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Scottish Rockettes Pro-Dance Team auditions took place on the 20th & 27th of May 2007 at premier health club JJB Fitness and proved to be the toughest yet in the squad's 6-year history.
Preliminaries on the 20th were a huge success with a fantastic turnout of girls all hoping to have what it takes to make it through to the Final round the following weekend. During this initial round the applicants were put through through a set of demanding fitness tests, including body-fat analysis, endurance, strength and flexibility to name just a few, in order to produce personal fitness reports to be used by the judges in the final round. Mark, Manager of JJB Fitness Club and ex-Marine, said "these fitness tests were designed to push the ladies to their limits while targeting each of the different muscle groups to identify their strengths and weaknesses. I must admit I was surprised – the dancers seemed to really enjoy it and certainly rose to the challenge!"
Next up was a Dance Technique section, where each dancer was asked to execute a series of kicks, leaps and pirouettes in isolation before they were incorporated in a demanding jazz routine taught by Dance Squad Manager Carole Anne Deeney.
A selection of dancers were asked to return the following Sunday for the final round in the audition process. After warm-up and stretch sessions the applicants were taught the remainder of the jazz routine which they were then required to perform for a celebrity judging panel.
As if the pressure wasn't intense enough, for the first time in the squad's history the dancers also had to perform in front of a TV crew who were filming this year's tryouts for an upcoming television documentary! Keep an eye on the website for information on broadcast times and channels for this exclusive feature.
The applicants coped remarkably well, almost certainly due to the extremely high standard of dance ability demonstrated on the day. This made it all the more difficult for the celebrity judging panel to narrow down their choices for the final squad. As well as their dance performance, each applicant was asked a series of questions by the judges in order to assess their personality, commitment and enthusiasm. Carole Anne, Dance Squad Manager, said, "this year's auditions were the toughest yet, the marking was so competitive and the judges spent considerable time before coming to a unanimous decision!"
Scottish Rocks Operations Director Bruce Cook said "As a judge I was hugely impressed by the level of talent and commitment on display by the girls. It was tough to pick the final squad, but this group is one that I'll be proud to have representing the Rocks both on the court and around the country. The final round of tryouts is also turning into a fantastic event that I see even greater potential for. All told, the Rockettes are a great asset to the club and we're lucky to have them. These girls ROCK!"
Carole Anne was delighted with the final selection, "with 14 returning veterans and 7 rookies it's excellent mix of experience and new talent, resulting in a first class squad!"
Again we would like to thank everyone for all their hard work and enthusiasm during this event and express our gratitude to all the dancers who turned up. I'm sure all the applicants will agree it was a great 2 days and an experience they will never forget.
In the end it was very close and we would like to wish those not lucky enough to be selected all the best and we hope to see them again for next year's tryouts.
We would also like to thank all of our judges including Adrian Coll – Clyde 1 DJ and match-day compare – and actresses June Brogan who plays Charlie and Claire Knight who plays Iona from the Scottish soap 'River City'. We really appreciate your support.
The dance team start training straight away in preparation for the first Scottish Rocks home game in October and also for a number of promotional events booked during the summer.
2007-2008 Tryouts Photo Gallery
     
Photo Gallery 1: Preliminaries
     
Photo Gallery 2: Finals
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