Nets Dancers Finalists

Congrats to the 17 dancers who are on their way to the Nets Dancers Finals.

Finalists with Nets Dancers Siobhan, Jessica and Bonnie
Finalists with Nets Dancers Siobhan, Jessica and Bonnie

Another audition is scheduled for Brooklyn this Saturday. Details here. Finals are next Monday night.

2011-2012 Nets Dancer Auditions

nets027.jpgMANHATTAN OPEN AUDITION – SUNDAY, JUNE 19, 11:00 A.M.

The Ailey Studios, 405 West 55th Street at 9th Avenue, New York, NY
Registration begins at 10:30 a.m. & dancers must arrive by 11:30 a.m. to participate.
Directions at http://www.alvinailey.org/about/visit-us.

BROOKLYN OPEN AUDITION – SATURDAY, JUNE 25, 1:00 P.M.

Mark Morris Dance Center, 3 Lafayette Avenue, Brooklyn, NY
Registration begins at 12:30 p.m. & dancers must arrive by 1:30 p.m. to participate.
Directions at http://markmorrisdancegroup.org/contact/directions.

AUDITION REQUIREMENTS:

– Dancers may attend either open audition.
– Dancers must be 18 or older & have at least 8 years of technical dance training.
– Tumbling skills are a plus, but not required.
– Wear fitted attire & non-marking sneakers or dance shoes.
– Arrive in performance ready hair & makeup.
– Select dancers from each open call will be invited to attend final auditions the evening of Monday, June 27.

WANT AN EDGE? SIGN UP FOR A PREP CLASS!

NETS DANCER AUDITION WORKSHOP

Tuesday, June 7, 6:30-9:30 p.m.
City Center Studios, 130 West 56th Street, New York, NY

– Learn two pieces of NETS Dancer choreography.
– Learn actual first round audition choreography.
– Receive audition tips from team captains & audition judges.
– Receive a gift bag with an exclusive NETS t-shirt & a NETS Dancer poster.
– Open to trained dancers ages 14 & older.
– $50 if pre-paid; $55 at the door.

NETS DANCER BOOT CAMP

Monday, June 13 through Friday, June 17, 6:30-9:30 p.m.
NETS Basketball Headquarters, 390 Murray Hill Parkway, East Rutherford, NJ

– Get the ultimate NETS Dancer experience!
– Spend five days training with the NETS Dancers.
– Learn two complete NETS Dancer routines straight from the court.
– Get an automatic pass through the first round of auditions!
– Receive one-on-one feedback & personalized tips from audition judges.
– Receive a gift bag with an exclusive NETS t-shirt & a NETS Dancer poster.
– Open to trained dancers ages 14 & older.
– $200 for the five-session package. Space is limited.

CALL 201-635-3147 TO SIGN UP TODAY!

Nets Dance Academy

LOOKING FOR AN EDGE AT THIS SUMMER’S NETS DANCER AUDITIONS?

Sign up now for one of our three-hour Audition Workshops, or get the ultimate NETS Dancer experience at our five-day NETS Dancer Boot Camp. For the first time, all Boot Camp participants will receive an automatic pass through the first round of auditions!

NETS DANCER AUDITION WORKSHOPS

Wednesday, May 18, 6:30-9:30 p.m. at NETS Basketball Headquarters, East Rutherford, NJ
Tuesday, June 7, 6:30-9:30 p.m. at City Center Studios, New York, NY
– Each workshop will feature two pieces of actual NETS Dancer choreography.
– Different routines will be taught at each session.
– Receive audition tips from team captains & audition judges.
– Receive a gift bag that includes an exclusive NETS t-shirt & a NETS Dancer poster.
– Open to trained dancers ages 14 & older.
– $50 per session if pre-paid; $55 at the door; $90 for two-session package.
NETS DANCER BOOT CAMP

Monday, June 13 through Friday, June 17, 6:30-9:30pm at NETS Basketball Headquarters
Get the ultimate NETS Dancer experience!
– Spend five days training with the NETS Dancers.
– Learn two complete NETS Dancer routines straight from the court.
– Receive one-on-one feedback & personalized tips from audition judges.
– Get an automatic pass through the first round of auditions!
– Receive a gift bag that includes an exclusive NETS t-shirt & a NETS Dancer poster.
– Open to trained dancers ages 14 & older.
– $200 for the five-session package. Space is limited.
CALL 201-635-3147 TO SIGN UP TODAY!

NETS Dancer Audition dates will be announced soon. Follow us at www.facebook.com/NetsDancers to be the first to know! For more information on the Nets Dancers, visit http://www.netsdancers.com

Nets Dancers, Team Hype, Nets Kids and a Bunch of NBA Mascots


Go to a Nets game and sure you expect to see the Nets Dancers, but there’s actually a whole lot more to see:

The stunters and gymnasts from Team Hype.
The stunters and gymnasts from Team Hype.
The fabulous Nets Kids
The fabulous Nets Kids
The high-flying Dunking Divas
The high-flying Dunking Divas
And Mascots
And Mascots
Lots of Mascots
Lots of Mascots
And even the Mascot's inflatable alter-egos.
And even the Mascot's inflatable alter-egos.
Friday was Nets mascot Sly Fox's birthday. And to celebrate mascots from around the NBA turned out.
Friday was Nets mascot Sly Fox's birthday. And to celebrate mascots from around the NBA turned out.
All the way from Orlando - It's Stuff with Magic Dancer Heather S.
All the way from Orlando - It's Stuff with Magic Dancer Heather S.

Okay back to the Net Dancers. For the 2011 NBA Dance Bracket each team is submitting a video of an actual game performance. For their video, the Nets Dancers pulled out all the stops. They borrowed a bar set from a friend and had Team Hype hustle it onto the court at the end of the 1st quarter.

The Nets Dancers perform at the end of the 1st Quarter Break.
The Nets Dancers perform at the end of the 1st Quarter Break.

The Nets broke out the military uniforms for a third quarter performance, they got pushed back to the 4th quarter, when the crowd started going crazy as the Nets climbed back from a 20 point deficit.

Fourth Quarter Performance
Fourth Quarter Performance

A big thanks to the Clipper Blake Griffin, who missed a free throw with 1.2 seconds remaining in regulation, sending the game into overtime and giving the Nets Dancers one more chance to dance.

End of Regulation
End of Regulation

[Nets Gallery]

[Nets Dancers]

Nets Dancers Headed to England

The Toronto Raptors and the New Jersey Nets are playing two game in London this weekend. It’s the first time the NBA has played regular season games outside of North America.

The Nets Dancers along with Team Hype and mascot Sly flew out yesterday to get a start on promoting the games.

Be sure to check out news on their trip on the Nets Dancers Blog.

Former New Jersey Nets Dancer Taylor Walker Starts Teaching Career at Sachem This Fall

taylor-walkerBy Chris R. Vaccaro
< "http://sachem.patch.com/articles/former-new-jersey-nets-dancer-taylor-walker-starts-teaching-career-at-sachem-this-fall">Sachem Patch
August 21, 2010

With the approval of Taylor Walker as a physical education teacher at Sachem High School North this week, not since, well, ever has the Sachem Central School District landed such a high profile faculty member.

A professional dancer, dance educator, free-lance broadcaster and physical fitness fanatic, Walker, 25, comes to Sachem this fall for her first high school teaching gig.

She grew up in Dix Hills, attended Half Hollow Hills West High School and recalls the days when her Colts dance team matched up against Sachem’s girls at competitions.

“We were a much smaller school and to see a team of that caliber every year be so strong with so many girls was neat,” she said. “They’re very into their community and their program and it’s a lot like a family.”

With the hire, Sachem gains an individual with a multi-faceted core, one with the development of growing up the child of a professional athlete. Her father, Wesley Walker, is a former two-time Pro Bowl receiver for the New York Jets, who ranks sixth all-time in franchise history in receptions.

Then there’s her brothers: Austin is a professional lacrosse player for the Toronto Nationals, who won a national title at Johns Hopkins, and John, a three-time All-American at Army, is an assistant lacrosse coach at the University of Virginia.

“We’ve all given 100 percent and followed through on what we love,” said Walker, who is trained in ballet, jazz, modern and hip-hop dance. “I don’t think we ever compared ourselves as much as we supported each other.”

It’s only natural that Taylor followed the athletic footprint of the Walker family and embarked on her own career in the fitness world. For two seasons she was a member of the New Jersey Nets dance team and was a co-captain for half a season before giving up the role to concentrate on earning her Master’s Degree in physical education from Hofstra University, where she is an assistant coach on the school’s dance team.

“It was a wonderful experience and the girls on the team were so talented,” she said. “I had such a great time.”

She was one of 10 dancers from the NBA selected to pose for Sports Illustrated’s coveted Swimsuit Edition in 2009. Her good fortune struck again when she was able to dance for Taylor Swift at the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards, as well as appear as the lead dancer in the movie Step Up and in commercials for Under Armour.

To think, she once worked as an intern for the Maryland State Senate after college and was hired in the first dance audition she ever attended. She did her undergraduate work in sports management at Towson University and earned a full-ride as a member of its dance team.

A go-getter at heart, Walker has spent time instructing at Royalenova in East Moriches, teaching with Dance Educators for America and pitching in at a local high school sports publication, doing broadcast pieces on the younger generation.

While more than qualified to coach and teach dance to high school girls, she has no intentions of messing with team chemistry at Sachem. Instead, she’ll be there for support if it’s needed.

“If I can ever give input or anything like that I’ll be there,” she said. “The program has been so successful for so many years. I look forward to seeing them at games and having them in class.

“It took me a while to get to this point, but everything I’ve done throughout my career has always come back to the kids.”

Weddings: Kimberlee Garris and Terry Minogue

One of the coolest people I’ve met while running this blog is Nets Entertainment Manager Kimberlee Garris. So I’m really thrilled to learn she got married this past Friday. Here’s the announcement from the New York Times:

By Vincent Mallozzi
New York Times

kimtarryKimberlee Rose Garris and Terence Michael Minogue were married Friday at Oceancliff, a resort in Newport, R.I. The Rev. Cheryl Cavalconte, an Apostolic Catholic priest, performed the ceremony, with the Rev. Charles C. Cavalconte, her husband, taking part.

The bride, 31, is the entertainment manager for the New Jersey Nets of the National Basketball Association; she oversees the rehearsals and on-court performances of more than 70 dancers, gymnasts and other entertainers. From 2003 to 2005, she performed as a New York Knicks City Dancer. She graduated summa cum laude from Harvard.

She is the daughter of Joan Garris of Pompton Plains, N.J., and Ivan Garris of Chesterfield, Va.

The bridegroom, 32, is a creative director for Spike TV, a division of MTV Networks. He manages a team of writers and producers and is responsible for creative and brand marketing for the network. He graduated cum laude from Syracuse University.

He is a son of Catherine and Richard Minogue of Medford, Mass.

The couple met in May 2003, through their respective roommates, at a bar in the East Village.

“He had the bluest eyes I had ever seen,” Ms. Garris recalled. “He also had a passion for travel and a great sense of humor, but we were both seeing other people at the time.”

In late December of that year, Ms. Garris, dressed in a Mrs. Claus outfit, was performing during a Knicks-Celtics game at Madison Square Garden. At halftime, she made her way to an area of the concourse to take part in a charity event and was surprised to see Mr. Minogue standing there.

“I had butterflies in my stomach,” she said. “I was fixated on talking to him.”

Mr. Minogue had felt much the same way and had gone to the Garden hoping to see Ms. Garris more than his beloved Celtics. “I could tell she was sort of mortified to see me because she was in that Mrs. Claus outfit, but she looked adorable,” he said. “I approached cautiously because I had no idea if she had any interest in me.”

They reconnected after the holidays, each bringing the other the same bit of news: they were now unattached.

In early January 2004, they went on their first official date, to a wine bar on the Upper East Side.

“There was just this total chemistry, and I was thinking to myself, ‘This is the guy, I know that this is the guy,’ ” Ms. Garris said.

They began dating steadily, and Mr. Minogue proposed in March 2009, in Washington Square Park. On bended knee, he presented the ring, and she began crying. But the moment was interrupted, Mr. Minogue said, by a man sitting in the park, reeking of alcohol, who began shouting to Ms. Garris, “Say yes, say yes!”

The bridegroom added, “It was one of those classic New York moments. But it was our moment, one we’ll never forget.”

Watch a video of Kim and Terry here.

Congratulations Kim and Terry!