembers. “I was super nervous and embarrassed because we had to perform in front of an audience full of seventh and eighth graders. But that dance was amazing because of our colorful outfits and strobe light effects on stage that made it look like it was in outer space. They loved it!”

“I stayed in the dance program until I went to high school, made the dance team, and I became captain,” Jessica continues. “I also was involved with the Drama club and was able to learn how to become a ‘triple threat.’ Acting and singing was definitely a fun experience and I made plenty of friends.”

Soon, Jessica jumped right from high school to the pros, just like local NBA-er LeBron did. “I found out that the Florida Panthers had a dance team and were having auditions,” Jessica explains. “So I thought, ‘Why not give it a try?’ Luckily, I made the team at 18 years old. I was so shocked when they announced my number that I had to look down to check if it really was me, and they finally announced my name. I ran to the stage and couldn’t be more proud of myself. I worked so hard and I couldn’t wait to start cheering and dancing at the hockey games.”

And as you would expect, Jessica also loved the community service events that are part being one of the Lady Panthers. “My first charity event was the Special Olympics for all those that were handicapped or had disabilities,” Jessica recalls. “It was a parade just for them! I met some fantastic people. We took so many pictures with the kids and teenagers that participated in the parade.”

“Being a Lady Panther is hard work but I love all the fans, especially the kids,” Jessica shares. “They make our experience so enjoyable when we put a big smile on their faces. I also love the overall experience, dancing on the ICE, and just the idea of working for a fantastic organization is a blessing.”

That’s right; the Lady Panthers not only dance on stage during the game, but they dance right on center ice during the interval. They don’t perform on a dry surface like a carpet, but right ON the ice with special footwear. “My first time dancing on ice was the craziest feeling ever,” Jessica explains. “I mean, who gets to say that they can dance on ICE? My adrenaline was pumping so fast I forgot about how cold it was. I had so many emotions running through my mind. I was about to step onto the ice in front of thousands of hockey fans, I just could not wait to perform for everyone watching.”

And during her two seasons with the Lady Panthers, has Jessica ever slipped on the ice? “Luckily, I have never slipped,” Jessica answers. “We get on the ice as soon as the players leave, so it isn’t so slippery, but we have to be careful. We take caution when walking on the ice, especially when we have late night ice practices. But we rehearse so much and eventually get used to it.”

So Jessica has no problems dancing on ice, but how is she at skating? Asked to rank herself on a scale of one (never skated) to ten (can do a triple axel), and her best hockey skills, Jessica responds, “My skating skills would have to be a six. I can skate, but I’m not a phenomenal skater. In that case, I would believe my skills can be helpful if I were a goalie because he doesn’t have to skate as much as the other players. The main goal is to block the puck, twisting his body and doing splits. My splits are pretty fantastic!”

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Chicago’s dubious election day history has been often been denoted as, “Vote early and often,” but down in St. Louis, there is an on-going election where voting often is just fine! Here is the link for the St. Louis Rams Cheerleader Contest and they have a limit of five votes per day.

A pair of Inland Empire 66ers Dancers

Last fall, we featured Heidi of the Tennessee Titans Cheerleaders. Heidi is a native Californian who formerly was part of the 49ers’ Gold Rush, but journeyed east to Nashville to pursue her musical dreams. Heidi’s career continues to progress, including trying out for America’s Got Talent in December and making it through the Nashville City round! Heidi tried out as a duo with another local musician, Seth Costner, who plays keys and back up vocals for Lauren Alaina. They are awaiting America’s Got Talent’s next round of decisions.

This week Heidi launched her Kickstarter website (at this link), with the goal of raising funds for her debut album. If you haven’t heard of it, Kickstarter is a funding platform for creative projects, where ideas are brought to life through the direct support of others. For music, it gives consumers the power to choose what artists/music they want to support and would like to hear more. The interesting thing is that it is based on all or nothing funding, so Heidi only receives funds if the project is 100% funded by the deadline.

Check out the site to learn more about Heidi, her music, and the Kickstarter campaign!

The television show “The Moment” gives people a second chance at their dream job. They reached out to us because right now they are looking specifically for cheerleaders who had to give up their professional dreams because of a life changing event. The flyer is below!

The_Moment_Final_Flyer

Welcome to Indy Kelly! Broncos get Peyton, Colts get Kelly, sounds like a fair deal!

The Indianapolis Colts today announced the hiring of Kelly Tilley as cheerleader manager.
Tilley will begin working with the Colts on March 18, and will oversee the Colts cheerleader and junior cheerleader programs. She spent the last 10 years with the Denver Broncos, four as a cheerleader and six in the cheerleading department, most recently as the director of junior cheerleaders and assistant to the director of cheerleading. Tilley is originally from Apple Valley, Minn. and earned a Kinesiology degree from the University of Colorado.

This upcoming Sunday, March 3rd, the Boston Cannons Dance Team will hold their auditions in Cambridge for the 2013 upcoming Major League Lacrosse season, which stretches from May through August. Ashley Wagner is Dance Team Coach/Choreographer of the Cannons Dance Team, and always assembles a squad that loves performing on the field and has interesting lives off the field filled with diverse interests and careers. If you want a glimpse of what it is like to be on the Boston Cannons sidelines at Harvard Stadium, last season, four of the members filled in UltimateCheerleaders about their feelings about being on the squad.

Last summer, I met third-year member Cara, second-year members Lauren and Deanna, and rookie Charlene. Cara explained that when she first tried out, “I was just about to graduate college, my friend asked me if I wanted to audition, so it was kind of spur of the moment, and I made it! I have been dancing for twenty years, and I want to keep active. It’s awesome to dance in front of a great big crowd.”

And personal connections are a big part of the Cannons Dance Team. Rookie Charlene said, “I actually danced with Cara in college at Salem State and she told me how fun it was, so I wanted to try out for the team.” Charlene also enjoyed performing on the big stage of Harvard Stadium. “I love performing in front of a big crowd; I love being the center of attention,” laughed Charlene. “My first game here was kind of weird because it was such a Coliseum, and I am so used to dancing on this little square stage. So it was a little weird dancing here at first because you kind of get lost on the field. ‘Oh my gosh! Where am I?!’”

Lauren learned about the BCDT similarly to Cara, and said, “Actually, my friend from college was on the team before I was, and we were on dance team in college together, and then she told me about it.” Lauren continued, “This is awesome especially because I just graduated from school, and it is something you can keep doing for dance. Because after school, you can teach but there is really no performance opportunities, and this is performance.”

Deanna was prompted to initially try-out due to an important unique connection between her college dance team and her pro dance team. “I go to Bentley University Business School, and I am on the dance team there,” Deanna explained, “and Ashley, who is the coach of this team, is the coach of Bentley University’s team. So she mentioned it to us that we might be interested in trying out.”

Was there an advantage for try-outs and the team because Ashley used the same choreography that Deanna learned at Bentley? “Not really,” Deanna replied. “She tries to not use the same choreography, because once you know a dance to a song, you are kind of stuck to that song.”

Asked what she liked about being part of the Cannons Dance Team, Deanna replied, “Definitely the performing. There are not a lot of opportunities as a dancer that you can perform for 13,000 people, eight times a summer. Definitely that thrill is why I came back.”

Part of that thrill is the atmosphere itself of dancing at Harvard Stadium. “Dancing in it is amazing,” Deanna said. “When you get out on the field before the music starts, and you just look up, and it is all these people screaming, and I am in the middle of the field.” Though this can generate some initial nerves, Deanna continued, “But it’s the adrenaline, it’s thrilling. You come back for it.”

Plus, Deanna loved the friendships among the team, and said, “We get along really well. The whole team is really good friends.”

Many of the members of the BCDT I spoke with have been dancing since they were little dancing kids. And those first performances are still vividly memorable, despite the passage of time. Deanna remembered, “I was five, and were called Country Cuties. We had red and white little cowgirl outfits, cowboy boots, and sequins everywhere. I remember the song; I can still sing it to this day. I think I was most nervous for my mom to leave backstage. I said, ‘When are you are you going to leave?! When are you are you going to leave?! Don’t leave me! Don’t leave me!’”

Lauren added, “I remember the make-up. You were allowed to wear make-up, which is what made it cool for me.”

Charlene’s mom owns a dance studio, so Charlene dance started at three and includes competing all over the US, and now teaches dance. But Charlene still envies the junior dancers from their Cannons Dance Camp that get to dance with the BCDT. “They get to be on the field with us,” Charlene said. “I think that is so cool. Someone that’s five or six dancing on a HUGE field with the pro dance team!”

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